CAZ off the agenda, for now

THE controversial Clean Air Zone for Greater Manchester that left businesses facing the prospect of paying to work has been delayed.

And if the Government grants a postponement until 2027 and nitrous oxide levels drop below a certain level, charging vehicles may not happen at all.

Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham shelved the scheme, which has seen a number of signs put up in Tameside, from its original start date of May 30.

The CAZ would have seen buses and heavy goods vehicles charged £60 to drive into the
493 square mile charging area.

Other vehicles including most taxis, vans and minibuses would pay from £7.50 a day following a one year period of grace.

But plenty of emphasis was placed on Downing Street to decide its future.

In a lengthy statement, Mr Burnham said: “I am not and have never been the instigator nor the final decision maker in this scheme.

“It is the Prime Minister’s government which initiated it when it placed a legal direction on each of our ten councils.

“By setting a compliance date of 2024, straight after a pandemic, it is his Government’s legal direction that is unworkable and it was Greater Manchester which drew their attention to this, not the Government.

“If the Government permits a delay to compliance to 2027, compliance could be achieved without requiring a charging CAZ scheme – and I would suggest redesigning the scheme with that aim.

“The focus will be on targeted action to increase compliance. Instead of fines, owners of vehicles which would have been in breach will instead be contacted and signposted to support and funding.

“If the Government permits a delay to compliance to 2026, I would propose a similar approach to that described above but additional measures could not be ruled out.

“If the government permits a delay to compliance to 2025 then it would be more difficult to achieve.

“Whilst a non-charging Category B scheme would still apply from May 2022, it is likely charges would have to apply at a specified point and a smaller charging Category C scheme in 2024.

“Only the Government can decide on the timescales for compliance and I have set out the scenarios for 2025, 2026 and 2027.

“It is up to them which of these scenarios it imposes on Greater Manchester.”

Ashton-based ice cream company Levaggi’s detailed their hopes to The Correspondent, but this decision will fall shirt.

For Mark Atherton wanted the CAZ to be scrapped rather than delayed, saying: “A delay just kicks the issue down the road. My main issue is it’s taxing poor people. It’s not taxing the drivers.

“If Andy Burnham came up with a better idea, I’d go along with it but the problem with this is you’re not actually taxing the people using the vans – we’d have to put our prices up.

“It will put us out of business. People say, ‘Just put £10 on your prices,’ but it’s not just that.

There are four companies using HGVs that deliver to us, they’re going to charge us more.

“It’s badly thought out, you’ve got to pass on the cost – it’s basically a tax against Greater Manchester people.”

Mr Burnham admitted the intention of cleaning the air in Greater Manchester remains but he is not willing to put so much on the line at this stage.

He added: “We are committed to cleaning up the air our residents breathe – but in a way that helps people to make the change and does not put jobs, livelihoods and businesses at risk.

“The current CAZ was designed before the pandemic. It was based on a legal direction from the government requiring action in all 10 Greater Manchester boroughs to clean up the air and compliance in as short a time as possible and by no later than by 2024.

“Given that the disruption caused by the pandemic will last for more than one year, it is reasonable to request a corresponding delay to the period to achieve compliance.

“Such a delay would provide the opportunity to make significant changes to the CAZ.

“In short, the more time the government is prepared to allow, the greater the level of protection that can be provided to jobs and businesses in Greater Manchester and the less punitive the measures will need to be.”

In a joint statement with Jo Churchill, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at Defra and Cllr Andrew Western, GMCA portfolio lead for clean air, Mr Burnham said they will work to deliver a plan by the middle of the year.

They added: “We have agreed to a short time-limited pause. We will work together to deliver, by the middle of the year, a plan for clean air for Greater Manchester, one that is fair to the businesses and residents.”