Another stealth tax for local motorists - 20/10/03

Peter Forrest, Conservative GLA Candidate for Enfield-Haringey, today warned
that the Labour Government is accelerating plans to levy another stealth tax
on drivers through the introduction of road charging.

In September, the Department for Transport appointed a ‘road charging
steering group’ to report back on the practical implementation of
introducing these new taxes. Now, the Labour think tank, the Institute for
Public Policy Research, whose Director is currently seconded to Downing
Street to write the next Labour manifesto, has recommended road pricing of
10 pence a km for rural motorists and 20 pence a km for urban motorists.
This would raise £16 billion a year and be on top of petrol tax.

Commenting on the plan, Peter forrest said:

“In London, Ken Livingstone supported by Labour and the Liberal Democrats,
are already hammering drivers with a new anti-car tax – an annual cost of
£1,260 a year, and the tax zone is to be extended.

Now Labour are planning a new stealth tax to hit motorists an extra £16
billion in taxes. The plan would mean that a return car journey into Central
London would cost around £11.80# from Enfield Town and £9.40# from Wood
Green in taxes alone [# including £5 congestion charge].

Only Conservatives have pledged to oppose these new taxes. Motorist already
pay huge sums to the Chancellor through taxes on new cars, road fund
licence, petrol taxes and even tax on their car insurance yet only a small
amount is ploughed back into improving our road system. Labour and the
Liberal Democrats seem to be aping Dennis Healey and want to tax motorists
'until the pips squeak'.

ENDS.

Notes to Editors

IPPR proposals

The proposals from the Labour think tank, the IPPR, Putting the brakes on
climate change, were announced on 14 October 2003.
http://www.ippr.org.uk/home/index.php?table=press&id=258

The report recommends, “Congestion charging should be one of the key policy
measures taken forward in the Government’s review of the Ten Year Plan for
Transport in 2004… The Government should start to develop options for
introducing congestion charging on a revenue raising basis whereby charges
are added on top of fuel duty costs… The average money cost per km could be
just over 10 pence a for a rural motorist and about 20 pence for an urban
motorist… A revenue raising charge… could potentially raise an additional
£16 billion a year.”

In September, the Director of the IPPR, Matthew Taylor was appointed to the
Number 10 Policy Directorate “on secondment to begin working on the next
election manifesto” (The Times, 4 September 2003). The Downing Street
website explains, “he will have lead responsibility within the Number 10
Policy Directorate for policy planning for the next Parliament and
strengthening links on policy between Number 10 and the Labour Party and the
wider policy community” (http://www.pm.gov.uk/output/Page13.asp).

Whitehall plans for Road charging

The Department for Transport is currently drawing up “practical option for
the design and implementation of a new system for charging for road use in
the UK”. The members of the “Road charging steering group” were announced in
September and will report next year.
http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_transstrat/documents/page/dft_tran
sstrat_024124.hcsp

Powers to levy new taxes

Labour have already pushed through a series of new laws allowing taxes to be
imposed on driving on roads or parking at work: the Greater London Authority
Act 1999 for London, the Transport Act 2000 for England and Wales, and the
Transport (Scotland) Act 2001 for Scotland.

Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats support the introduction of these new taxes.
·	Tom Brake MP, as Liberal Democrat spokesman for Transport, has called for
congestion charging across the country. “Congestion charging looks like it
will be a success. The Government must provide leadership so that other
local authorities considering introducing a similar system can proceed with
the backing of the Government” (Press Association, 24 February 2003). He has
added, “we welcome road congestion charging” (HC Debs, col. 1183, 9 July
2003).

·	His colleague, Don Foster MP, when senior transport spokesman, has
asserted “Congestion charging success should be rolled out across UK”
(Liberal Democrat press release, 19 August 2003).

·	LibDem transport spokesman, John Thurso MP, has admitted it would involve
higher taxation, “those who have access to good public transport can and
should be expected to pay more for choosing to use their cars” (Liberal
Democrat press release, 15 October 2003).