A petition against driving charges being rolled out in Sutton has been launched by Conservative politicians in the area.

A consultation to expand the ultra low emission zone (ULEZ) to the whole of London has been launched by the Mayor of London.

If successful, the most polluting vehicles entering the capital would have to pay a £12.50 daily charge from August 29, 2023.

Now, Tory MP for Carshalton and Wallington Elliot Colburn has launched a petition against the scheme being rolled out to areas like Sutton on the edge of London.

Speaking from Oaks Park in Carshalton, he launched the campaign with fellow Conservative Neil Garratt who is the London Assembly member for Sutton and Croydon.

Mr Colburn said: “[The ULEZ] is going to be very bad news for the residents of Suttonwhere public transport isn’t amazing. For example to get to Oaks Park form the centre of Sutton is actually 20 minutes quicker to come by car than it is by public transport.”

While Mr Garratt said a ULEZ expansion would impact those in Sutton as well as neighbours in Surrey driving into London. He said: “[Drivers] would have to pay if their car isn’t compliant, initially that would mean older cars but I think over time you would see the definition changing about what is an ultra low emission vehicle.”

“A lot of people are going to get stuck between not being able to afford the daily charge and not being able to afford to replace their car. We are calling on the mayor to think again.”

Some Sutton locals have taken to social media against the proposed expansion of the low emssion zone. One tweeted: “I live the London borough of Sutton, in 2012 I bought a new Ford  Focus diesel, at the time promoted by government and car industry as efficient and green. If the 2023 Ulez expansion plans go ahead this car that I’ve looked after and saved hard to buy is no longer viable to keep.”

But the leader of Sutton Labour, Councillor Sheldon Vestey, called on Mr Colburn to arrange a meeting with transport minister Grant Schapps and said the Labour group will be setting up its own petition to lobby the government for better funding for TfL.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said expanding the charging zone will improve air quality across the capital. He said: “The air Londoners breathe is so toxic it stunts children’s lungs, exacerbates chronic illness and contributes to thousands of premature deaths each year. More than half of the 500,000 Londoners with asthma live in outer London and all areas of London still breach safe levels of pollution.

“That’s why my proposals for expanding the Ultra -Low Emission Zone are the right thing to do. Air pollution is not just a central London issue and Londoners in the outer boroughs should be able to enjoy the clean air benefits the ULEZ brings.

The TfL consultation closes on July 29, 2022.