9:18 am, October 10, 2024
The Government is working to ‘give clarity’ to carmakers over its EV plans, amid growing calls for additional incentives to boost the transition to greener motoring.
That is according to transport secretary Louise Haigh, who says that ministers are ‘aware’ of the challenges currently facing the automotive industry.
The Cabinet minister also confirmed that Labour is currently working on plans for a consultation on bringing the ban on the new petrol and diesel cars forward to 2030, after it was pushed back to 2035 under Rishi Sunak.
She said: ‘I think there are challenges with the EV transition – we’re very aware of that, including the lack of certainty that the previous government introduced by moving back the deadline for transition.
‘We are clear. We’re bringing that forward to 2030 in order to give that clarity to manufacturers, and that should bring down costs for consumers.
‘So we’ll be making an announcement about consultation on that soon as well.’
Her comments amid growing calls for additional government help in assisting the transition to EVs.
Car Dealer reported last week that Ford’s UK boss Lisa Brankin is calling on additional ‘customer incentives to drive demand’ for electric cars.
Just days later, a number of carmakers joined the SMMT in signing an open letter to the government, calling for a cut to VAT on new EVs amid ‘barely moving’ demand.
Earlier this week Uber’s chief executive said governments, including the UK, should be providing more support for the EV transition and called on ministers to stick by their pre-election pledge over the 2030 deadline.
Pressed on his comments, Ms Haigh said: ‘Clearly encouraging companies like Uber to transition their fleet is one of the quickest ways to get cheaper EVs onto the second-hand market and really bring down prices for consumers.
‘We want to make EVs as affordable as possible, but one of the biggest barriers is people’s perception around charging and charging infrastructure.
‘And there is too big an inequity across the country about where those public charging points are, and we’ll be looking to address that in future spending rounds as well.’
