Britain’s proposed 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars is facing renewed doubt after prime minister Rishi Sunak seemed unconvinced about the policy on Monday.
After being asked whether the plan to ban would stand alongside UK net zero targets, Sunak specifically focussed on the latter in a television interview.
“Of course, net zero is important to me,” he said, “so yes we’re going to keep making progress towards our net zero ambitions and [...] strengthen our energy security”.
“We’re going to do that in a proportionate and pragmatic way that doesn’t unnecessarily give people more hassle,” he had said beforehand.
Given Sunak did not specifically confirm or deny plans to reverse the ban, speculation has arisen of a potential U-turn, with the EU making a similar move earlier this year.
Climate groups have argued any backtrack on the proposal to ban fossil fuel vehicles would, alongside threatening net zero targets, risk investment in the UK’s electric vehicle sector.
“This policy has given private investors certainty about future demand and [...] been key to investor confidence,” Green Finance Institute director Lauren Pamma said.
“Backtracking now would create confusion for the market and send concerning signals on the government's priorities.”
Uncertainty has already stuck the sector, with prospective mass battery producer Britishvolt collapsing in January over a lack of access to government support.
“[The ban] is not only critical to deliver on our net zero commitments but is also the hallmark of the UK’s leadership to date in climate policy,” Pamma added.
Whether government does indeed reverse the ban remains to be seen, with levelling up secretary Michael Gove assuring there will no change but former government member Jacob Rees-Mogg hinting there could be benefits to the Tories in doing so before the next election.
Dwelling on the Conservative’s win in the Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election last week, Rees-Mogg told GB News that the party had an opportunity to secure votes by throwing out “expensive green policies” earlier this week.
The 2030 ban on fuel-powered cars, proposed by Boris Johnson in 2020, was planned “in different circumstances,” he said, before today’s ongoing cost-of-living pressures.