The Labour leadership at Milton Keynes City Council has been criticised for failing on tackling climate change after it scrapped its free parking incentive for electric vehicles.
In 2019, the Council got cross-party consensus from Labour, Liberal Democrats and the
Conservatives in declaring a climate emergency.
Free parking for electric cars was introduced by the then-Conservative administration at MK
Council in 2013 but will now be reduced to a 50% discount on parking costs before being
scrapped entirely in 2025.
David Hopkins, leader of the Conservative Group on Milton Keynes City Council and former
Chair of the Climate Task and Finish Group , commented:
“The scheme was the first in a series of UK initiatives designed to give people more reason to
buy electric vehicles and was funded using the Government 'Go Ultra Low Cities' funding. This
initiative, that set MK out as a pioneer in tackling the climate emergency was in line with the
cross-party drive to improve air quality, create jobs and achieve the city council’s contribution
to the goal of every car and van in the UK being zero-emissions by 2050. This further represents
the Labour led councils move away from its commitment to a greener future for MK and
represents the latest in a series of decisions seemingly abandoning the council’s commitment
to tackling the climate emergency at a local level”.