{"id":236606,"date":"2023-08-30T11:51:56","date_gmt":"2023-08-30T11:51:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automotobuzz.com\/?p=236606"},"modified":"2023-08-30T11:51:56","modified_gmt":"2023-08-30T11:51:56","slug":"uk-motorists-are-overtaxed-says-tory-mp-greg-smith","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automotobuzz.com\/car-reviews\/uk-motorists-are-overtaxed-says-tory-mp-greg-smith\/","title":{"rendered":"UK motorists are overtaxed, says Tory MP Greg Smith"},"content":{"rendered":"

Car fan Greg Smith MP sticks up for UK drivers in an exclusive chat with Auto Express<\/h2>\n


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\u201cThe motorist is the most overtaxed creature in the country.\u201d They weren\u2019t the words we were expecting to come from the mouth of a sitting Conservative MP, but Greg Smith isn\u2019t afraid of putting across an honest view, even if it\u2019s in stark contrast to that of the current Tory Government.<\/p>\n

Self-confessed car fan Smith, who also sits on the Transport Select Committee, has taken to the roads around his 335-square mile Buckingham constituency in a classic Land Rover Defender, holding surgeries from the back seats of the off-roader that\u2019s being powered by P1 sustainable fuels.<\/p>\n

We met up with Smith in the market town of Princes Risborough, where he gave us his views on everything from potholes to EV charging, and also talked about his love of Formula One \u2013 handy as his constituency covers part of the Silverstone circuit.<\/p>\n

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We started by asking him if he felt drivers had a right to feel persecuted these days?\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there has been a big movement that has an undertone of anti-car about it in recent years,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd you can divide that into multiple columns.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a column of people that just don\u2019t like private transport. They would rather everyone got on a bike or a train or a bus, or whatever it might be. I\u2019m certainly not anywhere near that column. I\u2019m an opponent of that mindset.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThen you\u2019ve got the columns of people who for good reasons want to do something about the pollutants in the atmosphere \u2013 they have taken a stance on vehicles. But I think it\u2019s a false stance. The Ultra Low Emissions Zone in London is a prime example of this, but it\u2019s happening elsewhere in the country. That to me is just false because cars, through technology, are getting cleaner and cleaner.\u201d<\/p>\n

When it comes to electric cars, Smith feels that the Government\u2019s current proposal to outlaw the sale of internal combustion-engined cars in 2030 needs to be reviewed. \u201cI think 2030 needs pushing back,\u201d he said. \u201cI think we need to have a sensible debate about what actually is a net-zero or carbon-neutral, de-fossilised vehicle. The Government\u2019s zero-emission mandate talks about the tailpipe, so that\u2019s immediately writing synthetic fuels off.\u201d<\/p>\n