Sir Keir Starmer calls for London mayor to ‘reflect’ on ULEZ after by-election loss as Sadiq Khan stands by policy

Published

2 years ago

July 21, 2023

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Sir Keir Starmer has called on Labour’s mayor in London to “reflect” on his decision to expand the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) to the capital’s outer boroughs, after the impact of the policy on the Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election.

Many had predicted Labour would overturn the 7,000 majority in Boris Johnson’s old seat in the west of the city after the former prime minister’s shock exit as an MP last month.

But throughout the campaign, it became clear Sadiq Khan’s plan for ULEZ had angered people on the doorstep.

Politics live: Next election ‘not a done deal’ – Sunak

The Tories clung on to the seat with a majority just shy of 500 votes – which was still a 6.7% swing towards Labour – and Rishi Sunak told reporters: “When there’s an actual choice on a matter of substance at stake, people vote Conservative.”

Speaking to reporters, Labour leader Sir Keir said the constituency was always “going to be tough” to win as it had never voted for his party.

But he said the ULEZ expansion was also a factor in “why we lost in Uxbridge”, adding: “We all need to reflect on that, including the mayor.”

Mr Khan also said he was “disappointed” the party didn’t win the seat overnight.

But he insisted the decision to widen the ULEZ, due to come in next month, was “the right one”, adding: “It was a difficult decision to take. But just like nobody will accept drinking dirty water, why accept dirty air?”

The ULEZ was first proposed by Mr Johnson during his stint as London mayor as a way to cut air pollution in the capital.

When he announced it in 2015, he said it was “an essential measure to help improve air quality in our city, protect the health of Londoners, and lengthen our lead as the greatest city on earth”.

The policy in its current form – which sees drivers having to pay a £12.50 daily fee to drive in the zone if their car does not meet emissions standards – currently covers central London and the areas up to, but not including, the North and South Circular Roads.

But Mr Khan plans to expand the zone up to the capital’s borders with Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey from the end of August.

The mayor defended the by-election loss, saying: “I have lived in London my entire life [and] this seat has never been Labour since I’ve been alive, including in 1997 in the Tony Blair landslide and the subsequent by-election a few months later.

“But I am quite clear though, the policy to expand the Ultra Low Emission Zone is the right one.”

Mr Khan outlined the successes of the existing policy, saying there had been a toxicity reduction in central London of 50% since ULEZ began, and 20% for inner London boroughs.

He also said a third fewer children were being admitted to hospitals with asthma attacks.

“Four million Londoners are already benefiting,” the mayor added. “What about the other five million in outer London, where there is the largest number of premature deaths?

“The 10 boroughs with the largest number of premature deaths are in outer London [and] it is the poorest Londoners who are least likely to own a car that suffer the consequences.”

Mr Khan said he had been “listening” to people’s concerns about the expansion, increasing the eligibility of people to be exempt – such as families on child benefit or small businesses who employ up to 50 people.

“We are going to carry on listening, making sure we monitor the situation,” he added.

“But the choice is simple. Do we kick the can down the road to clean up the air in London or do we take action?”

Politics

70% chance of crypto bottoming before June amid trade fears: Nansen

Published

1 hour ago

April 2, 2025

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70% chance of crypto bottoming before June amid trade fears: Nansen

The cryptocurrency market may see a local bottom in the next two months amid global uncertainty over ongoing import tariff negotiations, which have been limiting investor sentiment in both traditional and digital markets.

US President Donald Trump is set to detail on April 2 his reciprocal import tariffs, measures aimed at reducing the country’s estimated trade deficit of $1.2 trillion in goods and boosting domestic manufacturing.

While global markets took a hit from the first tariff announcement, there is a 70% chance for cryptocurrency valuations to find their bottom by June, according to Aurelie Barthere, principal research analyst at the Nansen crypto intelligence platform.

The research analyst told Cointelegraph:

“Nansen data estimates a 70% probability that crypto prices will bottom between now and June, with BTC and ETH currently trading 15% and 22% below their year-to-date highs, respectively. Given this data, upcoming discussions will serve as crucial market indicators.”

“Once the toughest part of the negotiation is behind us, we see a cleaner opportunity for crypto and risk assets to finally mark a bottom,” she added.

Both traditional and cryptocurrency markets continue to lack upside momentum ahead of the US tariff announcement.

“For the main US equity indexes and for BTC, the respective price charts failed to resurface above their 200-day moving averages significantly, while lower-lookback price moving averages are falling,” wrote Nansen in an April 1 research report.

“Fragile market psychology highlights the necessity of “good news,” mainly on US growth and on tariffs,” added the report.

Bitcoin needs to hold $82k amid crypto market “wait and see” mode: analyst

Investors are currently in “wait and see mode” and are hesitant to take on large positions as markets lack direction.

However, the Crypto Fear & Greed Index remained above the “extreme fear” mark for a third consecutive session, which suggests a marginal improvement despite continued caution, Stella Zlatareva, dispatch editor at digital asset investment platform Nexo, told Cointelegraph.

