Voters could be given the opportunity to scrap an extension of Sadiq Khan’s green Ulez vehicle tax if the Tories take power in London.
Samuel Kasumu, an ex-adviser to Boris Johnson who wants to be the Tory contender at the next mayoral election, has said he would permit outer boroughs to hold referenda on remaining in the scheme.
Sadiq Khan plans to expand the Ultra Low Emission Zone to all 32 boroughs of London in August, meaning owners of older and more polluting vehicles will have to pay £12.50 daily charge to travel around the capital, but the plans have sparked a fierce fightback from political adversaries and campaigners who say it will unfairly hit small businesses.
Mr Kazumu, 35, said the issue would be a key battleground in the next mayoral election in 2024, which could take place on the same day as the general election.
He told a newspaper outlet that they’ve got to do things in a responsible manner and that they have to be able to take people with them. You can’t just impose your will onto folks who don’t want it.
He said he will pledge that within the first 12 months to have a local referendum for every outer London borough so they can be empowered with the choice about how they respond to what Sadiq Khan has done.
However, Mr Kasumu faces an uphill task to get elected, with new polling showing Tory support in freefall in the Capital.
A YouGov poll put the Tories on just 18 per cent, 40 points behind Labour, whose lead is the largest since the company began polling in the city in 2010.
It could see the party lose 12 of its existing 19 Westminster seats in London if replicated at the next election.
Mr Kasumu was a special adviser to the Prime Minister on civil society until April 2021. Then stepped down when a Government-backed review said Britain was no longer a country where the system was intentionally rigged against ethnic minorities.
He later said some Conservatives believe the path to victory at the next election includes exploiting division and warned a culture war will lead to murder on Britain’s streets.
He’s presently a councillor on Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council in Hertfordshire. He is originally from Barnet and studied business and management accounting at Brunel University, where he was student president. He graduated with a 2:1 and later received a postgraduate degree in Ethnicity, Migration, and Policy from Birbeck, University of London.
Sadiq Khan is destroying London, and there are very few who will vote for him now, or at least admit to voting for him, and why vote, just scrap it altogether? All votes are fixed anyway!
Londoners get charged to drive around their own city, on top of paying motor tax, duty on fuel et cetera, what a total racket, and for all those people out there who believe there’s no environmental cost, with electric vehicles, are in for a rude awakening.
The problem with people in government is sadly none of them can be trusted and they’re all duplicitous liars, and Mayors should be ceremonial only.
Sadiq Khan should never have been permitted such a long term as mayor. He’s ruined London and continues to do so, and he should never be considered for another term.
Ulez has no bearing on climate change or air pollution, and Sadiq Khan is just raking in money.
If this was really about the issue of pollution, the mayor would be saying that you can’t drive into these zones under any circumstances because it’s killing people, but instead, he’s saying you can kill people as long as you pay, but he won’t let you do it for free – it’s purely a money-making scheme.
THE MONTHLY MOSQUITO 