ULEZ: Tory candidates for London mayor on Ultra Low Emission Zone and housing

All three Conservative mayoral hopefuls have reiterated their pledges to cancel the planned Ultra-Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) expansion if voted into office next May - though one clarified the inner London zone would remain in place.

Susan Hall, Daniel Korski and Mozammel Hossain were speaking in front of Conservative party members in the capital for the first time at a hustings on Friday (June 16).

Quizzed by chair Nickie Aiken, MP for the Cities of London and Westminster, the three potential candidates laid out their vision for London, with a few personal anecdotes thrown in for good measure.

When asked what their priorities would be from day one if elected, all three reiterated their pledges to cancel the ULEZ expansion, currently penned in to incorporate all of greater London from August 29 this year.

Both Mr Hossain, a Kings Counsel barrister who was a surprise inclusion on the shortlist, and Mr Korski, a tech entrepreneur who previously worked in Number 10 under David Cameron, said they would roll the expansion back from day one.

“I will absolutely do something about it on the very first day,” said Mr Korski.

Ms Hall, a current London Assembly Member (AM) and former leader of Harrow Council, who has been a vocal opponent of the ULEZ expansion in City Hall, described it as a “ridiculous, dreadful tax”.

She clarified that she would not remove the inner London zone, as it currently is, but would stick to cancelling the expansion. Instead, Ms Hall said she would review other ways of improving air quality without the scheme.

“If we look at outer London, there are hotspots, so you just look at what is causing the issue in that hotspot. It could be that there’s several buses that need to be electrified, so that’s something. I know it’s expensive, but there is a budget there to do it,” she said.

“We must be doing things like electrifying buses, but we should not be taxing the most hardworking Londoners for coming into London.”

London housing and crime

Other than the ULEZ, crime and the cost of housing in London were among the other topics discussed at-length during the event.

All three potential candidates spoke on the need to improve policing in the capital, though suggestions as to how to tackle crime differed.

Mr Hossain said he would ensure all officers spend regular time on the streets as a means of increasing police presence, and that he would look to up investment from City Hall.

Mr Korski said he would focus on investing more in community-led policing, while Ms Hall promised she would put a special unit into basic command units “to specifically look at burglaries and theft etc”.

On housing affordability, all three agreed in principle that more homes need to be built.

Ms Hall said she does not want to see any construction on the green belt, and that she will look to increase the number of low-rise family properties, rather than one or two-bedroom homes in high-rise blocks.

Mr Hossain backed further construction on Transport for London (TfL) land, something Mr Khan has been implementing during his time as mayor.

Mr Korski said there is a necessity to “build, build, build,” with a focus on inner and central London.

Further hustings are due to be hosted before party members vote for their preferred candidate. The winner will be announced on July 19, with the mayoral election due to be held in May 2024.

Recent polling by consultants Redfield and Wilton Strategies suggested Mr Khan remains the frontrunner ahead of next year’s election, sitting at 41% of the vote, eight points ahead of the Conservatives on 33%.