ULEZ expansion will push building businesses over the brink, warns industry boss
The boss of the British Merchants Federation (BMF) has warned that outer London building businesses hit by ULEZ charges could face closure or move if the 29 August expansion goes ahead as planned.
John Newcomb, chief executive of the trade association BMF, told City PM: “My biggest concern is that you would see closure of businesses, because it’s getting more and more difficult for the small regional builder, regional developer… everything is sort of stacking up against them right now.”
The BMF represent major builders’ merchants such as Travis Perkins – who sell materials used in construction – as well as a host of SMEs and manufacturers along the supply chain.
It is concerned that building businesses operating within the M25, who rely on non ULEZ-compliant vehicles for their work, could reduce operations within the Greater London boundary, affecting householders and the wider building materials supply chain.
Newcomb warned that extra costs for its members and tradespeople would likely be passed on to consumers, meaning fees for anything ranging from loft conversions and plumbing to taps, bathrooms, showers and timber could be affected.
“You would definitely see material prices increasing,” he said, “because they are incurring additional distribution costs by shipping the materials around the London area.”
“And if there’s an extra three grand cost, of course, that cost has to be passed on to the customer, that cost cannot be absorbed.”
He added: “So there’s no question that customers within that London area will see the price of their materials increase even further to cover those costs.”
Newcomb’s comments come as Khan faces a court showdown from a coalition of Tory led councils, who launched a legal challenge against the ULEZ expansion back in February.
Opposers of ULEZ have argued that that local London businesses would be adversely affected amid an ongoing cost of living crisis.
Khan, on the other hand, says that rates of death associated with air pollution in the capital must be brought down, with the scheme also helping the shift to net zero.
The BMF is calling for a 12 month delay to the expansion, as well as an extension of the London scrappage scheme – which provides grants for eligible applicants to encompass commercial vehicles.
In a written letter to Khan in April seen by City PM, the Newcomb wrote that the trade group was concerned that Khan’s “have not allowed sufficient time for BMF members and their trade customers to make operational changes before the new ULEZ start date”.
The letter stresses that SMEs “face disproportionate costs to comply with the ULEZ – and merchants fear for the survival of some of their trade customers.”