Birmingham City Council fines itself £472,000 for Clean Air Zone breaches

A significant story is unfolding on the international scene. Birmingham City Council fines itself £472,000 for Clean Air Zone breaches12 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleAlex HomerShared Data UnitPABirmingham's Clean Air Zone (CAZ) operates for 24 hours every dayBirmingham City Council has paid more than £470,000 to itself in daily charges and fines because its own vehicles break the rules of its Clean Air Zone (CAZ) policy. Even though there has been a year-long bin strike in the city, most of its vehicles facing daily charges were from the waste department. The authority said it had been replacing non-compliant vehicles over the past 12 months and wanted "eco driving" across its fleet, but admitted one in eight vehicles still did not comply with the zone's emissions standards.

Since the CAZ scheme began in the city centre in 2021, non-compliant vehicles in Birmingham's fleet have triggered 3,262 daily charges and fines at a total cost of £472,253. Government commissioners have been working with Birmingham City Council since it issued a so-called Section 114 notice in 2023 – declaring its own effective bankruptcy. In March, the council's then Labour leadership hailed its first balanced budget in three years.

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The number of daily charges and fines the council has paid to itself represented around 20 times the number paid by any other UK council running a CAZ, Low Emission Zone (LEZ) or Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) which was able to disclose any similar payments for breaking their own emissions standards. Kings Heath Food Bank was helping 400 people a week in 2021, Sharon Power saidMoney paid in charges and fines goes towards the CAZ operating costs and covering some Government charges, while any surplus has to be spent on transport or environmental schemes. It cannot go back into the council's general funds.

Kings Heath Food Bank coordinator Sharon Power said: "The country's in this state: people are having to choose to heat or eat and they're spending money right, left and centre. It's absolutely appalling. "Food bank organisers said their own work relied on the goodwill of volunteers, but some could not afford the city's CAZ charges.

They said fewer volunteers to drive donations around the city meant the food bank was helping half the number of people it used to support each week before the CAZ was introduced in 2021. A request made to the council for the food bank's volunteers to be exempted from CAZ requirements was refused, its organisers said. Volunteer driver Pete Hammond had to prove his new car met the CAZ rulesUnder the CAZ scheme, the daily charge for vehicles that do not meet emission standards is £8 for cars, vans and taxis or £50 for HGVs and coaches, unless a valid exemption is in place.

It is enforced using Automatic Number Plate Recognition, which records vehicles travelling within the ring road. Anyone who fails to pay within six days after entering the zone faces a £120 fine, which is reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days.

The story has become one of the most prominent items on the global agenda.