Town hall to drop higher parking charges for gas-guzzler drivers

Councillors are poised to shelve a plan that would target the owners of gas-guzzling cars.

Sutton's scrutiny overview committee rejected three systems linking the cost of residents' parking permits to the carbon dioxide emissions of their vehicles.

The move comes days after Mayor Boris Johnson criticised some councils for "penalising" people with bigger cars.

Councillors said they were "not convinced" the scheme would reduce emissions, despite hearing evidence from Richmond, the first borough to launch such a scheme. The committee recommended to Sutton's executive that a consultation on the charges should not go ahead. But it said "further work should be carried out to develop a broader sustainable parking policy so that the principal purpose is to reduce emissions and pollutants".

The recommendation adds that any new sustainable parking policy should give particular attention to "examining the cost impacts on different groups in the borough". Committee chairman Roger Robert said: "We carefully considered wider issues including the current economic climate."