A report, today, by the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy committee says that the government plans for zero emission cars and vans, planned for 2040, should be brought forward to 2032.
However, Mike Hawes, head of the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders (SMMT), said calls to shift to entirely electric-powered cars by 2032 were "unrealistic".
Perhaps the SMMT would like to explain how this would be a problem since most of the worlds motor manufacturing nations have plans in place for zero emissions by 2030 (Germany, Japan, Korea, China and India).
Does the SMMT envisage us importing all the unsold ICE vehicles from these nations or perhaps importing gas guzzlers from the US (perhaps Mike Hawes’ response was written by the Ford and GM participants in the SMMT)?
The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy committee also said that the government has to get more involved in providing the necessary infrastructure for EVs, reiterating that the UK's charging infrastructure was still inadequate, and gave rise to "range anxiety" - potential buyers of electric vehicles worrying whether they will be able to reach the next charging station. The report said the government had left delivery of charging points to councils and private companies when a "shared approach" was needed. They also called the changes to grants, announced last week, were "perverse".
The original 2040 ban was unclear about hybrids, but the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy committee says that "zero should mean zero" and called for the government to bring forward "a clear, precise target for new sales of cars and vans to be truly zero emission by 2032".
The report details.BBC’s take on it.