Sadiq Khan condemns ULEZ protesters as far right

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has described protesters rallying against the ultra-low emission zone expansion as far right, Covid deniers and Tories.

He was holding a People's Question Time event at Ealing Town Hall on Thursday where demonstrators gathered outside.

It is a chance to quiz the mayor and London Assembly members on various topics, but ULEZ dominated the meeting.

A spokesman said Mr Khan's remarks were made in relation to people holding placards with far-right motifs.

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Currently motorists who use the most polluting cars have to pay £12.50 a day if they drive in London's congestion zone, which is within the capital's North and South Circular Roads.

The expansion, set to happen in August, will mean that the whole of the capital is within the ULEZ area.

'We are not the far right'

Amid heckles from some audience members inside Ealing Town Hall in west London, Mr Khan said: "What I find unacceptable is some of those who've got legitimate objections [about ULEZ] joining hands with some of those outside, who are part of a far-right group."

He added: "Let's be frank, let's call a spade a spade. Some of those outside are part of the far right. Some are Covid deniers, some are vaccine deniers and some are Tories."

As the mayor said this, an audience member called out: "We are not the far right, normal people are not the far right."

Some of the protesters outside the town hall gathering on Thursday evening were seen with placards saying the expansion would be an "end of free movement" and cited a "UN agenda".

One placard, a photograph of which was supplied to the BBC by the mayor's office, depicted Mr Khan in an image including a swastika and a hammer-and-sickle symbol.

Piers Corbyn was also present outside the town hall, although there is no suggestion he was holding an offensive placard. Mr Corbyn, the brother of former Labour leader Jeremy, is known for his views that the coronavirus pandemic was a hoax and that Covid vaccines are dangerous.

Demonstrators gathered outside Ealing Town Hall on Thursday evening

Mr Khan later told the People's Question Time event: "There are people with legitimate concerns. We're seeking to address those, and we'll make sure we carry on listening, to make the ULEZ a success."

Conservative assembly member Peter Fortune hit back at Mr Khan, prompting cheers from some members of the audience when he said: "You heard it, didn't you? If you disagree with the mayor, he's going to paint you as far right.

"If you disagree with the mayor, he's going to say you're a science denier, he's going to say you're a Covid denier, he's going to say you're a flat earther, he's going to say you think there are aliens in Buckingham Palace, and Mr Blobby shot Kennedy.

"He's going to throw all this stuff at you, because he doesn't want to address the fact you've got legitimate concerns."

One audience member challenged Mr Khan over the fact that the ULEZ expansion was not included in his 2021 election manifesto, while other questions were concerned with how much evidence there was to support the claim that the scheme would reduce pollution.

Reacting to Mr Khan's comments later, leader of the City Hall Conservatives Susan Hall said: "Sadiq Khan behaved appallingly at People's Question Time, smearing people who have serious concerns about his ULEZ plans as far right, and being frankly dishonest about his record and the London Assembly members who scrutinise him."

A spokesperson for Mr Khan said: "The mayor completely stands by his decision to call out the vile banners on display outside the event in Ealing.

"Those who came to protest included some of most dangerous spreaders of vaccine conspiracy theories and people displaying Nazi symbols. Whether in London or in any other part of the country, dangerous conspiracy theories and abhorrent far-right activity should always be condemned in the strongest possible form."

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The expansion plan has been met with opposition from councils in outer London and the home counties. It has been argued that as there is a cost-of-living crisis, the timing is not ideal - a view put forward by consumer finance expert Martin Lewis at an event last month where he and Mr Khan clashed.

Mr Khan argues that five million more Londoners will breathe cleaner air if the ULEZ expansion covers the whole of the capital. Citing research commissioned by City Hall, Mr Khan says 4,000 premature deaths a year in London are due in part to poor air quality.

Analysis

Susana Mendonça, BBC Radio London political reporter

The comments by Sadiq Khan - which his office say were not "an outburst" but were a "calmly delivered statement" - is a difficult message for him to sell, because he appears to be saying that people who protest against his ULEZ expansion are aligning themselves with the right wing.

Some will see that as the mayor trying to shut down legitimate debate from those who are concerned about ULEZ expansion for all sorts of reasons, from the financial impact, to the shortage of public transport links in outer London compared with inner London.

Others will point to the uncomfortable reality for the mayor of London that there is a growing swell of opposition to the ULEZ coming from some on his own side.

Some Labour MPs in outer boroughs have already spoken out against it. Some Labour councils in London have expressed concern; even a trade union recently warned about the impact on low-paid Heathrow workers of introducing the £12.50 a day charge for older, more polluting vehicles.

Some Liberal Democrats have also said the project needs a better scrappage scheme and better transport links before it's rolled out in August. None of those critics could be described as "right wing".

By bunching London's Conservatives in with the "far right" and "conspiracy theorists", Sadiq Khan is unlikely to improve his already-strained relationship with several Conservative-run London boroughs.

But the Mayor may think it will help him shore up support among those who believe tough action is needed to improve London's air quality.

Additional reporting by Noah Vickers, Local Democracy Reporting Service

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