Sadiq Khan's much-hated Ulez expansion sparked violence on the streets of London today between protesters who can't afford to pay the charges and the police.
The flashpoint erupted outside Downing Street where campaigners against paying just to drive through their home city had been for much of the day.
It comes hours before the Ulez expansion, affecting all 32 boroughs, https://da88.trade/ will come into effect from midnight, seeing people having to pay a £12.50 daily charge to drive the most polluting vehicles around the capital.
Shocking footage saw police scuffling with some of the protesters as tempers flared over the controversial expansion which is set to bring an extra £2.5 million a day to City Hall and raise billions in the coming years.
Retired builder John Davies, 66 said: ‘Sadiq Khan is robbing me of my pension. He is taxing the poor and it's all based on lies.
‘I'm a pensioner. I'm 60 per cent disabled and I'm struggling to pay my bills
‘This man has lied time after time. He doesn't account for his actions and he has nothing but contempt for ordinary people. It's disgusting.
‘I've worked all my life since I was 15 - 51 years of working my guts out.. I have a van that they say is non-compliant. It's a 2009 diesel. The emissions are no different from the vehicles they say are compliant. He's just plucked out a date from the air and it's poorer people who can't afford newer vehicles that are being punished. It's disgraceful.
‘He's conning us out of our hard earned money. I only drive 3,00 to 4,000 miles a year. I don't do the mileage to cause a lot of pollution yet they want me to pay £12.50 a day. It's outrageous.
‘I'm living on a state pension of £186-a-week.'
Police officers restrain a protest outside Downing Street during a Ulez demonstration today
Amongst those attending the demonstration was Nigel Farage - former leader of the Brexit Party
Khan's Ulez dream got off to a troubled start this morning as dozens of cameras designed to catch non-compliant vehicles were vandalised.
Protesters who are against the scheme have damaged and destroyed cameras across London by spraying them with paint, covering the lenses, cutting wires and even demolishing the poles they stand on.
In Bromley more than a dozen cameras were vandalised before the expansion came into effect at midnight, while residents living in Chessington welcomed the CCTV installed on their street being taken out of action by vigilantes.
At midday protesters against the move gathered outside Downing Street in central London to voice their discontent as the backlash continues to grow - with police even seen grapping with the activists at one point.
And this morning the Transport for London (TfL) number plate checker website slowed to a crawl under the sheer number of people trying to see if their cars are non-compliant.
It comes as the Mayor of London insisted he was not 'anti-car' for implementing the expansion, which means people will have to pay £12.50 a day to drive certain vehicles into the city.
These include diesel vehicles from 2014 or earlier, petrol vehicles from 2006 or earlier and motorcycles from 2001 or earlier, although vehicles from 1973 or earlier are exempt.
Protesters gather outside Downing Street this afternoon to protest against the expansion of the Ulez scheme
Demonstrators hold signs saying 'Stop the toxic air lie' and 'stop the Ulez' outside Downing Street
Police officers restrain a protest outside Downing Street during a Ulez demonstration today
An Ulez camera in Chessington had its lens covered with white spray paint by vigilantes
Ulez camera electrics have been sprayed and destroyed in South London
The move, which Mr Khan says will help battle pollution in the capital, will bring an extra £2.5million a day into City Hall and is set to raise billions in the coming years. Tories have branded the policy a 'money-raising exercise' with Transport Secretary Mark Harper saying he would have blocked it if he had the power.
The flashpoint erupted outside Downing Street where campaigners against paying just to drive through their home city had been for much of the day.
It comes hours before the Ulez expansion, affecting all 32 boroughs, https://da88.trade/ will come into effect from midnight, seeing people having to pay a £12.50 daily charge to drive the most polluting vehicles around the capital.
Shocking footage saw police scuffling with some of the protesters as tempers flared over the controversial expansion which is set to bring an extra £2.5 million a day to City Hall and raise billions in the coming years.
Retired builder John Davies, 66 said: ‘Sadiq Khan is robbing me of my pension. He is taxing the poor and it's all based on lies.
‘I'm a pensioner. I'm 60 per cent disabled and I'm struggling to pay my bills
‘This man has lied time after time. He doesn't account for his actions and he has nothing but contempt for ordinary people. It's disgusting.
‘I've worked all my life since I was 15 - 51 years of working my guts out.. I have a van that they say is non-compliant. It's a 2009 diesel. The emissions are no different from the vehicles they say are compliant. He's just plucked out a date from the air and it's poorer people who can't afford newer vehicles that are being punished. It's disgraceful.
‘He's conning us out of our hard earned money. I only drive 3,00 to 4,000 miles a year. I don't do the mileage to cause a lot of pollution yet they want me to pay £12.50 a day. It's outrageous.
‘I'm living on a state pension of £186-a-week.'
Police officers restrain a protest outside Downing Street during a Ulez demonstration today
Amongst those attending the demonstration was Nigel Farage - former leader of the Brexit Party
Khan's Ulez dream got off to a troubled start this morning as dozens of cameras designed to catch non-compliant vehicles were vandalised.
Protesters who are against the scheme have damaged and destroyed cameras across London by spraying them with paint, covering the lenses, cutting wires and even demolishing the poles they stand on.
In Bromley more than a dozen cameras were vandalised before the expansion came into effect at midnight, while residents living in Chessington welcomed the CCTV installed on their street being taken out of action by vigilantes.
At midday protesters against the move gathered outside Downing Street in central London to voice their discontent as the backlash continues to grow - with police even seen grapping with the activists at one point.
And this morning the Transport for London (TfL) number plate checker website slowed to a crawl under the sheer number of people trying to see if their cars are non-compliant.
It comes as the Mayor of London insisted he was not 'anti-car' for implementing the expansion, which means people will have to pay £12.50 a day to drive certain vehicles into the city.
These include diesel vehicles from 2014 or earlier, petrol vehicles from 2006 or earlier and motorcycles from 2001 or earlier, although vehicles from 1973 or earlier are exempt.
Protesters gather outside Downing Street this afternoon to protest against the expansion of the Ulez scheme
Demonstrators hold signs saying 'Stop the toxic air lie' and 'stop the Ulez' outside Downing Street
Police officers restrain a protest outside Downing Street during a Ulez demonstration today
An Ulez camera in Chessington had its lens covered with white spray paint by vigilantes
Ulez camera electrics have been sprayed and destroyed in South London
The move, which Mr Khan says will help battle pollution in the capital, will bring an extra £2.5million a day into City Hall and is set to raise billions in the coming years. Tories have branded the policy a 'money-raising exercise' with Transport Secretary Mark Harper saying he would have blocked it if he had the power.