“This reinforces the view that markets are in a wait-and-see mode,” Zlatareva told Cointelegraph, adding:

“Bitcoin continues to consolidate within the $82,000 – $85,000 range after experiencing a period of directional recalibration in Q1. The asset is navigating this zone with key support at $82,000 and upside potential toward $86,500 and $90,000 if broader sentiment stabilizes.”

Other traders are awaiting a Bitcoin breakout above $84,500 as a signal for more upside momentum amid the ongoing tariff uncertainty.

Magazine: Bitcoin ATH sooner than expected? XRP may drop 40%, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 23 – 29

Politics

VanEck eyes BNB ETF with latest Delaware trust filing

Published

2 hours ago

April 2, 2025

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VanEck eyes BNB ETF with latest Delaware trust filing

Investment company VanEck filed to register a Delaware trust company for an exchange-traded fund (ETF) tracking Binance-linked BNB cryptocurrency.

VanEck, on March 31, registered a new entity under the name VanEck BNB ETF in Delaware, according to public records on the official Delaware state website.

In filing 10148820, the entity is registered as a trust corporate service company in Delaware, hinting at a potential spot BNB (BNB) ETF in the United States.

According to social media reports, VanEck is the first company to propose a potential BNB ETF in the US, potentially signaling an expansion of BNB Chain — formerly known as Binance Chain — across traditional financial products in the market.

BNB ETP product already exists in Europe

While VanEck is the first to move toward a potential BNB ETF product in the US, similar products have been trading in Europe for several years.

Prominent European crypto asset manager 21Shares launched a BNB exchange-traded product (ETP) in Switzerland in October 2019, according to TradingView.

TradingView data suggests that 21Shares BNB ETP has only $15 million in assets under management (AUM), a 0.3% share of Switzerland’s total crypto AUM of $5.3 billion as of March 28, as reported by CoinShares.

The product reportedly saw a significant drop in fund flows in the past year, totaling 537 million euros, or $580 million.

What is BNB?

Formerly known as Binance Coin, BNB is the native digital asset of the BNB Chain, which is now described as a “community-driven and decentralized blockchain ecosystem for Web3 decentralized applications.”

BNB was launched by Binance in July 2017 as an ERC-20 token on the Ethereum blockchain as a tool to incentivize users to trade on their platform and pay for fees at a discounted rate.

Delaware, United States, Binance, Binance Coin, ETF — *Five top crypto assets by market capitalization. Source: CoinGecko*

At the time of writing, BNB is the fifth-largest cryptocurrency asset by market capitalization, worth about $88 billion, according to CoinGecko.

Altcoin filings surge with Trump administration

VanEck’s BNB ETF trust filing is just one of many new US altcoin ETF filings and registrations that have followed Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration in January.

In early March, VanEck registered a similar Delaware trust for an ETF tracking the price of Avalanche (AVAX), also becoming one of the first companies to register such a trust.

Many ETF issuers have filed for an XRP (XRP) ETF with the Securities and Exchange Commission, with at least nine companies submitting standalone XRP ETF filings as of March 12.

Magazine: SEC’s U-turn on crypto leaves key questions unanswered

Politics

SEC and Gemini ask to pause lawsuit to explore ‘potential resolution’

Published

7 hours ago

April 2, 2025

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SEC and Gemini ask to pause lawsuit to explore ‘potential resolution’

The US Securities and Exchange Commission and crypto exchange Gemini have asked to pause the regulator’s suit over the exchange’s Gemini Earn program, saying they want to discuss a potential resolution.

In an April 1 letter to New York federal court judge Edgardo Ramos, lawyers representing the SEC and Genesis requested a 60-day hold on the case and that all deadlines be pulled “to allow the parties to explore a potential resolution.”

“In this case, the parties submit that it is in each of their interests to stay this matter while they consider a potential resolution and agree that no party or non-party would be prejudiced by a stay,” the letter states.

The lawyers added that a stay was in the court’s interest as “a resolution would conserve judicial resources” and proposed that a joint status report be submitted within 60 days after the entry of the stay.

The SEC sued Gemini and crypto lending firm Genesis Global Capital in January 2023, alleging they offered unregistered securities through the Gemini Earn program.

In March 2024, Genesis agreed to pay $21 million to settle charges related to the lending program, but the enforcement case against Gemini remains outstanding.

The letter did not specify what a possible resolution would entail, but the SEC has dropped several lawsuits it launched against crypto companies under the Biden administration, including against Coinbase, Ripple and Kraken.

In February, Gemini said the SEC closed a separate investigation into the firm as the regulator winds back its crypto enforcement under President Donald Trump.

“The SEC cost us tens of millions of dollars in legal bills alone and hundreds of millions in lost productivity, creativity, and innovation. Of course, Gemini is not alone,” Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss said at the time.

OpenSea, Crypto.com and Uniswap, among others, have also recently reported that the SEC had closed similar probes into their companies that were investigating alleged breaches of securities laws.

Magazine: Bitcoin ATH sooner than expected? XRP may drop 40%, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 23 – 29