UK expected to cut electric car sales target by about a quarter
UK ministers are expected to make steep cuts to the government's electric vehicle targets in the week of 8 November, according to The Guardian. Government sources say Louise Haigh, the First Secretary of State, is expected to agree to cut the electric car sales target by about a quarter.
Haigh was given responsibility for changes to the targets by Prime Minister Andy Burnham, according to Yahoo News. She is due to finalise the plan after a meeting at Downing Street on Wednesday. The meeting is intended to settle a long-running dispute between the transport, energy and business departments over the targets.
The targets sit under the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate, a set of rules introduced by the previous Conservative government. The mandate sets the share of a manufacturer's new car and van sales that must be zero-emission, meaning electric or otherwise producing no tailpipe emissions. Under the current rules, carmakers must reach 80% EV sales by 2030 and sell only EVs by 2035.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, the industry body, says battery electric cars made up 26.6% of UK new car sales in the first 10 months of the year. The target for the full year is 33%. The Guardian reports that Labour's expected cut has faced protests from MPs.
The government says it remains committed to phasing out new cars that run solely on petrol and diesel by 2030, and to all new car and van sales being zero-emission by 2035. A government spokesperson said no decisions have been taken on the ZEV mandate. In August, the government launched a review to shape the route to zero-emission driving by 2035. It said the review aims to back jobs and investment and to maintain a competitive UK car industry.
The debate over the rules is not new. In 2024, the target for that year was 22% of car sales being electric, and the figure was set to rise to 38% in 2027. That November, major UK businesses urged the Labour government not to waver on the targets, while car manufacturers wanted ministers to ease the mandate. Ford announced 800 UK job cuts that month and described rules requiring companies to sell more EVs each year as "unworkable".
The timing also falls near international climate talks. Burnham is preparing to travel to his first COP climate summit as prime minister. Ed Miliband, the foreign secretary, is due to champion electrification alongside him there.
