Several embassies owe about £51m in unpaid congestion charges Mayor Boris Johnson plans to confront President Barack Obama over millions owed by the US embassy in congestion charge during his visit to London.
Several embassies refuse to pay the charge for driving in central London, claiming they are exempted from local taxes. The unpaid bill stands at £51m.
“Maybe when President Obama’s hors d’oeuvre plate is whisked away he will find a bill for £5.5m,” he said.
Previously, the US embassy has said it considers the charge to be a tax.
Mr Obama will visit the capital, from 24 to 26 May.
Following Mr Johnson’s interview on BBC London, Transport for London confirmed the US embassy owes £5.2m in unpaid congestion charge.
Speaking to Vanessa Feltz the mayor said he may be “shepherded away” from Mr Obama and added: “[But] if I get the chance to I will remind him that the US owes us £5.5m in congestion charge.
“I think if they are going to have the representation here in London then they should pay the charge for driving and using our streets. So ‘No representation without a congestion charge’ is the slogan.”
Many embassies refuse to pay the £10-a-day charge and the £120 fine incurred through not doing so.
But Mr Johnson said: “It is not a tax, it is a charge for services and I think we should test this in the courts.
“The only way we could do this is if the foreign office gets a grip on the situation and actually takes the American government to court and gets this adjudicated in the international court.” he said.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.