London's mayor calls deadbeat US Ambassador "venal little crook"

Cory Doctorow 8:25 am Mon Jun 25, 2007

In NYC, a country's national corruption index is a good predictor of the likelihood that its UN diplomats will rack up unpaid parking fines.

In London, the top offender for traffic fines is the US Embassy, which refuses to pay the "congestion charge" for driving in central London. The US Embassy owes the city of London £1,484,765 in unpaid fines. This state of affairs has prompted London's mayor, "Red" Ken Livingston, to call US ambassador Robert Tuttle a "venal little crook."

"The majority of missions pay the congestion charge on time and do not incur fines. We also wrote to all missions owing over £1,000 in fines urging them to settle their debts with Transport for London."

The US embassy – along with many others – has refused to pay the congestion fee on the grounds that it is tax; and therefore diplomats are exempt from paying it.

It has led to stinging criticism from London mayor Ken Livingstone, who branded US ambassador Robert Tuttle a "venal little crook" for his refusal to pay.

(via Freakonomics)

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