As the business organisation that led the campaign against the GM CAZ from the get-go, FSB wants businesses informed of where this unpopular scheme is currently up to.
FSB is aware there is still much confusion around the subject, which is no surprise it having flip-flopped around as a policy decision since February, with local authorities, Andy Burnham, and the Government all failing to take any responsibility for the car crash policy project.
Yet six months down the line from when the scheme was official ‘paused’ by the Metro Mayor, the scheme is still up in the air with LAs calling for a non-charging zone only covering the city centre – that’s the inner ring road (Mancunian Way), with Government – before BJ resigned – saying a charge of some sort would likely be needed.
No decision will now be made until a new PM has been selected – so realistically that could be well in to the autumn. However, the GM authorities are now convinced they can achieve legal compliance with NoX emissions by the new 2026 deadline set by Government using less invasive methods than retrospective business taxation. This is likely to be achieved by upgrading the GM bus fleets to more modern types, and restricting older more polluting buses from the most polluted roads and areas – of which there are just a handful (mostly in the city centre of Manchester).
Funds will also be targeted at the taxi trade to help bring them up to more modern standards. This should ultimately mean no charge will be needed for other vehicle types – including LGV business users – but the Government have yet to sign off this latest plan for the CAZ.
See below for a useful document produced by TfGM which shows the CAZ timeline and future plans: