Contractors will start installing signage around the LEZ city centre boundary from October to help drivers plan their journeys in advance of enforcement beginning on 1 June 2024.
Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras, which support enforcement, will be installed in late 2023/early 2024 and a mobile enforcement vehicle will be active from June 2024 onwards.
In early 2024 there will also be changes made to some street layouts and signals around the LEZ boundary to cut congestion and improve safety for everyone.
Independent market research carried out in June indicates that a majority of drivers in Edinburgh continue to support the LEZ and think protecting public health is important. Awareness and understanding of the LEZ has improved since 2022, highlighting the success of the local and national communications campaigns.
Councillor Scott Arthur, Transport and Environment Convener, said: “It may seem some way off, but we are beginning to approach the start of enforcement of the LEZ, and we want to make sure drivers are prepared.
“Air pollution harms both our physical and mental health, so by restricting the most polluting vehicles in the LEZ we will create a healthier place for everyone, reducing inequalities and making the city centre a more welcoming place.
“I’m pleased that compliance with our emissions standards continues to increase, driven by the upcoming LEZ restrictions and support funds, and that support remains high. Lothian Buses are now LEZ ready, and the Council fleet will be soon.
“There’s still work to be done though to ensure everyone else who enters the zone is compliant. As we begin preparations for enforcement, I would encourage all drivers to check if their vehicle is compliant through the online vehicle checker tool, and find out more about the support funds available.”
A city centre LEZ was introduced in Edinburgh on 31 May 2022, along with LEZs in Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee, restricting the most polluting vehicles and benefiting everyone’s health. In Edinburgh, a two-year grace period is in place, meaning no penalty charges will be issued during this time.
Compliance is particularly high amongst the local buses (97%), with Lothian Buses being 100% compliant. Petrol cars (95%) and lorries (86%) also have high compliance rates yet diesel cars are only 50% complaint.
Restricting the most polluting vehicles will significantly reduce harmful emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) from vehicles by up to 50% within the LEZ. Further air quality improvements are expected beyond the boundary, improving public health around the city.
LEZ restrictions will apply to motor vehicles, except motorcycles and mopeds. Vehicles must meet the minimum emissions standards to drive within the zone, though national exemptions apply including for blue badge holders and emergency vehicles.
Edinburgh’s LEZ will issue penalty notice charges, or fines, in line with Scottish regulations, from 1 June 2023. Penalties start at £60, for non-compliant vehicles driving within the Zone though this is reduced by 50% to £30 if paid within 14 days.
Penalties escalate and surcharges will be issued if drivers repeatedly enter the LEZ within a 90 day period. These surcharges are capped at £480 for cars and vans, and £960 for buses and lorries.
To help tackle illegal migration, the UK government is proposing tougher penalties for hauliers and vehicle drivers found carrying clandestine migrants
As part of the continued fight against illegal migration and the criminal gangs behind it, changes to the existing clandestine entrant civil penalties scheme will be made through the Nationality and Borders Act.
These include new civil penalties for hauliers and vehicle drivers who fail to adequately secure their vehicle and conduct proper checks, regardless of whether a clandestine entrant is found, as part of efforts to prevent dangerous journeys which risk serious injury or even death.
Since 2020, the number of clandestine entrants coming to the UK via HGV and goods vehicles has continued to increase year on year. The government is determined to stop this, including via these refreshed penalties for hauliers and vehicle drivers who leave themselves vulnerable to exploitation.
Ahead of implementation, we are seeking the views of vehicle drivers, companies and other interested parties on all these new measures.
The consultation with the industry will run for 8 weeks and will close on 12 September 2022.
Alongside the consultation, the Home Office will be running a series of engagement events to explore these issues in more detail.
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Simon Baynes MP said: “We are determined to do all we can to prevent illegal entry into the UK.
“Criminal gangs who risk the lives of desperate people for profit are taking advantage of those whose vehicles travel in and out of the country.
