I do not agree with Ken at all - he's just after robbing us of more and more money. Everyone should be able to drive what car they want without having to be discriminated against. By putting the congestion charge to £25 will not reduce CO2 emissions. What he needs to do is reduce cost of public transport - making it at affordable for everyone to use - i guarantee this will make the levels of CO2 emmissions reduce as it will be cheaper to use public transport than using your car!!!!! At the moment it's cheaper to use your car - prices of public transport is ridiculous.

Bhav, London, UK

First of all, Porsche should be spending the money on producing cars that are more environmentally friendly. the tax is going to be put in place so those who drive Chelsea tractors don't drive 200 meters to the shop round the corner. Having clean air is a basic right that has been lost due to the Porsche- like polluters, and Livingston is trying to restore that right.

MG, London,

This is a real clash of 20th vs 21st century attitudes. I think Porsche has really lost the battle already - though they are spending big bucks on a PR machine.

FOE's Executive Director Tony Juniper was invited to debate with Andy Goss, the Managing Director of Porsche UK, about the issue. The result is quite entertaining and we've put it on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2wNONPxIoU

Together with Greenpeace, FoE and London Assembly members, we have launched a petition to Porsche. Make sure you sign our petition after you watch the video at

http://www.stopurban4x4s.org.uk/petition_porsche.htm

Blake Ludwig, London, UK

I don't agree with what Ken doing I think £25 pounds a day is unreasonable and unfair. I back porsche all the way and I don't even drive.

Louise , London, UK

i back porshe all way and it will make more companies work abroad and a monney making scheme for the goverment and we need to stop it coming to the rest of the town s and citys

phoenix a recovery services , Doncaster, south yorkshire

If you don't like Ken and his policies, you can vote him out in March.
Who elected Porsche's management and who are they answerable to ?
Ok, in Germany, the big car manufacturers can just bribe and bully the politicians around, but this is England and don't we believe in democracy here ?

BrummyDoug, Birmingham, England

This £25 charge is ridiculous. How dare people become so obsessed with grams of C02 people work hard to afford what they have, a £40,000 Porsche with a £7k congestion bill, hello something is wrong here over 5 years thats 100pc of the car paid back to the government, sure is Ken even going to do anything with the increased revenues besides making life a green guilt hell.

Charles , Chelsea, London

I wonder who will win?

GLC v Bromley return match but perhaps Porsche have more at stake?

- and of course how many of the Judiciary drive Porsches?

Alistairs Solicitors, Bristol, UK

clearly, it is hard to feel sorry for porsche drivers, but that doesn't make it fair. ken's charges had little to do with congestion in the first place and adding emissions doesn't make his real policy any more sensible. he's just using a big stick on a minority and pursuing his own spiteful agenda.

encouraging people to live nearer to work or work from home could be far more productive both in terms of saving the environment and ensuring a higher quality of life with less time wasted commuting.

public transport is barely adequate now; it can't cope with more passengers. people might cycle or walk if it wasn't for the danger of ken's bendy buses (a huge, huge mistake), which also block traffic, causing congestion.

extending the congestion zone and denying residents a discount if they drive a 4x4 is draconian. families like 4x4s. and anyone would need a 4x4 to get around the sleeping policemen, potholes and other obstructions safely.

joined-up thinking and ken don't go.

jem, london, uk

Ken Livingstone has gone too far with this, enough is enough! I supported the principles of a congestion charge, but nothing in the world can justify 25 pounds a day, this politics of envy and is just a tax on success. As noted from other comments, a few thousand cars in C. London, that don't travel a lot anyway, is not going to make any difference to CO2 emissions from a global perpective. People honestly work hard all their lives so they can buy a nice car, not necessarily a 'Chelsea tractor', this is a tax of envy, nothing more. I agreed with the policy of a congestion charge initially, but it has been twisted out of all proportion by the current Mayor, I won't be voting for Ken this time.

Andrew Carr, London, UK

I was going to make a comment, cannot be bothered - think I will go to my French house in my high polluting Maserati and have a better life away from all this tax,tax,tax, tax

john, clevedon,

I think this charge is moronic on several levels but as an example from my own life:

I own a Porsche which I rarely drive in central London. I commute to work on a 50cc scooter (because public transport is so awful). Given that the congestion charge is going to be dropped for small cars I am currently looking at a nice little Fiat 500 which I will drive in instead of my scooter - keeping me nice and dry and much safer and still keeping me away from the crumbling public transport and its constant delays. How does that help the environment?

