Vehicles to be scrapped under Ulez can go to Ukraine

The vehicles donated as part of the Ulez scheme will be permanently transferred to Ukrainian authorities

A number of vehicles eligible for scrappage as part of London's ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) scheme are to be sent to Ukraine, Sadiq Khan has announced.

Transport for London (TfL) is to alter regulations to allow non-compliant vehicles to be donated to the war-torn country.

It comes after Transport Secretary Mark Harper told London's mayor there was no "legal barrier" to cars being donated to Ukraine through the scheme.

Among the vehicles to be sent will be 50 decommissioned ambulances from the London Ambulance Service.

Sadiq Khan said the move would "help meet medical and humanitarian needs while also helping to remove old polluting vehicles from London's roads"

Under the Ulez scrappage scheme, Londoners are able to receive money in exchange for submitting their Ulez non-compliant vehicle for destruction, or in a few cases to be retrofitted.

Mr Khan had asked Mr Harper in December to enable 4x4s and other suitable vehicles that would otherwise be scrapped to be sent to Ukraine, with their owners still receiving a payment.

He says these plans, which could be launched in weeks, "will help meet medical and humanitarian needs while also helping to remove old polluting vehicles from London's roads".

Applicants will be able to donate vehicles that are not Ulez compliant in return for the same grant payment available to drivers who scrap or retrofit their vehicles.

The donated vehicles will be permanently transferred to Ukrainian authorities and their partners for humanitarian and medical needs.

The scheme could be launched once it has been given formal approval and TfL has updated its rules and processes.

'Unique opportunity'

Under the plans, charity British-Ukrainian Aid will facilitate the donation of suitable vehicles to Ukraine, provide the relevant documentation for people to receive their scrappage grant, transfer the vehicles to Ukraine and report on the number of vehicles donated in this way.

Eduard Fesko, chargé d’affaires of Ukraine in the UK, said the move provided a "unique opportunity to give a second life to vehicles by donating them to Ukraine, which can help save human lives".

Conservative mayoral hopeful Susan Hall said: "Nothing was stopping Sadiq Khan doing this over a year ago."

She added that most of the vehicles may have already been scrapped.

Rob Blackie, the mayoral candidate for the Liberal Democrats, welcomed that Mr Khan had "finally got around" to changing the rule but called for the scheme to be opened up to people to "retrospectively apply".

BBC News has also contacted the Green Party at City Hall for a response.