The Prime Minister has confirmed that the ban on petrol and diesel cars will be pushed back five years to 2035, and will still be available second hand after that.
Announcing the move in a televised press conference he said that by 2030 most people will be buying electric vehicles, but that should be up to consumers not government.
The Prime Minister insisted he “cares” about reaching net zero but says that the climate policies he inherited risk alienating voters
Telling the country “We are going to change” he says
“And that starts today, in the approach to one of the biggest challenges we face – climate change”.
“It cannot be right for Westminster to impose such significant costs on people, especially when they are already struggling”
Britain has ‘massively over-delivered’ on reducing carbon emissions and can adopt a more pragmatic approach
Britain he said is ‘stuck between two extremes’ – climate change deniers and those who want to live further and faster with ‘ideological zeal’
“If we continue down this path, we risk losing the consent of the British people and the resulting backlash will not just be against specific policies, but against the wider mission itself.”
Announcing other measures he also confirmed that the ban on gas boilers will be delayed until 2035, and even then only when gas boilers reach end of life. The poorest he says will never have to replace them
He also confirmed that he won’t ban oil and gas, won’t force car sharing, won’t force people to sort rubbish into seven bins, no taxes on eating meat, or new taxes to discourage flying
Responding to the speech Ed Miliband Labour’s spokesman said
“Today is an act of weakness from a desperate, directionless Prime Minister, dancing to the tune of a small minority of his party.Liz Truss crashed the economy and Rishi Sunak is trashing our economic future.”
Greenpeace UK’s policy director, Doug Parr, said:
“Sunak is taking the public for fools. He claims he’s helping ordinary people by playing politics with the climate, but we know the real winners will be big corporations like the oil and gas lobby.
“Rowing back on home insulation and commitments to help people move away from gas will ensure we stay at the mercy of volatile fossil fuels and exploitative energy companies.
“It will also spook international investors who will be looking for genuine government commitment on the green economy, costing the UK jobs and opportunities.
“The many scandals we face like the cost of living, inequality, and the energy crisis can be fixed with the same solutions we know will tackle the climate crisis.
“Sunak must explain how we will meet our net zero commitments by rowing back on all of the policies to get us anywhere near it.”