Just as the economy takes a downturn and inflation starts to get out of control Ken and Darling decide to help things along with a tax that will stifle London's economy and add another element of inflation to the system; a system which will just about cover its own costs and add more inefficiency to our economy; an undemocratic imposition backed by a poll being investigated by the British Polling Council for fraud.

Jeremy, London,

To Edwin re:

"Why does Britain so detest successful people? They should be encouraged so that there is some incentive for others to emulate the wealth creation. Instead, Britain rewards people to stay at home and watch daytime TV. That is really going to help".

Sorry, no. I am successful and I support the Mayor on this one. I love London city ... I grew up here and I hate what the cars are doing to it. And yet, I have three classic cars at home (which I use rarely). None of this is mutually exclusive.

John Prouse, London, UK

While I have sympathy with the polluter pays principle (even though I remain unconvinced by the global warning debate) it has been implemented in a penal way. Amongst the more egregious aspects of the congestion charge

(i) The charge does not reflect the congestion/polution caused - I rarely drive my car and often it is either to leave the zone where I live or to move it when on-street parking is suspended. Effectively I pay £4 to drive my car around the block to repark it.

(ii) The charge is penal - arbitrary time limits on payment are designed to catch people out

(iii) The charge is regressive - effectively the poor are being priced off roads in favour of the rich

(iv) The residents concession is not a true 90% coincession. Effectively one has to pay for 5 days which is £4. If, as I do, you drive a car once in a blue moon you effectively pay half the charge

If we are to have road pricing lets have a proper system rather than the current ill thought out charge

newt , london, london

To Hamad Lone, who thinks Livingstone should consult with the residents first: he did of course "consult" with residents and businesses before extending the charging zone westwards. When the results proved that about 95% opposed the move, he went ahead anyway, declaring that it was "a consultation not a referendum". He doesn't give a hoot for what anyone thinks - or at least not about those that he thinks are unlikely to vote for him anyway.

Guy, London,

Users of gas guzzlers already pay more tax. It is called petrol duty.

Ken's tax and the all the other such taxes coming out of this government are nothing but an envy tax on the successful.

Why does Britain so detest successful people? They should be encouraged so that there is some incentive for others to emulate the wealth creation. Instead, Britain rewards people to stay at home and watch daytime TV. That is really going to help!

Edwin, Bucharest,

i wish people would stop calling it " public Transport" there is no such thing its privatised! so easy solution bring the cost of so called public transport down people will use it ! oh no but you wont will you labour lovers you want your cake and eat it you want tax upon tax upon tax, teax from the private train and bus systems and tax from the london charge it has nothing at all to do with Greenhouse gases what a load of tripe ..... this country along with immigration and tax is heading for a revolt !

lee harrison , london , uk

How dare you be successful in work and spend your money on luxury when there are so many sponging, lazy, violent, good for nothings to worry about!

Pete, St Albans, England

The useless inadequate people making all the rules need to have a scan to see wether a brain is present .The authorities have altered traffic signal timings on most traffic lights around the country to cause congestion and then claim a congestion charge is needed .

wake up people you are being robbed.

David Bird , Rochdale, England

If the government wants to FAIRLY tackle pollution (as opposed to RED ken wanting to penalise what HE perceives as the undeserving wealthy - this is a social tax - nothing to do with the environment or congestion) - simply increase the fuel duty. A Porsche Cayenne parked with its engine switched off produces a lot less pollution that any number of high mileage / low emission vehicles. The end of this article should be given much more prominence - it's about how many miles you do just as much as the level of emissions! (Get all the empty buses and taxis off the road!!)

NS, London,

We need some perspective here. It is easy to pick on the high end cars, but here are some of the many "normal" cars which will be impacted:
SAAB 9-5
AUDI A3 (from NOV 06 Wk 45 >)
VAUXHALL Astra, MY2007
AUDI A4 Saloon (from NOV 06 Wk 45 >)
MERCEDES-BENZ C-Class Estate (S203)
BMW 3 Series E90/E91/E92/E93
VOLVO S40 Model Year 07

And there are many, many more. Just wait until this gets out! Ken is just money grabbing taxing anything he can.

S. Povic, London, UK

Really, David Jenkins? So what would you propose doing?

Or are you just going to stand on the sidelines and moan?

Owen, London, UK

If Ken wanted to clean London from pollution, he should have started his campaign of terror on polluters in his own home first, not last.
What on earth was Ken thinking when purchasing his new float of diesel buses that are running 24/7 but one still has to wait for 40min in the cold.
As for Porches they probably will be joined by other manufacturers, and I guess the tax payer will fit the bill for the layers.

laurent, london, uk

Catalyst equipped petrol powered vehicles do not pollute. The main pollutants are converted by the catalyst into carbon dioxide which is one of a number of greenhouse gases and not a pollutant.

