Was an anti-Ulez protester behind Sadiq Khan’s car tax conviction?City Hall sources told the Standard there was a ‘big increase’ in the number of vehicles being falsely registered to the Mayor of London around the time of the Ulez expansion
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Rachael Burford, Chief Political Correspondent @RachaelBurford2 minutes ago
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An anti-Ulez protester is suspected to be behind the “scam” that saw Sir Sadiq Khan convicted and fined over an untaxed Nissan Micra.
City Hall sources told the Standard there was a “big increase” in the number of vehicles being falsely registered to the Mayor of London around the time of the low emission zone being expanded to cover the entire capital in August 2023.
In a criminal prosecution processed by the DVLA in Norwich, Sir Sadiq was found guilty by a magistrate last month of keeping an unlicensed vehicle.
But he has insisted that the 24-year-old blue Micra does not belong to either him or Transport for London (TfL).
Sadiq Khan was been convicted over unpaid tax on an old Nissan Micra (stock picture)GLA/Getty
A spokesman for the Mayor said: “This is a scam, which is a crime. It’s not the first time the Mayor has been victim of a scam involving people falsely stating that Sadiq is the owner of a vehicle.
“Such behaviour is illegal, and the DVLA are aware.”
He added that the DVLA was “urgently looking at getting the case reopened and with a view to withdrawing the prosecution”.
The organisation will also investigate the false registration.
It is understood that vehicles have been registered to Sir Sadiq on several other occasions since 2023, but this is the first time a case has reached court.
A magistrate, sitting in a private hearing of the Single Justice Procedure in Herefordshire, convicted the Mayor in his absence and ordered that he pay a £220 fine, £85 in costs, and settle the £35.84 bill for unpaid tax on the Micra.
Court documents show that DVLA letters addressed to the Mayor about the unpaid car tax bill were sent to Gordon Ramsay’s Bread Street Kitchen, Bar and Rooftop in Stratford, instead of the nearby TfL offices.
Unpaid car tax mysteryDatawrapper
The restaurant is based at 9 Endeavour Square, while TfL is based on the 9th floor of number 5 Endeavour Square.
After Sir Sadiq, who became Baron Khan of Tooting when he was appointed to the House of Lords in July, expanded the Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) to cover outer London he faced a wave of demonstrations against the move.
Some motorists said they planned to register their car in the Mayor’s name – supposedly to make him liable for the £12.50 daily charge.
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One man in May 2023 claimed to have “gifted” his non-Ulez compliant 2002 Ford Focus to Sir Sadiq, registering it in the Labour politician’s name and posting the logbook to TfL’s head office.
After posting about his plan to make the Mayor the car’s “registered keeper” on social media, other protesters branded it a “genius” loophole.
In the latest case court records, seen by the Press Association, show Sir Sadiq was prosecuted by the DVLA after the annual tax on the Micra, which was first registered in 2002, ran out in September last year.
Sadiq Khan faced huge protests when he expanded the Ulez PA
The DVLA accused him of being the keeper of the vehicle when it was spotted as being untaxed on January 24, telling the court that his name and date of birth appear against the car on official records held by the Government.
Magistrate Surinder Gidda, sitting at Herefordshire Magistrates’ Court, convicted Sir Sadiq on August 18 after no plea was entered to the charge.
The court has also sent a record of conviction to the Gordon Ramsay restaurant.
It ordered the Mayor to pay the £340.84 court bill within 28 days or face the prospect of increased fines, bailiffs, or even “a warrant for your arrest”.
The agency said a letter asking for confirmation of the identity of the car owner went unanswered in January, leading to the criminal prosecution.
Mayor of London Sir Sadiq KhanPA Archive
Critics of the Single Justice Procedure system have dubbed it “conveyor belt justice”, with magistrates deciding on hundreds of cases a day and sometimes spending less than a minute making each decision.
The system, which is currently under Government review, was rocked in 2024 when around 59,000 train fare evasion convictions had to be overturned for being unlawful and it emerged children had been wrongly convicted in the secretive courts.
It has also been the focus of intensifying scrutiny thanks to regular incidents of sick and incapacitated pensioners being harshly convicted of not paying their household bills.
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