UK bans petrol, diesel and hybrids by 2035

British prime minister Boris Johnson has fast-forwarded plans to introduce a total ban on the sale of all petrol, diesel and hybrid cars. Originally the ban was to apply from 2040, but Johnson has announced that the ban will be brought forward five years, now to apply from 2035.

Making the announcement at the COP26 climate summit, Johnson explained the need to introduce the ban earlier and include hybrids was because more radical measures were required to ensure the UK achieved net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Back in 2018 when the 2040 ban was introduced, the British government announced both conventional hybrids and plug-in hybrids that emitted less than 75g/km of CO2 would remain available for sale.

Based on the new ban, only EVs and hydrogen-powered vehicles will be permitted post-2035.

Speaking for manufacturing, The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) boss, Mike Hawes, accused the British PM of moving the goalposts without any clear plan to achieve the goal.

"Manufacturers are fully invested in a zero-emissions future, with some 60 plug-in models now on the market and 34 more coming [to the UK] in 2020," claimed Hawes.

According to the SMMT boss, the change of dates, the inclusion of hybrids and the lack of clarity on future grants for both EVs and hybrids, plus the prospect of a "woefully inadequate" charging network were all detrimental to the car industry, which has already invested heavily on CO2-slashing tech.

Hawes said there was now a "need to hear how the government plans to fulfil its ambitions in a sustainable way, one that safeguards industry and jobs, allows people from all income groups and regions to adapt and benefit, and, crucially, does not undermine sales of today’s low emission technologies, including popular hybrids, all of which are essential to deliver air quality and climate change goals now.”

Last year a total of 37,850 pure-electric cars were sold in the UK – a 144 per cent increase on 2018 but a number that still only accounts for 1.6 per cent of the total UK market.

Following Johnson's surprise announcement of the earlier ban, the UK government issued an official response that said it would "continue to work with all sectors of industry to accelerate the rollout of zero-emissions vehicles - helping to deliver new green jobs in the UK".

The move for a complete ban of petrol, diesel and hybrids goes well beyond EU CO2 targets that call for cars sold in 2035 to emit 37.5 per cent less CO2 than those in 2021 but the UK initiative falls short of countries like Norway, which will ban all fossil fuel-powered cars by 2025.