McRob, Leeds, UK

Sorry, but it really is time that we enforced the polluter pays principle. An attack on their liberties? Well why should the rest of us suffer for their flagrant disregard for the environment we all have to share? And its not about being jealous of another persons success either, as bleated by Yan. If a person pollutes more or is wasteful with this planet's resources then they should have to pay for the privilege. That is the only way that we can change how people behave. In the case of people who drive 4x4s, £25 is the least it should be. Good luck to Ken, as usual he's doing the right thing for London and Londoners. Now lets follow it up with a plastic bag tax.

Mark, Kircubbin, Northern Ireland

Well done. The mayor is acting like a dictator. There should be consultation and agreement with residents within the area before bringing in such measures. He's got to remember that he's there to "serve" the people of London, not treat it as his fiefdom. .

Hamad Lone, London, England

Ken is OUT OF CONTROLL along with the green party who at the moment are pulling all his strings .

To expect a rational outcome before the mayorall election is ludicrus. The green activists are so necessairy to the mayor that he obays their every car hating comand .

Hence the congestion charge has become a tool for hurting wealthy motorists and no longer a congestion charge . which is how it was sold .It has not worked except for the people running it.

Livingstone has lost controll and should be replaced ASAP . His office has done untold damage and very little good .

greentea02, london, UK

Is this not the same as company car tax which is based on the value and CO2 emmissions of the vehicle. This has encouraged me to find the higest performing lowest emmission car possible hence all the high performance diesels that are now on the market.

Si, London,

I have an old Posche, pre 2000. It was quite cheap to buy. I only enter the congestion zone for work, and fortunately Transport for London will be footing the bill as I am a healthcare worker, and I can claim it back. But that said, if the Mayor insists on penalising drivers of larger engined cars, he should make the rule for those cars yet to be bought, not for people who already have one. That is blatantly unfair.

Anthony , London,

Funny how the congestion charge, designed to change people's behaviour, is now being touted as an Environmental charge designed to change people's behaviour.

I'm sure some a way ahead of me on this, but I can only assume that as a congestion charge it didn't work...people still drive into the charging Zone and last time I was there the taffic was as bad as ever. That said only an absolute idiot will think it will work as an Environmental charge. One thought though, if it did work and everyone changed the're 4x4's and Porsches for toll free vehicles, would we then be back to calling it a congestion charge? Afterall a low emitting vehicle contributes as much to congestion as a Porsche 911 turbo!

Just another case of Government / Local authority trying to squeeze more money out of everyone while at the same time providing less of a service.

TOny, Milton Keynes,

Yes the argument rich people will flock from London because of it is ridiculous.

John, London,

In Porsche' own homeland, Germany, major cities are now banning heavily polluting cars altogether. I am not aware of any legal action by Porsche or indeed Mercedes or BMW.

Thomas Krebs, Oxford,

Having just bought a Porsche Cayman S, which I spent 10 years working 60 hours a week to afford I fully support the move by Porsche. Living in London and already paying increased VAT when I bought the car, higher road tax and tax on my petrol, I already believe I pay my fair share towards the pollution and road use my car delivers.

David Walsh, Isleworth, United Kingdom

Would it not be fairer for the government to tax manufactorers of these cars (Porsche, BMW, VW etc) once they import into Britain. In this way you would have the money up front and paid by those who actually make a profit whilst not contributing to the environment AND not the ordinary citizen!!!!!

Paul Collado, Gibraltar, Gibraltar

If "there is absolutely no need for them to do so.", will they ban the 10/12 car convoy that visiting American Presidents always have ?
Will they ban government ministers from using gas guzzling limo's just to drive around London, when a bicycle will do ?

No, because it's one law for them and another for the taxpayer.

K. Woodhouse, Lincoln, England

£25 per day is mad, £50 is more like it. Severely tax these gas guzzling car owners when buying a new car as they do in France. Also make the initial road tax £5000 p.a. for the first three years, decreasing to £2000 p.a. for the next 3 years, and £1000 p.a. for the last four years, and then get the gas guzzler scrapped.
There is a genuine need for certain people to have a 4x4. Real farmers for instance. Not weekend country city people. Those arrogant overpaid and underworked in the city, receiving obnoxious bonuses, must be made to pay for their infliction of pollution on those with more sense.

