New pay-per-mile car tax system ruled out by Labour government

New pay-per-mile car tax system ruled out by Labour government
-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)


New pay-per-mile car tax has been RULED OUT by the new Labour Party government. Motorists and road users have been told by Labour it has "no plans" to follow calls from the Campaign for Better Transport to introduce a pay-per-mile system.

Labour has officially ruled out the prospect of a new pay-per-mile road tax being included in October's Budget. The Department for Transport said there were "no plans" for the controversial change after weeks of speculation.

The Campaign for Better Transport (CBT) urged ministers to do away with traditional road tax, which is based on your car's emissions rating, in favour of a per-mile tax. Speaking at the time, Sylvia Barrett, the CBT's policy director, said: “The new chancellor faces a looming black hole.

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"She can avoid it, in a way which is fair and which garners broad public support. But she should start now, as this issue will only get more pressing. It should be cheaper to drive a zero-emission vehicle than a more polluting vehicle, but it’s only fair that these drivers should pay a share, and a pay-as-you-drive model can achieve this."

AA president Edmund King said that "the time is right" for it to be introduced. Now, a Government spokesperson told SunMotors: "We have no plans to introduce road pricing. We are committed to supporting our automotive sector as we transition to electric vehicles in order to meet our legally binding climate targets."

The Sun reported today BBC Top Gear Quentin Willson was critical of the system. A "pay-per-mile" scheme sees road users paying a charge based on how far they travel over a certain period. This is different to the current fuel tax, which is based on how much petrol or diesel you buy. This could result in higher costs for those who drive more frequently or over longer distances.

To implement pay-per-mile road pricing, the government would need to track the distance each vehicle travels. This could be accomplished using various technologies, such as GPS-based trackers, Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras, or smartphone apps.