PM 'poised to order review' of 2030 ban on new petrol cars.

2023-07-25

Could Rishi reverse the controversial ban on petrol cars? Prime Minister is poised to order a review of net zero plan to stop sale of new petrol and diesel cars in 2030 sources claim

Government sources say the Prime Minister is ‘open’ to a rethink
Mr Sunak ducked questions on 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel cars

Rishi Sunak is poised to order a review of the controversial 2030 ban on new petrol cars.

Government sources say the Prime Minister is ‘open’ to a rethink, amid mounting concern about the impact of costly green policies on household budgets.

Signalling a shift in approach yesterday, the PM said that in the future, the UK’s net zero ambitions would be pursued in a ‘proportionate and pragmatic way that doesn’t unnecessarily give people more hassle and more costs in their lives’.

Mr Sunak ducked questions about whether he remained committed to the 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel cars.

But a government source said: ‘It is fair to say he would be open to reviewing it. There is no review at the moment, but he wants to make sure we are always taking a proportionate and pragmatic approach, particularly as we are way ahead of a lot of other countries on a lot of this green stuff, including vehicles.’

Government sources say the Prime Minister is ‘open’ to a rethink, amid mounting concern about the impact of costly green policies on household budgets (File Photo)

No 10 confirmed that the Government’s green pledges were being looked at again in the light of their unpopularity and potential impact on the cost of living – raising the prospect they could be ditched before the next election.

The move is a significant breakthrough for the Mail’s Rethink The 2030 Petrol Car Ban campaign.

READ MORE: The great green U-turn? Rishi Sunak dodges on whether ban on new petrol and diesel car sales by 2030 will happen saying government must be ‘pragmatic’ – as he faces mounting Tory demands for a rethink on Net Zero policies

It follows the Tories’ unexpected victory in last week’s Uxbridge by-election, where Labour faced a backlash over Sadiq Khan’s plan to expand the controversial Ulez scheme to cover the whole of Greater London.

Craig Mackinlay, chairman of the Net Zero Scrutiny Group of Tory MPs, said the by-election result had provided a ‘reality check’ for the Government’s headlong dash to cut carbon emissions.

Mr Mackinlay said the proposed 2030 car ban was ‘uniquely stupid’ – and predicted it would be ditched along with other targets in order to contrast with Labour’s ‘madcap ‘net zero now’ policies’.

‘Uxbridge is the first time we have had one of these green issues on the ballot paper, and the result was that by opposing it, we crept over the line,’ he said. ‘It’s the first time we have had clear blue water with Labour on one of these issues and it’s unlikely to be the last.’

Tory MPs have piled pressure on the Government to water down its green pledges after the Uxbridge result.

Former business secretary Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg called for the 2030 ban to be axed, saying that scrapping ‘unpopular, expensive’ policies would be a ‘real opportunity’ for a Tory revival.

Fellow Tory Danny Kruger said it was time to look again at whether the Government was ‘going at the right speed’ on green policies.

‘Net zero is a noble aspiration – everyone would like to see us transition away from fossil fuels. But how do we do it? What is the mechanism? And, crucially, who bears the cost?’ he said.

‘We don’t need to do it in this brutal and hasty way.’ Sir Keir Starmer has urged Mr Khan to ‘reflect’ on plans to expand the Ulez scheme, which charges the drivers of older vehicles £12.50 a day to use their cars.

The Labour leader blamed the policy for the party’s defeat in Uxbridge, saying: ‘We are doing something very wrong if policies put forward by the Labour Party end up on each and every Tory leaflet.’

But City Hall sources said Mr Khan planned to go ahead with the extension next month.

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