The Government will ban the sale of new cars that achieve less than 50 miles of electric range from 2040, Autocar can exclusively reveal.
The plan, called Road to Zero and set to be unveiled imminently, follows on from last year’s announcement that it would ban all diesel and petrol cars in the UK by that year, as part of a £2.7 billion plan designed to cut pollution. It came in light of research that described UK air quality issues as “a national health emergency”.
At that time, it was unclear which electrified models, other than pure electric models, would be exempt from the ban, leading to heavy criticisim of the Government’s announcement.
As a result of the Road to Zero strategy, all current hybrids, such as the Toyota Prius, would be banned from sale from 2040. Plug-in hybrids on sale today typically offer 30 miles of zero-emission range, so would have to be substantially improved to avoid the ban.
Based on current cars on sale, it is estimated that 99% of all cars offered for sale today would not be able to be sold. While the strategy determines a 22-year glide path for purely combustion-engined technology, car industry insiders are said to be unhappy that the ban is being announced by the Government without it outlining any details of how it plans to invest in infrastructure to support the strategy, or how it will incentivise car buyers to adopt it other than the imposition of the deadline.
Electrified vehicles only accounted for 5.1% of new car sales in the first three months of this year, reflecting the slowly growing uptake of zero-emission models.
Mike Hawes, chief executive of the SMMT. which speaks on behalf of the car makers, said that the industry supported the goverment’s goal for zero-emission transport, highlighting the fact it is investing billions in new technologies, with nearly 50 different plug-in models already on the market, but criticised the leaked announcement of the ban.
He said: “Vehicle manufacturers will increasingly offer electrified versions of their vehicles giving consumers ever more choice but industry cannot dictate the pace of change nor levels of consumer demand. Unrealistic targets and misleading messaging on bans will only undermine our efforts to realise this future, confusing consumers and wreaking havoc on the new car market and the thousands of jobs it supports.
Hawes said that the SMMT could not support goals which “do not appreciate how industry, the consumer or the market operate and which are based neither on fact nor substance”.
He added that 98% of all new cars are diesel or petrol, meeting the latest and toughest emission standards, helping reduce climate change and improve air quality.
“If Government wants the UK to be a global leader in zero emission transport it must provide a world class package of incentives and support to make this a credible policy. This includes ensuring we have the right infrastructure in place with sufficient charging points and energy supply. Consumers need clear information about the right vehicles for their driving needs and it is again disappointing for both industry and consumers that vitally important information about government policy is being communicated by leaks.”