Islington Council to charge diesel drivers more

Islington Council has announced plans for 9,000 diesel car drivers to pay almost £100 extra every year to park outside their homes in an attempt to cut air pollution.

The ‘diesel tax’ was approved in 2014 and it is hoped that the introduction in April this year will lead to drivers swapping their vehicles for ‘greener’ petrol engines. Anyone using a vehicle in their business in Islington will be exempt from the additional tax.

Council chiefs in the borough say that high levels of air pollution is a contributing factor in 74 per cent of deaths in the borough. Labour Councillor, Claudia Webbe, Islington’s executive member for transport and environment, said, “Pollutants in diesel exhausts have been linked to heart and lung diseases, which are major causes of serious and long-term health issues and even death in Islington, and the surcharge will encourage a move away from diesel.”

Around other London boroughs, both Camden and Kensington & Chelsea already impose additional charges; Camden currently charges an extra £10.30 annually whilst Kensington & Chelsea charges an extra £18 per annum for ‘older’ diesel vehicles. Hackney are planning a review of their parking permits whereby charges would be based on emissions instead of engine size, with the most polluting diesels being charged £50 per annum.