PM Sunak Orders Review Of Anti-Car Schemes (But Not The Petrol Car Ban)

Rishi Sunak promised drivers that he is “on their side” as he ordered a review of controversial anti-car schemes being rolled out across Britain.

In an interview with The Telegraph, the Prime Minister said the vast majority of people “are dependent on their cars” and that “anti-motorist” policies fail to take account of how “families live their lives”.

Mr. Sunak has ordered the Department for Transport (DfT) to carry out a review of low-traffic neighborhoods (LTNs), which often use cameras, giant planters, and bollards to turn away cars.

A source said he was “concerned by the levels of congestion outside the roads in which they are implemented”, amid fears that the measures simply displace traffic to neighboring areas.

The source added: “Of course, we want better air quality. But people have to consent and be happy to live in areas where, to varying degrees, cars and vans are blocked.”

Mr. Sunak said: “The vast majority of people in the country use their cars to get around and are dependent on their cars. When I’m lucky enough to get home to North Yorkshire, it’s more representative of how most of the country is living, where cars are important.

“I just want to make sure people know that I’m on their side in supporting them to use their cars to do all the things that matter to them.”

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister faced mounting pressure to delay the 2030 phase-out of petrol and diesel cars as it emerged that Chris Stark, the head of the committee on climate change, had told MPs the 2030 ban on the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles may be too soon.

Separately, more than 40 Tory MPs and peers have written to Mr Sunak calling for the deadline to be pushed back.

But he insisted that “we are not considering a delay” despite pledging to take a “proportionate and pragmatic” approach to net zero.

Read rest at The Telegraph