I've just read that spending on anti-terrorist measures has reached £2b a year. Coupled with the cost of Iraq etc, the decline in tobacco tax, the Government is obviously looking for money in the longer term. Perhaps they should stop going round provoking trouble in the world?

The motorist has been demonised as an excuse to hit them harder. I do hate that term "the motorist" Makes me sound like someone who likes nothing else but to drive my car all day for the pleasure of it. Truth is I use it to get to work, do shopping, and drive to UK holiday destinations twice a year. I'm already paying ridiculous amounts of tax to do so, and that's after £1200 a year Council Tax and after my income tax and NIC. I'm sure the majority are just like me.

I beleive this is a good way forward for Manchester. People need to consider alternative ways and times for travelling to work. Some comments discuss how awful it is to share transport with the 'public', that's fine but if you want the luxury of your own space, music etc. then you should pay for it. At the moment non-car commuters pay taxes to support road infrastructure etc. for car drivers. If it is free to drive into Manchester then perhaps the metro and buses should also be free and paid for by everyone's tax. However I do also think that public transport should be a genuine alternative with frequent services, car parking at well-lit terminals etc. Roll-on the C-charge - can we get it sooner?

I hope that all the people on here who are complaining will be there,I for one will as will many of my work colleagues and neighbours.This is what we have been waiting for.There are many things in the Manchester constitution I want to bring up,mainly our right to vote on the charge and why they will NOT let us.

all we want is a referendum on this issue. studio debates never work - they listen to what the public say then as soon as has finished OUR VIEWS are then discounted and they carry on regardless.

Just what we have been waiting for,now is your chance.Get down there and have your say instead of listening to Labour propoganda.Make sure they answers your question,if not keep asking until you get a clear answer. I really hope Leese is there I have some very questions for him on his statements to the press.

Isn't it ironic that Manchester City Council are now bleating on about congestion in Manchester City Centre when they are the ones who caused the congestion in the first place. Re-open Cross Street to all traffic, put the pavements back to normal, put Piccadilly back to the way it was, de-pedestrianise Cannon Street and, hey presto, less congestion at a fraction of the cost! Manchester City Council used the re-building of Manchester IRA bomb to bring the centre to a standstill. People will say that it was congested before but, believe me, it might have been busy but you could get from one side of the city without too much of a problem and without the gridlock the Council have caused on a daily basis.

Could the MEN refrain from statements such as "Motorists will pay up to 5 pounds a day".
When 2012 arrives the figure would be more like eight pounds a day.
Here are some maths. inflation at 5% - 5.25 pounds in 2008 5.60 in 2009 - 6 pounds in 2010 - 6.30 in 2011 - 6.70 in 2012. Ten Percent inflation will see it rise to 8 pound 25 pence by 2012.
For a worker to find forty pounds extra (after deductions) means that it is costing SIXTY POUNDS a week!

What is the point of having a debate when we have a "Dictatorship"For a government? This so called democratic government has made its mind up we will get charged for congestion even if we dont want it...Since joining The EU weve lost our democratic rights.This government knows it gets backing to do what it wants from europe..

The biggest problem and one the government shoudl be made aware of. GMPTA can write anything they want to in applying for the funding and no ammount of pubic opposition will neccessarily be described in the report. The government will be led to believe we want this scheme, when we have responded three times now when asked that 75-80% do not want the CC.

exactly how is it going to keep traffic moving in Greater Manchester?
we pay enough tax to use our cars already
SAY NO!

How many times must we say the same things before the council listens to the people. This page is checked so why is nothing passed through to the powers that be of the feelings of the 80% that voted against this c-charge.

I hear that low income people may get a 20% discount. Yet again I have to subsidise the peasants.

Ridiculous.

Joey, your maths are spot on however you have not allowed for the MCC 'fudge factor' when working out the cost increase applicable to Manchester Services. i.e. parking has increased from £6 a day to £8 a day at council run car parks this year. That's 33% in one year not 2.5% as per inflation. MCC are responsible for raising inflation and lowering living standards, I am surprised the government are not all over them.

Can we please have a businesslike explanation from the Council? How much Local Authority Money has been spent on Council's hope of expanding Metrolink? Whilst the Government has provided precisely what?

The website TRAMWAYS & URBAN TRANSIT gives details of how funding was initially agreed for Metrolink expansion in December 2002. Then the government announced on Tuesday 20 July 2004 it was withdrawing the £520m previously promised.

Following Council's protest, in December 2004 the Government announced that the original £520m budget for the three extensions was still on the table but would only be forthcoming if Manchester comes forward with a bold, integrated package to tackle congestion.

On Friday 17 December 2004 Roger Jones, GMPTA chairman, acknowledged that a congestion charging scheme would have to be considered.

