THE fight against Mersey Tunnel tolls continued with a protest above the Wallasey Tunnel today.

Campaigners from the UK Independence Party displayed "Say No To Tolls" banners and placards to show their support for the removal of tolls and their sympathy for long-suffering motorists who they believe have been treated as 'cash cows' by successive governments.

Mersey Tunnel tolls have long been a source of irritation for Wirral drivers and have been panned as a 'tax on Wirral'.

They are usually increased annually, but this year they were frozen at £1.70 each way for a third successive year in February.

Last month a think tank's report controversially suggested the tolls could be used to pay towards Liverpool's high speed rail link.

Independent think tank ResPublica said HS2 for Liverpool was essential if chancellor George Osborne's Northern Powerhouse plan is to succeed and Liverpool is not to be left behind.

UKIP's 'Scrap the Tolls' campaign was launched by UKIP leader Nigel Farage in 2002.

The party's deputy leader Paul Nuttall was among those taking part in the protest in Wallasey today.

He told the Globe: "We're here to protest the fact that these tolls even exist.

"We were told that once the debt on the tunnels was paid, these tolls would disappear, but that hasn’t happened.

"We know that the tolls are making a profit of around £14m a year. You don’t have to be Carol Vordeman to know the maths on this.

"If we do away with the tolls it would be good for businesses and footfall.

"People in Wirral pay their Council Tax and road tax, we don’t think they should have to pay tunnel tolls, which are a stealth tax.

"It's also ludicrous that tolls should be used to pay for HS2."

John McGoldrick, chairman of Mersey Tunnel Users' Association, said: "The Conservatives seem to have forgotten the promises made before the election.

“As Globe readers know, a lot of promises were made by Chancellor George Osborne last year, namely a review of the tolls, but nothing seems to have happened."