Francis, Arundel, West Sussex

Don't worry Mark, TfL have plans to go after the black cabs for the very reason you suggest. Unfortunately, RedKen's disappointing-but-wise affection for the City means that it is not in the forefront of policy.
As for business going elsewhere, can there be a more thoroughly silly claim? Presumably those who have to pay for parking spaces near their offices have already left. Let's be clear: no-one is saying they may not drive, but it will be more difficult. For the same reason, central London now has far more traffic lights and the phasing is deliberately inconvenient. Should we all move to Taipei in revolt?
All you who choose to drive and park illegally around where I live on the Southbank get in my way, but I am not about to move: it's just the price of living where I do. And if I had a big car, I'd either ditch it or pay up.

Peter, London, London

Like everything to do with CO2 this is simply gesture politics designed to raise money. No-one including Ken Livingstone is prepared to take the steps necessary to have any significant impact on emissions.

David Jenkins, Weybridge, UK

Porsche have a point, petite boxers always seem at the front of the queue and un-congestion causing. Why not tax just the 4x4s?

Any how this about congestion, if London just passed laws to have major deliveries conducted at night like on the continent and more road works completed outside of peak times life would be far more civilised.

Simon, London,

“No-one is allowed to throw their rubbish in the street " - HUH?

I am sorry Mr. Spokesman for Mr. Livingstone, but why then is London one of the most visually polluted cities I have ever lived in or /visited?

Why is it that in Council Estates across London, one has to tip-toe, not though tulips, but through bursting supermarket bags stuffed with foetid rubbish, discarded condoms and hypodermic syringes and pools of urine, vomit and human/animal faeces?

I am sorry, but I lived in London when Mr. Livingstone was Leader of the GLC, and I voted for him when he first stood for mayoral office. BUT this kind of inane claim, the mad, illogical, expansion of the congestion charge, the Gherkin, and the antics surrounding the likes of Jasper Lee, really do seem to indicate that he has lost the plot.

He should embrace a graceful retirement whilst there is still time - and shut these silly spokespersons up!

Bill, Suzhou, China

That's precisely what people will do - get a taxi. The problem, of course, is that the London black cab emits 226g of CO2 per km, so forcing us into them will do absolutely nothing to reduce emissions.

It seems to me that the "pollution" charge is yet another stealth tax on those with higher incomes, which lets face is, is par for the course for the political Left.

Mark, London,

When are these New Labour and Old Labour socialists going to get off of our backs? Well done, Porsche!

RB, Aberdeen,

Misguided reaction by Porsche and prompted by publicity for their cars. I suggest that we also tax the wealthy at the same proportionate rate as the rest of British citizens are taxed.

The argument that the super rich will simply domicile elsewhere is nonsense. If the business advantages for being based in London are as great as claimed by the super rich and their hangers-on then that would be a reason for staying and paying the full tax like the rest of society.

Maxadolf, Epsom, UK

Funny thing about environmental taxes. Taxes going up reduces the ability to save up money for the very thing you need to buy to replace the thing that's causing so much expense and pollution.
I'd love to replace my car for somethiing less costly in terms of running costs (whether through tax or petrol etc.) Unfortunately the only thing I can afford is something 'as dirty' as all my spare cash now goes to the government.
When is any govenrment/quango (and do any of you think any government is going to be any different) going to realise that incentives have to be in place rather than taxes.

FoE: your motives are admiral but your energy is being directed to the wrong thing.

Craig, Swindon, Wilts

The whole congestion charge (now ironically enough converted to the pollution charge) is a farce..all these green idiots should look at pollution caused by their beloved socialist form of transport....buses! Banning expensive cars will not make an ounce of difference to central London pollution!...why not have a 24 hr ban altogether..obviously this is Kens attack on people that will never be his client base!

Red Ken and his dumb cronies need to be voted out asap..yes i do have a porsche...and no i do not drive it into central London as I work in the suburbs....and for all of you who are jealous of my success ..TOUGH luck..try working harder and paying more taxes, you may be able to buy a porsche too.

Yan, London,

I think it's highly amusing that Londoner's are the only people who pollute and who's car's emit dangerous CO2 gases. I don't think Ken has thought about the fact that if we all stopped driving and took public transport, the system wouldn't be able to handle it. We already pay for living in the congestion zone, Kensington and Chelsea resident's already pay high rates, now we get slugged for driving a car that propbably emit half the CO2 of the London buses.

Amelia, London,

The congestion charging zone is for central London and should not directly affect families who mostly live further out and would not choose to drive in to central London due to the prohibitive cost of parking etc. Those that commute in to central London should be able to afford the increased charges and those that need their vehicles for commercial purposes should be given some form of allowance (if they do not already).
I have a car and live in south west London- I don't ever drive in to the congestion charging zone as it takes too long and costs too much to park- all before the charge. London public transport is very good, if you're that rich you can afford to drive in and park- get a taxi.

Charlotte, London,