Heidi Alexander opened a consultation on Friday that could cut the UK’s 2030 electric car sales target from 80% to as low as 50%. The review runs until 23 October, when the government could decide whether to keep the target unchanged or weaken it.
The current rules require 80% of all new cars to be electric in 2030. Under the consultation, the headline target could also be set at 70% or 60%, while the government considers whether to extend flexibilities to 2034.
Heidi Alexander and the mandate
Alexander, the transport secretary, said: “It’s right we keep targets under review to ensure they’re practical and back British industry.” She added: “The end goal hasn’t changed – but we need to take business with us on the journey.”
Under the existing rules, carmakers must sell an increasing proportion of pure electric cars every year or face fines. The targets rise from 33% this year to 80% in 2030, and the sale of new petrol and diesel cars is due to be banned from 2035.
Flexibilities to 2034
The government added loopholes called flexibilities last year. They allowed more plug-in hybrid EVs to count towards the mandate and gave carmakers more room to catch up with battery car sales in later years.
The consultation now puts those flexibilities back under review, alongside the headline target. For manufacturers, the practical question is how much of the requirement stays tied to pure electric cars and how much can be met later through the flexibilities already built into the rules.
Greenpeace UK response
Electric car sales have risen by 29% in the UK this year, while the automotive industry has said the sales targets put too much pressure on manufacturers. The industry has also said the mandate forces them to sell electric cars at discounts and has threatened job losses or UK factory closures if the rules do not change.
Ami McCarthy of Greenpeace UK called weakening the rules “a wrong turn for drivers, energy security, our climate and the economy”. She also said: “This mandate is one of the most powerful policies we have to bring down planet-heating emissions, which is the only way to stop more deadly heatwaves in future.”
Possible cuts from 80% to as little as 50% could add millions of tonnes of CO2 to emissions. If the government chooses the lower target, carmakers, charging investors and climate campaigners will be working from a looser rule set while the 2035 ban remains in place.
