- By Sam Francis
- Political Reporter, BBC News
September 20, 2023
Updated 1 hour ago
video caption,
Watch: Britain eases transition to electric vehicles – Sunak
Rishi Sunak has postponed a ban on new petrol and diesel cars, marking a major change to the government’s approach to achieving net zero emissions by 2050.
The Prime Minister announced exemptions and delays to several key green measures, as well as a 50 percent increase in cash incentives for replacing gas boilers.
The government cannot impose “unacceptable costs” on British families related to emissions reductions, he said.
It sparked strong criticism from the opposition and some industry bosses.
Mr Sunak also faced attacks from his own party, but many Conservative MPs and some in the car industry supported the new direction.
The changes come as Mr Sunak seeks to create dividing lines with opposition parties ahead of a general election expected next year.
The Prime Minister described the changes as “pragmatic and proportionate” and singled out several of Boris Johnson’s key policies, many of which were introduced during Mr Sunak’s term as chancellor.
In a speech in Downing Street on Wednesday, Mr Sunak said moving too quickly on Green policy “risks losing the support of the British people”.
Key changes announced included:
- A five-year delay to the ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars, meaning the requirement for all new cars to be “zero emissions” will not come into force until 2035
- A nine-year postponement of the ban on new fossil fuel heating for homes not connected to the gas network until 2035
- Increasing the Boiler Upgrade Grant by 50% to £7,500 to help households looking to replace their gas boilers
- The ban on the sale of new gas boilers in 2035 remains in place, but the government will introduce a new exemption for poorer households
- Removing the requirement for landlords to ensure all rental properties have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of Class C or higher from 2025.
Mr Sunak made the changes in a hastily organized Cabinet meeting on Wednesday morning after the BBC revealed proposals.
In response to the statement, Labor made an unequivocal commitment to maintaining the ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars until 2030.
Shadow Environment Secretary Steve Reed said without the ban the UK would miss its target of reaching net zero – the point at which a country no longer contributes to the total amount of harmful greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Mr Reed said the Prime Minister had “sold out the biggest economic opportunity of the 21st century for Britain” to “lead the world in the transition to well-paid, secure new green economy jobs”.
Scottish Prime Minister Humza Yousaf told the BBC the move was “completely unforgivable” and “decisively removes the UK from the global consensus.”
At a UN climate summit that Mr Sunak refused to attend, Mr Yousaf said: “On the same day that the whole world has gathered to talk about what more we can do, the British Prime Minister is doing one Backed out.” [the UK’s] Obligations.”
The BBC’s Chris Mason says Mr Sunak and his advisers would hope that beyond the criticism, many voters might tacitly conclude that he was onto something and was being sensible.
Mr Sunak’s proposals divide his party, Parliament and many in the country, but the Prime Minister will look at Labour’s lead in the opinion polls and conclude he has no choice but to gamble.
And the policy decisions outlined in his speech are a preview of further announcements later this autumn, as Mr Sunak promised he would set out “a series of long-term decisions”.
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Watch: Rishi Sunak’s shift to green politics – what he said then and now
Billions of pounds have already been invested in several industries, including car manufacturers and energy companies, in preparation for previous deadlines.
Korean automaker Kia, which plans to launch nine new electric vehicles in the next few years, said the announcement was disappointing because it “alters complex supply chain negotiations and product planning, potentially adding to consumer and industry confusion.”
Energy group E.On’s chief executive Chris Norbury said it was a “misstep on many levels”, adding that it was a “false argument” to suggest that green measures could only come at a cost.
“We risk condemning people to many more years of living in cold, drafty homes that are expensive to heat, in cities clogged with dirty air from fossil fuels, and missing out on the economic recovery that this goal,” said Norbury.
Toyota also described the changes “pragmatically”.
Elsewhere, Mr Sunak also suggested he would “delete” a number of proposals that had been “raised” in the debate, including increasing airfares to discourage foreign travel and taxes on meat consumption. Neither was government policy.
Mr Sunak argued that without transparency and “honest debate” about the impact of green measures there would be a “backlash” against net zero.
But Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey accused Mr Sunak of being “selfish” and said the changes were “an expression of his weakness”.
“The prime minister’s legacy will be that he hampered our country’s future economy as he ran away from the right wing of his own party out of fear,” he said.
The UK is now “at the back of the queue while the rest of the world struggles to capture the industries of tomorrow,” Sir Ed added.
Speaking to the BBC from the UN climate summit, Sir Alok Sharma, a former Conservative minister and chair of the COP26 climate summit, said the reaction from international colleagues to the event was “dismay”.
“I’m worried whether people will look at us now and say, ‘Well, if the UK starts to resist some of these measures, maybe we should do the same,'” he said.
Former US Vice President and climate activist Al Gore also said at the summit that the announcement meant a “return in the wrong direction”.
“The UK has at times been one of the most impressive climate leaders. And so it is a particular disappointment for those who expected this from the UK,” he told the BBC.
Chris Stark, chief executive of the UK’s independent climate change committee, said the changes would make it harder for the government to meet legally binding climate targets.
Speaking to Radio 4’s Today program on Thursday, Mr Stark added that the committee had already told the government in June that it “didn’t look like we were on track” to meet emissions targets 2030 before these changes were announced.
However, the policy change has found support among some within Mr Sunak’s party.
Former cabinet minister Jacob Rees-Mogg supported the changes, telling the BBC: “The problem with net zero and introducing regulations so quickly was that it was a plan by the elite on the backs of the poorest.”
Mr Sunak is instead “going with the nation’s grain and aiming for ‘smart net zero’ by 2050, but not introducing costly bans in the next few years.”