{"id":9064,"date":"2024-05-22T09:20:35","date_gmt":"2024-05-22T09:20:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=9064"},"modified":"2024-05-25T11:48:30","modified_gmt":"2024-05-25T11:48:30","slug":"uk-presses-ghana-high-commission-for-5-million-in-unpaid-london-congestion-charges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=9064","title":{"rendered":"UK presses Ghana High Commission for \u00a35 Million in unpaid London Congestion charges"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>1 Minute, 37 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>

The United Kingdom government is intensifying its efforts to recoup outstanding congestion charges, dating back two decades, from various countries, including Ghana and the United States.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Despite persistent diplomatic representations, a significant number of embassies in London have staunchly refused to settle their dues, prompting the UK government to escalate the matter.<\/p>\n

Plans are underway to bring the issue to the International Court of Justice, underscoring the gravity of the situation.<\/p>\n

In response, the Foreign Office has reaffirmed its stance<\/a>, emphasizing that diplomats are expected to adhere to local regulations, with no legal basis for exemptions.<\/p>\n

However, echoing international law outlined in the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the US Embassy in London contends that diplomatic missions are exempt from the congestion charge, a position supported by several other diplomatic entities.<\/p>\n

Former Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab previously disclosed efforts to compel diplomatic missions to settle outstanding debts, encompassing congestion charges, parking fines, and business rates.<\/p>\n

Transport for London (TfL) sheds light on the staggering extent of unpaid charges, with diplomatic missions collectively owing over \u00a3143 million, underscoring a systemic challenge.<\/p>\n

The Ghana High Commission emerges as one of the significant debtors, with an outstanding balance exceeding \u00a35 million, contributing to the substantial financial burden on TfL.<\/p>\n

Notably, the US Embassy tops the list of debtors, with an outstanding amount of \u00a314.6 million, followed closely by the Embassy of Japan.<\/p>\n\n

The congestion charge scheme, introduced in 2003, entails a daily fee for vehicles traversing central London during specified hours, with exceptions for certain groups.<\/p>\n

TfL asserts that the congestion charge constitutes a service fee rather than a tax, thereby negating diplomatic immunity from payment obligations.<\/p>\n

As tensions escalate, the impasse underscores broader diplomatic intricacies and the intricacies of international law governing diplomatic privileges and obligations.<\/p>\n

By Daakyehene nana yaw Asante with additional files from BBC<\/strong><\/p>\n

The post UK presses Ghana High Commission for \u00a35 Million in unpaid London Congestion charges<\/a> first appeared on 3News<\/a>.<\/p>

\n
\n \n
\n \n \"Happy\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Happy <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n \n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Sad\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Sad <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Excited\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Excited <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Sleepy\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Sleepy <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n \n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Angry\"\n <\/a>\n
Angry<\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Surprise\"\n <\/a>\n
Surprise<\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The United Kingdom government is intensifying its efforts to recoup outstanding congestion charges, dating back two decades, from various countries, including Ghana and the United States. Despite persistent diplomatic representations,… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9926,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"yes","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9064","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9064"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9064\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9927,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9064\/revisions\/9927"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9064"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9064"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9064"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}