Will Labour soften ZEV mandate targets for electric cars?
Speculation has grown over the weekend that the government could weaken the UK’s electric car targets in the face of industry pressure.
Media reports suggested that Labour Transport Minister Louise Haigh was ‘open’ to relaxing rules around the ZEV mandate as some car makers struggle to reach this year’s 22% target and warn that next year’s 28% could be unachievable.
There have been calls for the targets to be lowered or for other measures to reduce the pressure on car makers. However, in an interview with LBC Radio on Sunday Ms Haigh insisted: “the mandate will not be weakened”.
She told the station: “There has been a downturn in demand on a global level so we are absolutely in listening mode – we want to discuss how the current situation is affecting them [car makers], but we are not diluting our ambition.”
As the rules stand, manufacturers must ensure 22% of their new vehicle sales are zero-emissions vehicles by the end of this year, with that proportion growing every year until 2035. There is some flexibility within this through meeting other low-emissions targets or ‘buying’ zero-emissions credits from other brands who have exceeded their target.
Ms Haigh, who is due to meet with car makers including Nissan and Stellantis to discuss their concerns on Wednesday, said she would look at the flexibility around the targets set by the previous Conservative government.
She said: “There are existing flexibilities, but we want to work with the manufacturing sector to examine whether those flexibilities are working and whether we can address them.”
It is believed that changes could include reducing the size of fines manufacturers face for missing their ZEV mandate targets. This currently stands at £15,000 per car.
‘Government must hold its nerve’
While speculation continues around what, if any, changes may come out of Wednesday’s meeting, Vicky Read, CEO of ChargeUK, said any weakening of the mandate would hurt investment and potentially threaten jobs.
She commented: “These calls to weaken the targets in the ZEV mandate are badly timed and ill thought through.
“A successful transition to EVs, which benefits the economy and the environment, requires availability of both EVs and charging infrastructure. According to motor manufacturers’ own figures new EV sales rose by 24% last month and second-hand EV sales were up 57%. Provision of charging is also on track, with the public network growing 42% a year and a new charger installed every 25 minutes. All this growth is underpinned by the certainty that the ZEV mandate provides.
“Mess around with those targets and billions of pounds of private investment earmarked for the charge point rollout is in danger of being withdrawn, endangering tens of thousands of jobs, undermining economic growth and undoing the UK’s position as one of the world’s net zero leaders.
“The government must hold its nerve and use next week’s meeting to signal ongoing support for a policy that is evidently working.”
While new EV sales rose by 25% in October and accounted for 21% of all new car sales, the SMMT has warned the overall mix is likely to remain at around 18.5% this year. It has called for government help, including tax breaks on new EVs and charging, to help boost uptake.
