Hornchurch & Upminster MP Julia Lopez has accused Labour of being “anti-driver and anti-growth” after charges at the Dartford Crossing rose for the first time since 2014 – from £2.50 to £3.50. 

She warned that the increase comes on top of Sadiq Khan’s expansion of ULEZ to Havering, his hike of the Congestion Charge to £18, and new tolls on the Blackwall and Silvertown Tunnels – meaning drivers in East London and Essex are being treated as a “cash machine.” 

“People feel that if they so much as move, they’re being taxed by Labour right now – and with this Dartford hike it is now literally the case,” 

Mrs Lopez said. 

Mrs Lopez criticised Labour’s claim that the charge increase is about “managing demand,” arguing this exposes a direct contradiction: 

“They are deliberately managing down the growth of the dynamic Thames Estuary region – when their entire pitch to voters was about stimulating it. For thousands of workers commuting to work, or carrying out their trade in vans and cars, crossing at Dartford is not a luxury - it is a necessity. If fewer people can cross, that economic activity will be suppressed. The contradiction could not be clearer.” 

She also highlighted the unfairness facing her constituents compared with those west of the city: 

“East London has far fewer crossings than the west, and almost all of them carry charges. Imagine the uproar if every bridge in West London suddenly carried tolls as high as those now faced east of Tower Bridge.” 

Mrs Lopez added that there is growing concern the Chancellor could hike fuel duty to plug holes in the public finances: 

“Yet another hit to people who are already paying more every time they dare drive.”