Keir Starmer’s latest move will leave some motorists absolutely furious. Rewind the clock two years, and Labour were the pioneers of electric cars. In their manifesto, Labour claimed they were reinstating the 2030 petrol and diesel car ban.
They explained that the move was to give manufacturers certainty after the Conservatives pushed the ban back to 2035. Instead, Starmer and co. have done the exact opposite. Ministers have already pushed the ban back half a decade – what was the point in changing it in the first place – and further concessions are now expected too. It’s another massive U-turn.
Reports have emerged that the Prime Minister has engaged in a drastic intervention, ripping up Ed Miliband’s Zero Emissions Vehicle (ZEV) Mandate rules, with the petrol and diesel car ban set to be massively diluted. It is understood that instead of firms needing to ensure 80% of new cars are EVs by 2030, the number could fall as low as 50%.
Hybrid vehicles could also be allowed to make up a larger portion of sales. It’s a lifeline for petrol and diesel. The combustion car ban was always going to be pushed down the track the second that manufacturers and the industry started complaining. The sales and demand for EVs haven’t justified the ban for a while, and Rachel Reeves’ pay-per-mile tax nightmare won’t help either.
Overall, the ZEV Mandate U-turn is the right move and will give manufacturers time to catch up with the exorbitant targets. However, a certain segment of UK drivers must be furious at the latest announcement.
Two million electric cars are now on UK roads. How many finalised deals in an era of widespread tax deductions? While also promised by marketing men, they were investing in a product that would boom in popularity. Get in early while you still can. Yeah right.
Now, electric car owners are staring down the barrel of a Rachel Reeves’ infuriating pay-per-mile plan fully in the knowledge that they didn’t really need to ditch their petrol car after all. If that isn’t a double whammy to make motorists’ blood boil, I don’t know what else is.
Electric cars were once heralded as the future of motoring, but customers aren’t as interested as experts in boardrooms thought they would be.
Further concessions must now make early adopters feel they’re being sucked into quicksand, questioning if they should have bothered in the first place.
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