BORIS JOHNSON is to present Barack Obama with a Congestion Charge bill for £5.5M when the American President visits London next week.
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The London Mayor is fed up that the US Embassy refuses to pay the £10 charge on its cars, a refusal that has now racked up an unpaid bill of £5.2M, slightly less than the figure quoted by Johnson.
“I will remind him that the US owes us £5.5m in Congestion Charges,” said Johnson on BBC London today.
“When President Obama’s hors d’oeuvre plate is whisked away, he will find a bill for £5.5M.”
Johnson also played on the famous ‘No taxation without representation’ slogan used by American revolutionaries in their battle for independence from Britain back in the 18th century.
“If they are going to have representation in London,” he said, “they should pay the charge for driving and using our streets.
“So ‘No representation without a congestion charge’ is the slogan.”
As yet, there has been no response from either Obama or the American Embassy, but previously the US has argued that the Congestion Charge is not a ‘charge’, but a tax. Traditionally, embassies don’t have to pay local taxes.
But Johnson, like his predecessor Ken Livingstone, who also campaigned on the issue, is having none of that argument.
“It is not a tax,” said Johnson.
“It is a charge for services and I think we should test this in the courts.
“The only way we could do this is if the Foreign Office gets a grip on the situation and actually takes the American government to court.”
Barack Obama is due to visit London from 24-26 May.
