Ed Warner: Why sport shouldn’t waste its time courting royals and politicians August 24, 2023 Politicians and royals rarely mix well with sport, so the fuss about the Prime Minister and Duke of Cambridge missing the Women’s World Cup final was classic British nonsense. In my experience, the less time spent trying to sprinkle dubious stardust on sporting events, the better. Civil servants and UK Sport spent ridiculous time that [...]
ULEZ: Ministers tried (and failed) to overrule Sadiq Khan scheme’s London-wide expansion August 23, 2023 The government unsuccessfully attempted to use powers to overrule Sadiq Khan’s expansion of the ULEZ scheme, it has been revealed. Ministers were reportedly looking into an obscure legal route to obstruct the mayor’s plans to expand the ultra low emission zone (ULEZ) throughout the capital but were told it would fall down in court. But [...]
Khan using a ‘sledgehammer to crack a nut’ with ULEZ, says minister August 21, 2023 Sadiq Khan’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) policy is using a “sledgehammer to crack a nut,” the minister for London has said. Paul Scully told TalkTV: “I think the further you get out of the city… clearly the less impact something like the ultra low emission zone is going to have.” “You can see here [...]
ULEZ camera vandalism ‘will not stop’ London expansion despite 300 incidents this month August 18, 2023 Transport for London (TfL) vowed that vandalism of ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) cameras “will not stop” the scheme’s expansion. The transport body issued the statement after the Metropolitan Police said it had recorded 288 crimes relating to the cameras as of August 1, and released an image of a suspect. The BBC said there had [...]
Brits think almost half of England is ‘built on’ – but real figure is less than 10 per cent August 17, 2023 Brits think almost half of land in England is built on by towns, roads or rail lines – despite the real figure being under nine per cent, polling has revealed. Six in 10 people in England also say retaining the current green belt should come before meeting housing needs, researchers at Ipsos for the Economist [...]
London tenants continue to suffer as rent reaches £597 per week August 14, 2023 The amount Londoners fork out on rent grew 12 per cent year-on-year in July, new figures show, topping £597 per week. According to data from London estate agent Foxtons, July saw an average of 21 rental applicants per new home arriving on the market, an 18 per cent increase month-on-month, however a 12 per cent [...]
Avoid ULEZ options but tackle air pollution, Starmer says August 14, 2023 Cities should look at other options for tackling air pollution instead of schemes like London’s ULEZ (ultra low emission zone), Sir Keir Starmer has suggested. The Labour leader said no-one in the UK should be “breathing dirty air” but added that proposals for reducing air pollution should not have a disproportionate impact on people’s pockets [...]
“Dogma”: Why Seat’s boss is no fan of UK’s 2030 ban on petrol engines August 13, 2023 The British boss of the Volkswagen-owned automakers Seat and Cupra has blasted the UK government’s 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles as inflexible “dogma.” “I don’t think the solution is prohibition,” Wayne Griffiths, who serves as CEO of both European marques, told the Sunday Times. “I don’t think that’s the [...]
Starmer parks nationwide ULEZ plans in attempt to woo motorists August 13, 2023 Keir Starmer has ditched Labour’s commitment to introduce Ulez-style clean air zones across the country, in a loss for Mayor Sadiq Khan. According to reports, a statement supporting the roll-out of clean air zones, which charge drivers whose vehicles fail to meet emissions standards, has been scrapped from the party’s policy programme. It follows Labour’s [...]
BusinessLDN launches plan to help London workers get higher paying jobs August 11, 2023 A plan to tackle skill shortages and help Londoners get higher paying jobs has been launched by business advocacy group BusinessLDN, after new figures revealed that the capital has higher unemployment levels than the rest of England. The Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP), which has received backing from London Mayor Sadiq Khan, aims to highlight [...]