Controversial low traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) are about “taking back control” from Whitehall, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has said.

Mr Khan was defending the schemes which are in place in a number of London boroughs but have been criticised for being ineffective in the fight against climate change and making life too difficult for motorists.

The idea of LTNs is to make residential areas of London cleaner and safer to live and walk around in.

But opponents of the scheme say the changes have created hotspots of traffic which means people end up spending more time in their car.

Speaking to Sky News, Mr Khan said there is evidence of fewer road traffic accidents and deaths in LTNs in areas such as Waltham Forest, Lambeth and Newham.

“If everyone jumps in their car there simply isn’t enough road space for people to drive around our city. So we have to encourage people to walk, cycle or use public transport,” he said.

He said councils should be able to decide what happens in their communities and if an LTN isn’t working they can tweak it.

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“Who are the best people to decide what happens in our communities? Is it civil servants in Whitehall or is it locally elected councillors deciding what happens in our communities?” he said.

“If taking back control is to mean what it says on the tin it shouldn’t be Brussels to Whitehall, it should be Brussels to Whitehall to councils across the country.”

He said he thinks devolving powers to local decision-makers means the right choices will be made in relation to the environment, the economy and people’s health in those communities.

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Mr Khan is standing for an unprecedented third term in London’s mayoral elections next year, and told The Guardian newspaper at the weekend he ultimately hopes to serve six terms.

He has written a book called Breathe: Tackling the Climate Emergency, which details his goal to make London a cleaner city.

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