London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone, or Ulez, is set to be extended to the capital's outer boroughs next month, forcing hundreds of thousands of drivers to pay daily fees.
The divisive plan is part of mayor Sadiq Khan's bid to clean up the city's toxic air.
But critics argue it is an unfair tax on motorists who are already grappling with a cost-of-living crisis.
The anti-pollution scheme is expected to cost some London drivers £4,500 a year.
On August 29, the zone will be expanded from its current borders of the North and South Circular roads to encompass outer London boroughs.
The changes will mean about 700,000 people with older car models, classed as high-polluting, will have to pay a daily fee to drive in London.
What is Ulez?
Launched in 2019, the Ulez is the world's first scheme that requires vehicles to comply with anti-pollution measures 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Separate from the congestion charge, which is aimed at reducing traffic, Ulez is designed to cut air pollution in the capital by discouraging the use of high-emission vehicles through imposing a daily fee.
It aims to improve the health of Londoners by reducing the amount of particulate matter and nitrous oxide in the air.
How serious is air pollution?
Government health officials believe particulate matter and nitrous oxide lead to the deaths of between 28,000 and 36,000 people every year and estimate a £1.6 billion ($2.05 billion) cost to the NHS between 2017 and 2025, with vehicle exhausts being the main source of those gases.
In 2020, Ella Kissi-Debrah became the first person in the world to have air pollution cited as a cause of death.
She died in 2013 aged nine, after suffering from an asthma attack brought on by ingesting traffic fumes near her home in south-east London.
To which vehicles does Ulez apply?
All cars, motorcycles, vans, minibuses and other specialist vehicles weighing up to 3.5 tonnes.
Generally, petrol cars registered after 2005 and diesel cars after 2015 meet the emissions standards.
Cars older than this are charged £12.50 a day, with a penalty for non-payment of up to £180.
How do I know if my vehicle is Ulez-compliant?
Drivers can check whether their vehicle meets the emissions standards on Transport for London’s website by entering their registration number.
Automatic number-plate-recognition cameras are set up along streets within the zone that check the registration with DVLA records to determine the vehicle’s age and therefore its compliance.
Whose idea was Ulez?
The scheme was first approved in 2015 when Boris Johnson was London mayor but was introduced four years later under Mr Khan’s stewardship.
Mr Khan has since been a strong supporter of Ulez, advocating its expansion towards the outer boroughs.
Why is it expanding?
At first, Ulez applied to central London but in 2021 it grew to border the North and South Circulars as part of a pandemic bailout agreement between Transport for London (TfL) and the government.
Mr Khan said he wanted to expand the zone further to encompass the outer London boroughs to lower the air pollution in those areas.
Opponents believe the mayor is using it as a way to make money for TfL.
Why are people opposed?
Critics of the Ulez expansion say the scheme disproportionately affects poorer people who need to drive for work and discourages sole traders from outside London from taking work in the city.
A scrappage scheme is in place for people on benefits with older cars to receive up to £2,000 or a mix of cash and public transport passes, but critics say the money is not enough.
Could Ulez be ditched?
The Conservative-run outer London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Harrow and Hillingdon along with Surrey County Council have taken legal action against the mayor of London in the High Court, saying he lacks the legal power to order the scheme’s extension.
They are expecting a judgment on that case before the end of this month, which could delay the extension, making it a prominent campaign issue in next year’s mayoral and general elections and Labour may choose to reconsider backing it.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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