Government promise to debate road pricing "a Sham"

Promises from Ministers to listen to the 1.4 million signatories of the anti road pricing petition and debate the issue sensibly have today been exposed as a total sham.

"The Goverment have already made up their minds that national road pricing is going to happen," said ABD spokesman Nigel Humphries. "Infrastructure and laws are already being put into place - the wheels are already turning. Protestations that nothing has been decided and accusations that the public have been duped into signing the petition by false information are spin doctoring of the worst kind."

Already, Stephen Ladyman has contradicted Douglas Alexander by saying that road pricing is 'inevitable'

Embarrassing revelations occur on a daily basis: A minister has called the person who thought up the idea of e-petitions a 'prat', and a German GPS Systems Company, has, according to the London Evening Standard, allegedly contributed a substantial sum to The Institute of Public Policy Research, an organisation known to favour 'selling' road pricing to the public.

Furthermore, the ABD has been sent inside information, complete with a schematic system diagram, from an employee working for a consortium company involved in a Highways Agency 'driver information system', claiming that it will be used for a National Road Tolling System.

Overwhelming public opposition to being tracked and charged on the UK's woefully inadequate road system has manifested itself in the prime minister's e-petition started by ABD member Peter Roberts, which is now likely to exceed 1.5 million signatures.

There is no debate. On one hand, there is massive public opposition to road pricing, on the other, the Government regards Road Pricing as a 'fait accompli'.

The ABD calls on all drivers opposed to road pricing to support the ABD and its stance and force the government to abandon their ruinous plans - or give up their car keys and privacy to the Government.