Having been cheated out of the promised funds, the council compounds the injustice by overriding opposition to a congestion charge. Even without guarantee of funding, spending on the project has continued:

"14 May 2005: The new Central Park Metrolink stop is being built. A short distance to the east, a new twisting fin concrete bridge is being built "29 August 2005: Overnight on 27/28 August the new bridge, which will carry Metrolink tracks between Central Park and Dean Lane stops, has been swung almost into place across the Manchester to Rochdale railway line. "28 November 2005: On the 10th November, The Lord Mayor of Manchester opened the Interchange by being the first person to be driven down The Gateway. This new road runs from from Oldham Road under the railway and future Metrolink lines to Northampton Road in the heart of Central Park. "New Metrolink Depot: The existing depot at Queen¿s Road will not be big enough to handle the expanded network. GMPTE have obtained the site for a second depot, near Old Trafford tram stop etc etc etc ....."

We should all demand a referendum on this issue. We have all had enough of being bullied around. Whatever happened to democracy.

I live in London and all thats happening is that the wealthy are continuing to drive their gas guzzlers and those with less money are being priced off the roads. It cant work without free public transport which is regular and where you are able to get from where you are to where you want to go without numerous changes and long journeys.

Sid,there is No democracy under Labour,they are Bully boys and we have to do as they order.,just take a look at Merry,he has ruined Salford.

as a long time cycle commuter i repeat my opposition to the congestion charge. The CC is simply an admission to the failure of public transport policy. The continuing piecemeal euro tick box type Cycle route provision in manchester is the proof that any further 'investment' will be poorly spent. Have cycling, the buses, the trains improved over 3 terms of this govt? of course not, so what makes you think they've suddenly thought of the 'solution'?
by the way have a look at the victoria ave/rochdale rd 'new' junction, its clearly been designed for the forthcoming CC.

Alternative Commuter, Altrincham - We already pay to drive! Road tax! Tax on fuel! Plus the costs of finance and insurance! For some of us - the car is the only way possible for us to get to work in a timely mannor - I live in warrington, at worst it takes me an hour to get to work. When I was without my car for a few days it took me over 2 and a half hours to get to work. On average this adds 3 and a half hours to my working day - time I would rather be spending with my children. And please also note that drivers while paying a huge amount already in taxes to drive also pay their income / c tax which pays for public transport they would never use. So if that is your view then I'll have my money back!

Now we made up case studies in the new congestion tax advisory leaflet. How do we know that the public consultation will be with real people or will these be fictious also.The whole thing rings of the fact that congestion charging is a done deal. It stinks

I gave up my car due to stress from the M60. It now takes 1.5 hours instead of 20 minutes. I get a bus a train and a tram from wythenshawe to salford quays. The bus is never on time (cheers stagecoach) The trains are great but at dis-jointed times (cheers transpennine) and the trams are poor and extremely overcrowded. My boss just complained as I the bus was late so i missed all my connections and said "think you need to drive". To sort all this out put penalties on bus companies for poor service and puntuality. Widen roads so that they can travel easily not narrow them (Manchester council and levenshulme just an example). The charge is required to force people to make fewer journeys that are not required especially school runs. The only thing is MANCHESTER COUNCIL and GMPTE is start being truthful and also get the public transport and roads sorted

I would be prepared to support the congestion charge, but not if it is used as a tax raising scheme. If all the cash collected were paid out to the residents of Greater Manchester, with each person on the electoral register getting an equal share, it would have the effect of discouraging driving during peak hours, but, as businesses would pay but not get a share of the revenue, the average person would be better off. Problem solved.

It just feels like a lose lose situation - either pay £5 (or whatever it ends up being) or pay probably a similar amount to use public transport. I'd have to get tram or bus into Manchester then tram or bus out to where I work which would no doubt cos around the £5 mark.

Oh and of course that would be on top of paying road tax/insurance on my car to play out on the weekend!

it would not be so bad if you had a comprehensive underground system like Toronto where you have buses tram and subway that actually feed of each other and are user friendly with a person able to get a transfer from one mode of transport to the other as long as it is one directional ie Bolton to Ashton u lyne or Stocport to Eccles and at a cost of 2.75 canadian dollars or Approximately 1.5 pounds per single JOURNEY with discounts available for multi JOURNEYs T.O is approx 3.75 million metro area similar to Birhmigham and Manchester it is beyond me why Britains 2nd and 3rd largest METRO areas are so badly neglected for their tranport needs is itlocal failure or neglect bye whitehall

there will be less traffic on the road during peak times if this fiasco comes in to force as they will all wait till after peak hours and be charged less. Are we going to see car tax abolished???? I regularly commute into manchester from bolton and there is no way i am spending in excess of £30 a week unnecessarily it will be hardly worth me going to work. Stop this rip off now.