Sturgeon urged to drop ‘triple whammy of anti-driver taxes’

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has been urged to drop a “triple whammy of anti-driver taxes” ahead of the local elections.

At First Minister’s Questions, Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross told Ms Sturgeon to scrap the workplace parking levy – which was brought into force at the beginning of this month and gives councils the power to charge businesses for parking spaces.

He also took aim at the potential implementation of toll roads in Glasgow and a proposed congestion charge in Edinburgh.

He said: “If the First Minister carries on down this road, Nicola Sturgeon and her SNP candidates are going to force Scotland’s economy into the slow lane.

“The commuter tax should be abandoned, toll charges should be ruled out and her workplace parking tax should be ditched.

“First Minister, will you drop this triple whammy of anti-driver taxes?”

In response, Ms Sturgeon said: “I don’t support road tolls, but I do support local councils being empowered to consider the tough issues that they face, to consult with the public and to take sensible decisions.”

In a testy Holyrood session that required numerous interventions from Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone due to jeers from MSPs from all parties, Ms Sturgeon added: “What is hammering people, including motorists, across the country is the Tory-created cost-of-living crisis.

“Which an out of touch Prime Minister and an out of touch Chancellor of the Exchequer refuse to do enough about.

“Perhaps we should focus on the immediate problems being faced by people and the solutions that need to come from Douglas Ross’s colleagues at Westminster.”