Faisal Rashid MP tables Early Day Motion calling for the urgent removal of Mersey Gateway Bridge tolls
London,October 2019-(Amanjit Singh Khaira)-
Faisal Rashid, MP for Warrington South, has tabled an Early Day Motion (EDM) calling on the government to urgently remove the Mersey Gateway Bridge tolls to relieve the financial strain on local commuters. The EDM notes that that local motorists are facing a yearly bill of up to £1,080 to cross the bridge when travelling to and from work, and that the cost of doing so has led to some commuters having to leave their employment. It further notes that in the 2015 General Election, the Conservative Party promised drivers in Warrington, Cheshire West and Chester exemption from the toll charges, only to U-turn on this promise once in Government.
Faisal has consistently pressurised the Government to act on this issue. In June this year, he called on the Government to scrap the tolls in a Westminster Hall debate. Earlier this year, his meeting to discuss a way forward with a Government Minister from the Department for Transport was cancelled by the Minister, citing diary pressures. Faisal is adamant that the Government must keep their promise so that Warrington South residents are able to move freely across the area.
EDMs are motions submitted for debate in the House of Commons for which no day has been fixed, used to put on record the views of individual MPs or to draw attention to specific events or campaigns. During the prorogation of Parliament, MPs were unable to submit EDMs.
Faisal Rashid, MP for Warrington South, said:
“It is a disgrace that over 4 years since George Osborne promised Warrington South residents that they would not have to pay the tolls on the Mersey Gateway Bridge, my constituents are still waiting for the Conservatives to make good on their promise and do the right thing.
“The news is filled with flashy Conservative policy proposals at the moment – I would remind people in Warrington to think twice before they believe a word they say. Some of my constituents face a bill of up to £1,080 to cross the Mersey Gateway Bridge tolls when travelling to and from work. This is a tax on the people of our town, plain and simple. Some have had to leave their jobs as the cost of commuting is simply too high.
“I will keep up the fight to scrap the Mersey Gateway tolls alongside my fellow Labour MPs in the North West. It is unacceptable that working people in Warrington are forced to pay the price in extra motoring costs and increased local congestion as a result of Tory lies.”