“Far too many vehicles are currently not adequately secured, and we will seek to increase penalties on those who are negligent and prosecute those who are complicit.
“This consultation is the next vital step in achieving this, and we look forward to working with the haulage industry and other interested parties to ensure that they are aware of the necessary requirements.”
The recently enacted Nationality and Borders Act is part of the UK government’s New Plan for Immigration to make it fairer for those in genuine need, deter illegal entry into the UK, break the business model of people-smuggling networks and remove those from the UK with no right to be here.
New plans to crack down on puppy smuggling and ban the import of dogs with cropped ears or docked tails have been set out by the UK Government today.
The new powers, which also include raising the minimum age for importing a puppy from 15 weeks to six months and banning the import of heavily pregnant dogs to help protect puppy and mother welfare, are aimed at safeguarding the welfare of the thousands of puppies and dogs that come into Great Britain from overseas each year.
More than 66,000 dogs were commercially imported into the UK last year according to Animal and Plant Health Agency figures. However, evidence shows a recent rise in low-welfare imports and smuggling activity, with border authorities seeing around a 260% increase in the number of young puppies being intercepted for not meeting the UK’s pet import rules – from 324 in 2019 to 843 in 2020.
The proposals are part of a raft of measures included in an eight-week GB-wide consultation which seeks views from the public and stakeholders on government proposals to tackle puppy smuggling and low-welfare imports by unscrupulous breeders and traders.
In addition, the consultation asks the public and stakeholders for views on new penalties for breaching these rules, changes to the detention and rehoming process and whether the proposals should be extended to cover cats and ferrets.
Launching the consultation, Animal Welfare Minister Lord Zac Goldsmith said: “Puppy smuggling is a grim trade, and we are determined to clamp down on it.
“Raising the minimum import age for puppies will help protect thousands of animals that are brought into the country each year and stop criminals looking to profit from the rise in demand for pets.
“We already have one of the toughest pet travel border checking regimes in the world and as an independent nation outside the EU we are going even further by preventing anyone from bringing in dogs which have undergone inhumane procedures such as ear cropping or tail docking.
“These new measures build on our plans to raise animal welfare standards across the board as part of our Action Plan for Animal Welfare.”
RSPCA chief executive Chris Sherwood said: “In recent years we’ve seen a huge increase in the number of dogs being commercially imported into the UK as well as the number of dogs being reported for having undergone mutilated procedures such as cropped ears.
“These are major dog welfare issues that need addressing as a matter of urgency in order to protect dogs from unnecessary suffering and to protect the public from falling victim to criminals who are trying to cash in on these dogs’ value.
“We’re really pleased that the Government – which pledged to tackle these issues among many others in its Action Plan for Animal Welfare – is launching this consultation and we hope that these new measures will be implemented efficiently so that we can crackdown on the illegal dog trade once and for all.
Owen Sharp, Chief Executive of Dogs Trust said: “We are delighted that today’s consultation could bring us one step closer to ending the abhorrent puppy smuggling trade.
!Over the last six years, Dogs Trust has spearheaded the campaign to crack down on puppy smuggling, after our first undercover investigation in 2014 exposed widespread abuse of the Pet Travel Scheme by unscrupulous dealers, bringing in puppies for sale.
“Since setting up our Puppy Pilot in 2015 we have cared for more than 2000 puppies which were seized at UK borders, often in horrendous conditions. We have seen puppies as young as 4 weeks old being smuggled into the country and dogs with open wounds from ear cropping as well as heavily pregnant dogs close to giving birth.
“We are pleased that the consultation has set out proposals to tackle these issues and hope it results in tougher penalties for these crimes, as currently only a handful of cases have ever been prosecuted and the existing penalties are sadly no deterrent.
“We will continue to work closely with the Government to be the voice for dogs and put forward our recommendations to ensure the proposed legislation effects real change.”
