Sadiq Khan has been told that there is “no legal barrier” to allowing vehicles to be donated to Ukraine after previously delaying plans over questions about whether he was able to make changes to London's scrappage scheme.
In December, former heavyweight boxing champion and mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko called on Sadiq Khan to allow vehicles eligible for the Transport for London scrappage scheme to be sent to Ukraine to help with the war effort.
Sadiq Khan’s office initially said the mayor was legally unable to alter the scrappage scheme terms to allow for vehicle exports.
Following an intervention from Transport Secretary Mark Harper, the London Mayor performed a U-turn and pledged to send 4x4s and other vehicles to Ukraine.
Sadiq Khan had previously questioned whether he was able to change the terms of the scrappage scheme
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A letter sent by Sadiq Khan and former Defence Secretary Ben Wallace called on Harper to give drivers “money for taking polluting vehicles off our cities’ streets while providing vital support towards the people of Ukraine”.
It was noted that there was a particularly high demand for larger vehicles like 4x4s and emergency service vehicles.
In a new letter sent earlier today, Mark Harper stated that drivers in London who choose to scrap their vehicles should be able to donate them to Ukraine and encouraged the Labour mayor to make changes to the scheme.
It states: “We do not consider there to be any legal barrier to allowing vehicles to be donated to Ukraine.
“You have identified legal obstacles that relate to the processes and design of your scheme and Department for Transport (DfT) and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) officials have been working with TfL to identify routes to overcome these.
“In addition, I have asked my officials at the DVLA to put in place a bespoke process to note on the vehicle record when the DVLA is notified that a vehicle has been exported to Ukraine as part of your scheme.
“The DVLA can provide the vehicle keeper with a letter of confirmation which the vehicle keeper can then show TfL to support your scheme processes.
“This allows you to prevent multiple scrappage payments being paid for the same vehicle and mitigates the risk of fraud by that route.”
The Mayor of London unveiled the £160million scrappage scheme ahead of the Ulez expansion last year, before extending the eligibility of all Londoners in August.
All London residents can apply for up to £2,000 for scrapping a car, £1,000 for a motorcycle, £10,000 for a wheelchair accessible vehicle (WAV) and £6,000 to retrofit a WAV.
Small businesses and charities are also able to benefit from the Transport for London (TfL) scrappage scheme thanks to increased grant payments of between £6,000 and £11,500.
The letter from the Transport Secretary also offered the help of Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove to issue guidance on the powers Sadiq Khan has when looking to donate cars to Ukraine.
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Sadiq Khan identified that Ukraine could particularly benefit from 4x4s and emergency service vehicles
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It is estimated that around nine in 10 cars seen driving in outer London on an average day are already compliant with Ulez standards.