Prime Minister unveils plan to support carmakers: comment

Responding to the Government’s plan to support carmakers, and the changes it is making to the ZEV Mandate, Colin Walker said: “The UK’s car industry undoubtedly faces uncertain times, but it should be remembered that the tariffs being introduced by President Trump have very little to do with the ZEV Mandate. Car manufacturers will be concerned about valuable exports to the US, but the mandate has nothing to do with exports – it's solely about EV sales here in the UK. Since the UK imports next to no EVs from the USA, there is no real logic in weakening the mandate in the face of these tariffs.
 
“The mandate is actually a global UK success story introduced by the previous Government and continued under this one, highlighted by the International Energy Agency for its role in driving a surge in EV sales in what has become Europe’s largest EV market. [1]
 
“But, in weakening the mandate elsewhere by extending flexibilities and allowing the sale of standard hybrids between 2030 and 2035, the Government risks reducing the competition it has stimulated between manufacturers, meaning prices for families seeking an EV might not fall as fast, and sales could slow. The growth of the second-hand EV market, where most of us buy our cars, would in turn be stunted – leaving millions of families stuck in petrol and hybrid cars paying a petrol premium of hundreds, and even thousands, of pounds a year.
 
“The question now is will this have a negative impact on growth? Could the higher driving costs associated with petrol cars stifle a growth in activity elsewhere in our economy? Will billions of investment in the UK’s charging infrastructure, and its wider economy, be held back? Since global EV sales are only going in one direction – up - any risk of the UK falling behind puts hundreds of thousands of jobs at risk.”

ENDS

Notes to editors:

1. https://www.iea.org/reports/global-energy-review-2025

For more information or for interview requests:

George Smeeton, Head of Communications, ECIU, Tel: 07894 571 153, email: george.smeeton@eciu.net