Media vet, animal welfare campaigner, and founder of the Lucy’s Law and #BanPuppyImports campaigns, Dr Marc Abraham OBE says: “This important Government consultation is hugely welcome and will hopefully bring us another step closer to ending widespread cruelty to puppies and their parents.
“For decades, both the legal and illegal importation of young puppies has enabled and encouraged low-welfare breeding practices and dog exploitation across Europe, with puppies often separated from their mothers too early, then sent long distances often riddled with all kinds of disease, straight to their unsuspecting new owners in the UK.
“By introducing these positive dog welfare proposals we can make significant progress in the fight against these cruel practices. I would like to thank the UK Government for listening to the evidence presented by campaigners and hope we can secure these positive changes needed to protect the puppies, their parents, and the British dog-owning public.”
Puppies that are imported too young face a significantly higher risk of developing illnesses or even death.
Raising the minimum age for bringing puppies in to the UK will therefore ensure that they are not separated from their mothers too early and will allow them to develop further ahead of being taken on potentially long and stressful journeys which can have a lasting impact on their temperament and behaviour.
The RSPCA has also recently reported a 620% rise in reports of dogs found to have had their ears cropped, covering from 2015 to 2020.
Ear cropping is a painful process where a dog’s outer ears are surgically altered or removed altogether to make them look more aggressive. The surgical procedure, which has been illegal in this country since 2006, can hinder their ability to communicate with other dogs and their owners.
The majority of these dogs are suspected to have undergone the procedure overseas and under the new rules set out in the consultation launched today they would be banned from entering the country.
Last year the Dogs Trust warned the public about the risk of buying dogs online after rescuing dozens of puppies that were illegally imported into the country.
Victims of this cruel trade included a group of six underage puppies seized at Dover port after being found covered in sticky oil and suffering from diarrhoea (above). The puppies had been illegally imported from Romania and were travelling in the back of a van for more than 24 hours. They had to be shaved to remove the oil from their fur.
In September 2020, four beagle puppies were also found in the back of an abandoned vehicle in Greater London. At eight weeks old, they weighed just two kilograms each and were very hungry and dehydrated.
They are believed to have been illegally imported from the Republic of Ireland, to be sold onto prospective buyers in the UK. After spending three weeks in the care of the Dogs Trust, they went on to loving new homes.
People dropping litter or flytipping in Scotland risk being hit with higher financial penalties from today (1 April).
The rise in Fixed Penalty Notices will see those caught littering face an £80 penalty; while those flytipping could be £200 worse off. The move follows a public consultation, which supported tougher penalties for anyone who doesn’t bin their waste or damages our environment by flytipping.
The penalty increase comes ahead of the Scottish Government’s National Litter Strategy – the first since devolution, which will be published later this year alongside the Scottish Marine Litter Strategy.
Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said: “Scotland’s natural environment is one of our greatest assets and we must do everything we can to keep it clean and litter-free. It is easy to do the right thing and put your litter in the bin – there really is no excuse for littering.
“Tackling litter and flytipping costs us a staggering £78 million every year. It’s impacting our economy, looks terrible and in some cases is affecting public health – none of us wants to see a litter-strewn environment; be it rural or urban. It’s up to all of us to take responsibility for this problem and I’d encourage everyone in Scotland to take their litter home, recycle it or find a litter bin.”
Cllr Stephen Hagan, COSLA’s Development, Economy and Sustainability Spokesperson commented: “Litter and its effects have significant costs to both communities and councils. Local authorities are committed to working with their communities and partners to reduce the negative impacts of litter and flytipping, and fixed penalty notices are one of a number of ways in which behaviour change can be encouraged.
“The increase from a £50 to £80 penalty for littering had strong support through the National Litter Strategy consultation and councils will seek only to use this increased financial penalty when other avenues of education and prevention have failed to stop those individuals who not only flout the law but also the efforts of the wider community to keep Scotland clean, tidy and litter-free.”
