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Harry Quilter-Pinner, IPPR Research Fellow, responded to reports that the Mayor of London is calling for a new diesel scrappage scheme as IPPR have called for

“Our research shows that both legal and World Health Organisation limits on air pollution continue to be broken and the biggest cause of this is diesel vehicles. Without rapid policy change air quality will remain above legal limits until 2025 and beyond.

“To help people make the transition to cleaner vehicles, national government should provide the money for a vehicle scrappage scheme. This funding should be devolved to those cities with the worst pollution and be linked to the rollout of a network of clean air zones. So we support Sadiq Khan’s call for a National Vehicle Scrappage Fund, particularly the idea of funding communities to explore new and sustainable ways of travelling."

Contact 

Becky Malone r.malone@ippr.org 0207 470 6154

Editor’s Notes:

1. A scrappage scheme was among a number of measures IPPR called for in its report 'Lethal and Illegal, Solving London's air pollution crisis', see:http://www.ippr.org/publications/lethal-and-illegal-solving-londons-air-pollution-crisis.

2. See: 'Sadiq Khan: government must pay drivers £3,500 to scrap their polluting diesel cars', The Observer, 12 February 2017, https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/feb/12/london-mayor-plans-to-scrap-diesels.

3. IPPR aims to influence policy in the present and reinvent progressive politics in the future, and is dedicated to the better country that Britain can be through progressive policy and politics. With nearly 60 staff across four offices throughout the UK, IPPR is Britain’s only national think tank with a truly national presence.

Our independent research is wide ranging, it covers the economy, work, skills, transport, democracy, the environment, education, energy, migration and healthcare among many other areas. ippr.org