Shaun Bailey accuses Sadiq Khan of '£4.68 billion tax grab'

Shaun Bailey has accused Sadiq Khan of a “£4.68 billion tax grab” as he today outlined his own plans to cut costs for Londoners if elected on May 6.

Speaking at the launch of his new campaign bus, the Conservative candidate told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that all his plans, if he is to be the next Mayor of London, “are about lowering costs of living in London”.

Mr Bailey said: “If we continue on the current trend that Sadiq Khan is going, we are set to pay an extra £4.68 billion in tax in the next three years, and that’s just as London is trying to recover from the effects of Covid. The next year or two will determine the next 10 to 15 years of economic development in London, and by extension, the whole country.

“So, what I will be doing is I will be winding back the 10 per cent increase in council tax Sadiq Khan has just done, I will not be expanding the Ultra-Low Emission Zone, I certainly won’t be bringing in an outer London border tax as well. All of these things are about lowering costs of living in London.”

Sadiq Khan has previously accused Mr Bailey of using “fantasy figures”, and a London Labour spokesperson today said that the £4.68 billion figure was “completely ludicrous”.

The spokesperson said: “These ridiculous claims are so completely ludicrous and lacking in any basis in the real world that we are beginning to feel sorry for the Tory candidate. His campaign has started to look more like a comedy sketch than a real campaign for London Mayor.

“For the avoidance of all doubt – these are invented numbers, with no foundation in the real world and Londoners should just completely ignore them.”

Of the £4.68 billion figure, £3.3 billion is derived from the estimated cost of the proposed Greater London boundary charge over three years, which has been suggested as a way of raising funds for TfL if vehicle excise duty is not devolved to London.

TfL is currently investigating the feasibility of the charge, which would apply to motorists driving into London from outside the capital.