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THE luxury car maker Porsche is likely to take the mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, to court over plans to charge drivers of the most polluting vehicles £25 each time they enter the capital.
The German sports car specialist says that the proposed rise, which will come into force in October, is "unfair and disproportionate".
In a statement, the company said that unless the mayor backs down it would be applying for a judicial review in an attempt to get the decision overturned. "A massive congestion charge increase is quite simply unjust," said Andy Goss, managing director of Porsche GB.
"Thousands of car owners driving a huge range of cars will be hit by a disproportionate tax which will have a very limited effect on CO2 emissions."
The new charge for 30,000 vehicles that drive into the capital each day was unveiled by Mr Livingstone last week. The mayor said he expected the move would lead to a modest reduction in CO2 emissions, adding that the projected revenue of £30m-£50m a year would be ploughed back into environmentally-friendly transport schemes such as walking and cycling. The most environmentally friendly cars will get a 100 per cent discount.
Mr Livingstone said: "The CO2 charge will encourage people to switch to cleaner vehicles or public transport and it will ensure that those who choose to carry on driving the most polluting vehicles help pay for the environmental damage they cause. This is the 'polluter pays' principle."
The mayor said he was amazed Porsche had decided to intervene and described the decision by the company's chief executive, Wendelin Wiedeking, as a PR disaster.
