Sadiq Khan slammed for ‘taking Londoners for fools’

Sadiq Khan has been slammed for “taking Londoners for fools” after the Mayor of London appeared to scrap one more coverage with out session. Earlier this week, Mr Khan revealed that he has “got rid of” London’s day by day journey playing cards, regardless of beforehand saying there could be a session over the problem. Speaking to MyLondon, he mentioned: “We’re keeping the weekly and limited travel cards, but unfortunately, because of Government conditions, we’ve got rid of the daily travel cards.”

Previously, Mr Khan has all the time mentioned the London meeting is “consulting” on the problem.

His newest remarks seem to verify that he has determined to scrap the day by day journey card.

Reacting to the news, Nick Rogers AM, City Hall Conservatives transport spokesperson acccused Mr Khan of working a “phoney consultation”.

He instructed the Daily Express: “Sadiq Khan has once again taken Londoners for fools, running a phoney consultation when he has already decided the outcome.

“He is already dealing with the High Court for his improper session on ULEZ and an investigation by the GLA monitoring officer for the quilt up.

“The Mayor is hitting lower income Londoners to raise money for TfL, and should stop misleading Londoners into thinking his consultations are anything more than a sham.”

Earlier this week, Transport for London mentioned it’s “engaging with key stakeholders to develop our (TfL’s) impact assessment on the potential change.”

If withdrawn, prospects travelling in a single day must use pay as you go utilizing contactless or Oyster, or purchase paper single/return tickets to journey on TfL companies.

Mr Khan mentioned: “The Government has said to TfL […] because of the pandemic, you have to make cuts of £600 million and raise revenues of £500 million.

“The Government required us to take away the journey playing cards.

“We’re keeping the weekly and limited travel cards, but unfortunately, because of Government conditions, we’ve got rid of the daily travel cards.

“And these Conservatives crying crocodile tears want to understand the duty and blame lies squarely on the shoulders of the Government.”

Mr Khan has faced growing backlash in recent months for his plans to expand the Ultra Low Emission Zone in London, with the Mayor facing a High Court challenge over the plans.

It is understood a judge accepted a request from five Tory councils – Harrow, Hillingdon, Bromley, Bexley and Surrey county council – for a judicial review of the mayor’s plans.

The hearing, taking place in July, will effectively decide whether Mr Khan acted legally or illegally in giving the go-ahead for the scheme’s expansion. The £12.50 ULEZ charge applies to vehicles that do not meet up-to-date emissions standards and currently covers inner London.

Howard Cox from FairFuel accused the Mayor of “cash-grabbing”, saying that the plans are “not solely contemptible however now possibly seen to be illegal”.

He called for an independent public inquiry into what he dubbed “immoral behaviour”.

Mr Cox claimed Mr Khan made “false and dishonest” statements to the London Assembly and “manipulated ULEZ outcomes.”

But a spokesperson for the Mayor described the legal battle as “expensive and misguided”.

Responding to the claims about the daily travelcard, a spokesperson for the Mayor of London told the Daily Express: “As required by circumstances of the Government’s emergency funding deal through the pandemic, Transport for London has been pressured to discover a proposal to finish day Travelcards to be used on the TfL community. This sort of change doesn’t require a session, however TfL is within the means of in search of data on potential impacts and doable mitigations. The Mayor has not but decided on the way in which ahead, and can achieve this primarily based on TfL’s recommendation when he receives it.

“The Mayor has done everything in his power to offset the negative consequences of the funding deal. This includes providing extra funding from City Hall to prevent bus cuts and to ensure weekly and longer-term Travelcards are not impacted. If the Government were able to provide funding for it, TfL would be able to drop these proposals immediately. There are also no proposals to make any changes to the daily pay as you go caps on contactless or Oyster cards.

“The Mayor will continue to lobby the Government for the national investment London needs so that we can continue delivering a world-class transport network– something that is so crucial to building a greener, fairer and more prosperous London for everyone.”