Boris Johnson calls Greater Manchester's Clean Air Zone 'completely unworkable'

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Boris Johnson today said that Greater Manchester's Clean Air Zone plan is 'completely unworkable'. The Prime Minister was asked about the scheme, which will see the most polluting vehicles charged up to £60 a day, in the House of Commons this afternoon.

MP for Leigh James Grundy told PMQ's that the proposal would put a 'job-destroying tax' on 'ordinary workers'. He asked whether Mr Johnson would 'intervene' in the plans. READ MORE: How Greater Manchester's Clean Air Zone compares with schemes in Bradford, London, Birmingham and Newcastle Mr Grundy said: "The Greater Manchester Mayoral Clean Air Zone scheme, effectively a congestion charge affecting all 500 square miles of Greater Manchester, including my constituents in Leigh, is a job-destroying tax on ordinary workers. "We all want clean air, but the model proposed by Mayor Burnham is unworkable and economically devastating with charges of £60 per day, per lorry driver. "Taxis, white van men, even buses, will be affected by it. "Will the PM intervene to prevent Mayor Burnham from inflicting this disastrous Labour scheme on Greater Manchester?" Andy Burnham has previously laid blame on the government itself for the scheme, after it laid down a directive in spring 2020 ordering Greater Manchester to clean up its air by 2024. Leave your thoughts in the comments below But in response to Mr Grundy's question, Mr Johnson said: "I know from my own experience how vital it is when you're trying to clean up air in a great city that you do not unjustly penalise business and small business and it's become clear that the scheme proposed by the Labour mayor in Manchester is completely unworkable, would do more damage to businesses and residents in Manchester. "So we must