Zac Goldsmith banned from driving after speeding in Volkswagen Golf in Paddington, Chelsea and Twickenham

The former environment minister cannot drive until March 18
Former environment minister Zac Goldsmith
PA
Ted Hennessey11 January 2024
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Former environment minister Zac Goldsmith has been temporarily banned from driving after he was caught speeding four times in London last year, including twice on the same road.

The Conservative peer, 48, cannot drive until mid-March when he will be sentenced for exceeding speed limits in a hybrid electric Volkswagen Golf on roads in Paddington, Chelsea and Twickenham between April and August 2023.

Lord Goldsmith, who has pleaded guilty to the four incidents, also faces three other driving-related offences, including one in Somerset, Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard on Thursday.

On April 27 last year, he was caught travelling along Chelsea Embankment at 29mph, despite the limit being 20mph, according to court papers.

Just over a month later, on May 31, the Tory environmentalist drove at 46mph on the A316 in Twickenham, which has a 40mph limit.

He was caught speeding on that same road on August 3, while driving at 47mph.

A month before the August incident, on July 18, Lord Goldsmith exceeded the 20mph limit on Bayswater Road, next to Kensington Gardens, while travelling at 28mph.

District Judge Nina Tempia imposed an interim disqualification, banning him from driving until his sentencing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on March 18.

Lord Goldsmith, who unsuccessfully ran to be London Mayor in 2016 before serving as a minister in Boris Johnson’s cabinet, did not attend the hearing.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in