Prime minister Rishi Sunak has announced the next general election will take place on 4 July 2024. In this article, originally published in January 2024, we break down the key motoring issues set to influence the vote:
What do UK motorists want from the general election?
Unless you’re an ever-grinning Ford Escort RS2000 Mk1 owner living somewhere in the hills, it’s highly likely that in 2024 you’re already utterly fed up trying to engage in the simple act of driving from A to B.
On 25 November 2022, day-to-day road use hit rock bottom for many drivers when London mayor Sadiq Khan announced plans to expand the city’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) from 29 August 2023.
In the run-up to the expansion’s introduction, voters choosing an MP to replace Boris Johnson in Uxbridge and South Ruislip on 20 July 2023 severely wounded the prospect of similar plans being implemented across the country after what became a ULEZ protest vote.
The parliamentary seat was expected to go to Labour, but the Conservatives campaigned heavily against the zone and scraped their way to victory.
Prime minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer each recognised the significance. Conservative and Labour policy brains, mindful that a general election could be imminent, realised 42 million full driving licence holders was a lot of potentially hacked-off voters.
The perfect storm had been generated: drivers with non-compliant cars were without options because public transport was woefully inadequate; there were issues around road repairs, congestion, parking, EV charging, fuel prices…
Road users had had enough: Uxbridge and South Ruislip raised the flag. On 29 September 2023, the government declared the “war on drivers” was over.
New rules restricted impositions of 20mph limits, bus lanes and low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs). Then, on 2 October, it launched its ‘Plan for Drivers’.
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Typical of Autocar to avoid any issues about the impact of petrol and diesel cars on the environment or on people's health. Why didn't they ask opinions of people impacted by these isues? The facts are that internal combustion cars pollute our environment and are poisononous to health. There are also woefully inefficient and most of the fossil fuel we pour into them is wasted as heat. What we need from the next government is a massive expansion of home-grown renewable energy to power a massively expanded fleet of electric vehciles. At the same time reducing the impact of 'fossilflation' caused by the price volatility of imported fossil fuels. Any government which doesn't deliver cleaner air and reduced pollution will have failed the future test like the current one has.
Election day takes place on 4 july in order to celebrate UK independrnce from the US.
It needs to be acknowledged that the ULEZ expansion - not the original ULEZ zone in London - was a disastrous mistake. Not just in imposing crippling costs on many least able to pay, but also in forming a backlash against more sensible environmental measures. It also seems that any air quality improvement (in the outer zone) will be very slight at best, whilst leading to an INCREASE in overall carbon emissions! (Due to cars being scrapped ahead of end of life, and switching from diesel to petrol with worse carbon emissions.)
But most of all, much of the outrage is due to drivers being told that using vehicles *they already own* - in many cases not that old - will incur a huge financial penalty. That's very different to the announcements about only ZEVs being *able to be sold* as new cars from a certain date. The latter will not afffect anyone's ability to drive any car they already own, whilst giving manufacturers a degree of certainty about planning for the future, even if inertia would make them prefer just to keep a status quo.
This is wrong Davey. ULEZ is about reducing pollution that harms the health of London residents. The reason you think this isn't an issue is because you've been brainwashed by propaganda from the fossil fuel industry pumped out via outlets like Top Gear and Autocar. Get with the programme, turn your back on fossil fuel and live a happier life free from fossil fuel propaganda. Thankfully this is now possible, due to electrification.