• Question by: Samantha Heath
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

So the other point is we could have moved a lot farther with low emission zones if you'd agreed to fund phase one, or phase two a lot quicker. Is that then another mistake that you've made?

• Question by: Samantha Heath
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Yes, but if you're going to impose low emission zones in 2004, it would be a good idea to put it in this strategy, quite honestly and to warn people in advance. And you're committed to it, by the looks of it. The other point that you've actually made, quite strangely today, is you want to make it difficult. It's not difficult; it's easy. The filthy diesels that are belched by the buses, the freight and the taxis. That's where you want to hit it. You do not want to go messing around with difficult to achieve low returns which...

• Question by: Samantha Heath
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

I'm going to ask a couple of short questions. Please make it absolutely clear, if you want low emission zones so much and you do not want the cost of low emission zones to be unnecessarily high, why on earth didn't you warn the freight industry in your Transport Strategy that low emission zones might be likely? Looking at the freight section of the Transport Strategy it doesn't mention low emission zones at all. Do you think this is a mistake?

• Question by: Louise Bloom
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Of course the congestion charge and a low emission zone may well make a difference to the average speed of traffic, anyway. What about LPG, liquid petroleum gas vehicles?

• Question by: Louise Bloom
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

As you've probably seen, Ken, from our question on river passenger services, the Liberal Democrat group are very concerned to see alternative forms of transport developed in London. Fords of Europe, as you no doubt know, have developed a no-emissions electric car which some members, including Lynne and Graham, have already driven and say are very easy to drive and the scary thing is how quiet they are. And they can be recharged from an ordinary 13-amp power socket. So can you tell us will these no emission vehicles be exempt from the congestion charge and also will active consideration...

• Question by: Roger Evans
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Isn't the real reason for your slow movement on this the fact that this scheme will not raise as much money for your budget as the congestion charge. You're really only interested in levying taxes on Londoners rather than improving their quality of life?

• Question by: Roger Evans
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Would you not agree though that the low emission zone proposal is going to be less expensive than congestion charge, it's less contentious than congestion charge and it will be more effective when it comes to cleaning up London, which is what some of the public at least still expect congestion charge to have done, because they've been misled in that way. And the low emission zone actually has widespread support, certainly around the table here and amongst the public. Wouldn't you be better doing that rather than wasting money on congestion charge?

• Question by: Roger Evans
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Thank you. Obviously the widely respected Rocol report that you were talking about is not the one that we have widely discredited and that's out of date by now. You must have another report. I just wondered if you had any prospect that you could hold out for Londoners that there will be an improvement to air quality given that you have already admitted that your congestion charge proposal will not improve air quality at all and this proposal, which would, is going to be held over until your next election. So can we all be expecting not to be...

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

I'm concerned that you're being over cautious on this. I understand why you might be, after the reaction to congestion charging, particularly from several hundred inhabitants of Westminster who apparently replied to your consultation on that. In fact you've got a huge amount of support round this table for an LEZ in London. That might not count for much, we might not be able to take the voters with us, but on the other hand, I don't believe you have the same opposition.

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 05 September 2001

Is it possible when you consult on the air quality strategy, that you could include a question on the principle of having an LEZ in London?