Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Ulez expansion: Danny Beales wants scrappage scheme ‘to be done in a fair way’

The Ulez zone expansion is due to go ahead in August and will see the most polluting vehicles have to pay a £12.50-aday toll

Ulez expansion: Danny Beales wants scrappage scheme ‘to be done in a fair way’

THE Labour candidate for Uxbridge and South Ruislip, Danny Beales, has caused a stir by going against London mayor Sadiq Khan’s Ulez expansion plan.

The Ulez zone expansion is due to go ahead in August and will see the most polluting vehicles have to pay a £12.50-aday toll.


But a High Court challenge against the scheme by five Conservative-run councils took place last week with a final judgement expected by July 31. Beales said he could not support the Ulez until the mayor and the Conservative government go “much further” with support for families and City Hall’s £110 million scrappage scheme.

BOX OFF London ULEZ GettyImages 1259042194 Protesters at a rally against the expansion of the Ulez zone in London

Low-income Londoners are being offered a package worth as much as £3,000 to scrap their old polluting cars.

However, there is only £110m up for grabs and it will be doled out on a first-come, first-served basis, with car drivers having to vie with van, motorbike and minibus owners for the money.

“I think people expect me to stand up for my community. That’s my job, whether it’s the council, City Hall, or Whitehall; my job is to represent people here and push for better for them,” said Beales.

“We all want clean air, but it has to be done in a fair way that doesn’t punish working people. We need a better scrappage scheme. The government have funded scrappage schemes in other cities. They gave millions of pounds to Birmingham for their scrappage scheme, so I don’t understand why they’re not in London.”

Beales added: “When you hear the stories on the doorstep, we hear people who really don’t face much choice about the matter.

“When you speak to families, I hear heart-wrenching stories at the moment: carers who have to travel to work and can’t afford to pay for their car and may have to give up their job or they can’t afford to scrap their car with the scrappage scheme available’’.

More For You

Man sentenced for racist death threat emails to Rishi Sunak

Rishi Sunak (Photo: Getty Images)

Man sentenced for racist death threat emails to Rishi Sunak

A 21-year-old man has been sentenced to 14 weeks' imprisonment and a two-year restraining order for sending racist death threats to Rishi Sunak in June last year, when he was the prime minister.

Liam Shaw from Birkenhead in Merseyside, pleaded guilty to sending two threatening and offensive emails to the public parliamentary email address of Sunak, MP for Richmond and Northallerton in Yorkshire, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Royal Navy names first Hindu chaplain
First Hindu chaplin Bhanu Attri (C) on the parade ground with fellow passing out cadets (Photo: Royal Navy)

Royal Navy names first Hindu chaplain

AN ASIAN officer has spoken of his “profound honour” after he was appointed as the first-ever Hindu chaplain in the Royal Navy.

Bhanu Attri, originally from Himachal Pradesh in north India, took over his new role last week and will offer spiritual support to fellow naval officers, based on the tenets of Hinduism.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sikh men

The victims, believed to be in their 60s and 70s, were taken to hospital after the incident and later discharged. (Photo for representation: iStock)

Three arrested over alleged racial attack on elderly Sikh men

THREE men have been arrested following a shocking attack on two elderly Sikh men outside Wolverhampton Railway Station, which is now being investigated as a racially-aggravated hate crime.

British Transport Police (BTP) confirmed on Monday (18) that the assault took place on Friday (15). The victims, believed to be in their 60s and 70s, were taken to hospital after the incident and later discharged.

Keep ReadingShow less
Asian Rich List UK economy

Chris Blackhurst

Getty Images

Asian Rich List shows value of migrant entrepreneurs to UK economy, says expert

BRITAIN needs more talented migrants who can create jobs and wealth in this country, a media expert has said, citing evidence from the latest edition of Eastern Eye’s Asian Rich List 2025.

Writing in the Independent on Saturday (16), Chris Blackhurst argued that “against the present backdrop of protests against immigration, the Asian Rich List illustrates that the UK has so much to be thankful for.” He added, “It is hard to imagine where the economy, wider society, would be without the loyalty, tenacity and public spirit of those on the list and the ones ascending fast. We urgently need more like them, not less.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Shiv Katha at Siddhashram in memory of Air India plane crash victims

Shiv Katha at Siddhashram in memory of Air India plane crash victims

Mahesh Liloriya

London. A five-day Shiv Katha has begun at the International Siddhashram Shakti Centre to honour the victims of the tragic Air India crash, with prayers offered for their eternal peace. The programme, running from 18 to 22 August, is being led by HH Shri Rajrajeshwar Guruji with recitations by PP Shri Jogi Dada, and attended by devotees and dignitaries from India and abroad.

Opening the Katha, Shri Jogi Dada called it both a spiritual gathering and a heartfelt tribute to the passengers of the Ahmedabad–London flight. “Mahadev’s darshan equals a pilgrimage. It is inspiring to see the younger generation engaging in bhakti, which is vital for preserving our heritage."

Keep ReadingShow less