Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has commissioned research on the costs to local authorities of administering (a) congestion charges and (b) ultra-low emission zone charges for (i) commercial and (ii) domestic vehicles.

The Government assessed the costs of implementing road user charging schemes based on vehicle emissions standards in the May 2016 Clean Air Zone impact assessment.

The Government has committed £255 million to support implementation costs incurred by those local authorities directed to develop local plans to achieve compliance with statutory air pollution limits within the shortest possible time. In the case of local plans involving road user charging schemes, implementation costs would exclude those costs offset via revenues from charges collected. Local authorities are currently assessing the detailed costs of delivery of their local plans as part of their feasibility studies.