An Inconvenient Truth: You Can't Sell The Green Revolution To Those That Can't Afford It

As the voter backlash in Uxbridge and Outer London demonstrates, strict environmentalist regulations are broadly unpopular with the public.

It was supposed to be a clean sweep. With the Tories floundering in office, the former MP resigning in disgrace and a strong grassroots campaign, nearly every bookmaker predicted that Labour would decisively win the by-election in Uxbridge. Instead, to the shock of many, including the Conservatives, the Tories maintained their hold over the constituency, albeit with a much reduced majority.

The result naturally sent shockwaves throughout the political commentary class, and bewildered a Labour party apparatus that had been convinced of victory. David Williams, chair of the Uxbridge and South Ruislip Constituency Labour Party, resigned shortly afterwards, citing the defeat as the main reason for his departure.

Most of the blame can be contributed to ULEZ, a congestion charge, ironically, proposed by Boris Johnson in 2010, and implemented in 2019 by Sadiq Khan, intended to reduce pollution levels in the capital city by limiting the number of cars driving on the road. Since it’s inception, ULEZ has been gradually expanded from the inner city to the outer-lying suburbs, and there are further plans to expand it to the wider metro area. It is this expansion plan that has caused so much uproar, manifesting itself in the rebuke Labour faced in Thursday’s election. Since Uxbridge lies within this metro area, its residents would be next in line to feel the sharp price increases.

What Uxbridge has reminded politicians is that aspirations to address climate change can only go so far before they hit a brick wall. The congestion charge, by its very design, targets older vehicles that are prone to emitting more pollution and which are overwhelmingly favoured by the working-class of London. Thus, the charge falls heavily on the lower-classes, burdening residents at a time when families are already struggling with astronomically high mortgage bills and food costs. To make matters worse, the effects of ULEZ are still being contentiously debated, with many analysts arguing that its effects have been ineligible overall.

This dichotomy between voters and politicians is only widening. As the climate cult pushes for harsher and more stricter regulations, it is the working-class that feels the biggest strain. ULEZ costs residents around £12.50 per day, the equivalent of an hour’s work, an absurd amount for those struggling to get by in a cost of living crisis. While polling still shows that a narrow majority of Londoners still favour expanding the ULEZ, it’s markedly more popular among middle-class professionals than the low earners who can’t afford to trade in spluttering old diesels. In Manchester, government plans for a clean air zone were put on hold last year after a furious backlash: the city’s Labour mayor, Andy Burnham, rightfully led the attack, arguing that instead of pricing struggling van and taxi drivers off the road, drivers should be given financial incentives to make the switch.

The truth is that clean air zones are toughest on people who can least afford to comply, a reality that even Keir Starmer seems to be waking up to. In an interview conducted the following morning, the downcast opposition leader admitted that the Mayor of London’s expansion plan ‘may have had an impact’ and should be ‘revised’.

Maybe workers would be more willing to make these sacrifices if they saw that the wealthy were also carrying these burdens but that has not happened yet. London’s billionaires and millionaires continue to travel around lavishly, in their limousines and on their private jets, while the working-class is inudated with charges and restrictions. Only when this unjust juxtaposition is addressed can progress be made on curbing climate change. Until then, the voters will continue to resist having to pay higher costs for an economic structure they were never responsible for in the first place.

For when the collective good collides with hard-headed self-interest, that’s when the left is perennially in danger of coming unstuck. The biggest hurdle for climate activists will be to show that, for once, we really are all in this particular existential fight together and recognise that the poorest in our society should be given incentives and help to transition away from these high-polluting vehicles.