80% of new cars and 70% of new vans sold in Great Britain are set to be zero emission by 2030
The Department of Transport announcement comes a week after Rishi Sunak moved the deadline of 100% from 2030 to 2035
The zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate says the Government, means the country will have the most ambitious regulatory framework for the switch to electric vehicles (EVs) in the world.
This requires 80% of new cars and 70% of new vans sold in Great Britain to be zero emission by 2030, increasing to 100% by 2035. The 2035 end of sale date puts the UK in line with other major global economies, including France, Germany, Sweden and Canada.
The move it days, provides certainty for manufacturers and will help families make the switch to electric by providing more time for the second-hand EV market to grow and charging to roll out more widely across the country.
The plans provide investors with confidence to invest in charging infrastructure – with 43% more public chargepoints this year than last, putting the country well on track for the government’s target of 300,000 chargepoints by 2030.
The mandate sets minimum annual targets, starting with a requirement for 22% of new cars sold in 2024 to be zero emission, as originally proposed.
This will rise each year up to 100% by 2035, although some manufacturers already plan to reach 100% sooner.
The UK’s ambition has already triggered investments in gigafactories and EV manufacturing, with over £6 billion in private sector chargepoint funding also ready to be unleashed. Today the government is confirming the trajectory to 2030.
The country is making strong progress on its world-leading ambition to phase out new fossil fuel vehicles, backed by more than £2 billion in government investment. Latest industry figures show 20% of new cars sold in August were zero emission, and there are now 48,100 public chargepoints, in addition to chargepoints installed in homes where most charging takes place.
Transport Secretary, Mark Harper, said:
The path to zero emission vehicles announced today makes sure the route to get there is proportionate, pragmatic and realistic for families.
Our mandate provides certainty for manufacturers, benefits drivers by providing more options and helps grow the economy by creating skilled jobs.
We are also making it easier than ever to own an electric vehicle, from reaching record levels of chargepoints to providing tax relief for EV owners.
The government has also introduced several schemes to lower the upfront and running costs of owning an EV. This includes a plug-in van grant of up to £2,500 for small vans and £5,000 for large vans until at least 2025 and £350 off the cost of homeplace chargepoints for people living in flats. This is in addition to EVs being cheaper to run than petrol and diesel cars, with research showing that electric cars are around £150 cheaper to maintain a year.
