Manufacturers may cut back sales of petrol cars or raise prices in order to pay for discounts on electric models as they scramble to hit stretching government targets, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) warned.
At least 28pc of all cars sold this year must be electric under rules known as the zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate. Manufacturers that fall short face fines of £15,000 for every non-electric car sold above the quota.
Car makers have repeatedly warned that the targets do not reflect the true level of driver interest in electric vehicles (EVs). EVs are expected to make up 24pc to 25pc of the market this year, short of the Government’s target.
The SMMT estimated that companies spent £4.5bn on price cuts last year, equivalent to almost £12,000 off each EV, in a desperate effort to stoke demand. Despite the heavy discounting, EVs accounted for just one in 10 vehicles sold to private drivers.
We know there are those who simply hate the idea that the proles have cheap and easy, personal, transport.
Bankrupt the car makers and that takes care of that, eh?
Nah, I don’t think it’s that sinister, although I will stipulate there are some people who think that way. Mostly there are a lot of people who think if you pass a law it will happen. There was a big debate in Oz a few years ago about what CO2 reduction target should be legislated. Stupidest debate I’ve ever seen. If we don’t hit it what’s the government going to do, take itself to court?
“what’s the government going to do, take itself to court?”
No, but there’ll be any number of NGOs that will be more than happy to. Which then leads to a Judge deciding that the government was wrong and must change its policies. Civil Service then more than happy to follow the legal ruling than what the government of the day says they should be doing.
One of the stupidest and inexcusable the things the Tories did was to leave all the Net Zero and other ‘legal obligation’ legislation in place, and then act all surprised when they got blocked from doing the things they did legislate for. Either gross incompetence, or they didn’t actually want to do the things they said they wanted to do. Or both. Effect is the same.
Unfortunately I think that it really is that sinister.
The next stages in the operation are the Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, the 15 Minute Cities and pricing drivers off of the road with Congestion Charges and ULEZes. Pay per mile will soon follow.
The days of cheap flights are rapidly receding with extra taxes being piled on.
There are probably a lot of surplus bicycles in China nowadays that could be sold in Britain.
The solution is to make very very cheap EV’s with something like a 20 mile range. Sell them to a hire car business that fails to hire them out because they are crap. After a year they sell them on to a scrappage firm that dismantles them and recycles the almost unused parts by selling them back to the manufacturer where they get used to build “new” cars.
Sinclair was way ahead of his time with the C5 electric vehicle.
Those old DDR jokes about the guy in Karl-Marx-Stadt who wants to order a Trabi? Soon be time to dust them off.
The Covid experiment must have delighted all the politicians insofar as it proved that they don’t need to bother with politics, just resort to self appointed monarchy. “King Keir has proclaimed the peasants must stay indoors, eat insects and pay me money.” “Baron Murphy has advised me that I can print the money, my courtiers will dispense it to you and you will then pay me.”
Ottokring: Bingo. They’ve spent the last 18 months round here narrowing the streets and removing parking spaces. They want you to know your place, and your place is at home.
One of the stupidest and inexcusable the things the Tories did was to leave all the Net Zero and other ‘legal obligation’ legislation in place, and then act all surprised when they got blocked from doing the things they did legislate for. Either gross incompetence, or they didn’t actually want to do the things they said they wanted to do. Or both.
Agreed, it was stupid. That said, governing is not easy – civil service obstruction, the distractions of party management, personal issues, fear of obloquy, etc. I’ve seen this up close as a civil servant, and then as a private sector consultant to government departments and ministers. No excuse, but Nigel please note…
Re congestion charges. I see New York has introduced congestion charges from today. $9 for cars during peak time (06:00-21:00 week days, 09:00-21:00 weekends), $2.25 off peak, $14.40 or $21.60 for larger vehicles.
Bah typo! That should have been 05:00 not 06:00.
There are nearly 15k new homes being built within half a mile of me. The usual rabbit hutches. As far as I can tell, there is almost literally no provision being made for parking …
Smug schadenfreude from us here in the colonies as Britannia inexorably destroys herself.
Britain’s net zero pathway explicitly envisages a substantial reduction in the number of cars on the road. It’s bus, bike or shanks’s for the proles.
After all, there’s no way we will generate enough ‘clean’ electricity to run 33 million private electric cars.
’tis what “they” did to the electricity supply company on (I think) Sark. Legislated his prices well below running costs, went bust, bought up his company at the bankrutcy sale at fire-sale prices.
I think it was Rory Sutherland who reckoned that the Ministry of Transport is stuffed full of Londoners who heavily use public transport (where public transport works) and so think it’s a good thing, and will be biased towards it. I think it’s quite an astute observation. Also, most of the media are in London, Manchester so have the same view.
If you then combine that with the politicians being metropolitan types and lazy or stupid, it’s full steam ahead.
But I think it’s one of the divides between Reform and the rest. Reform are the party of the provinces. You can look at where they won seats, where they have their most marginal seats, they’re not in cities. Great Yarmouth, Skegness, Basildon, Llaneli, Sittingbourne. These are provincial and places where the most common transport use is going to be car, followed by bus.
It’s an open goal for Reform, adding a “We Love Cars” to their general agenda. It’s a vote winner in the provinces. The Bristol hippies will hate them, but so what? They’re never going to win Bristol anyway. Whether you lose with 3000 votes or 1000 votes is irrelevant. Lose with 1000 and win a seat elsewhere.
andyf – The solution is to make very very cheap EV
That’s what China is doing, so the EU slapped them with massive tariffs.
OY – No, but there’ll be any number of NGOs that will be more than happy to. Which then leads to a Judge deciding that the government was wrong and must change its policies. Civil Service then more than happy to follow the legal ruling than what the government of the day says they should be doing.
Chicken dinner. The game here is about defeating the electorate by making peaceful, democratic change impossible.
“Sorry, plebs, we know you voted for affordable central heating, but these posh quangocrats and this nonce judge agree that you’ll have to live in a ditch and drink canal water.”
Theo – That said, governing is not easy – civil service obstruction, the distractions of party management, personal issues, fear of obloquy, etc
You are, of course, correct, but rigidly clinging to an untenable status quo doesn’t mean the status quo can be maintained, it just means the system is likely to fail in unpredictable and catastrophic ways.
Like in East Germany 1989. Or Romania in 1989.
Marius – Britain’s net zero pathway explicitly envisages a substantial reduction in the number of cars on the road. It’s bus, bike or shanks’s for the proles.
As Jeremy said to Diane, this is just the tip.
The economy is already staggering under the strain of unaffordable and unworkable green bollocks, but even if everyone in the country gave up their cars and installed heat pumps tomorrow, we’re still going to crash into the other 80% of the Net Zero iceberg.
Net Zero is so unbelievably bad for ordinary people’s living standards, if they knew the full extent of what is planned for them, MPs would be less popular than the murderers of Jamie Bulger.
After all, there’s no way we will generate enough ‘clean’ electricity to run 33 million private electric cars.
Its already started in Germany:
For interest, according to GridWatch at 13:50 GMT we were importing 18% of our electricity, which is not far off our wind at 26%.
andyf:
I actually saw two blokes pootling along in Sinclair C5s in Portsmouth on New Years Day. It took me some time to remember what they were called. A couple of enthusiasts who have kept them going. There’s also a bloke who I see regularly with a proper steam-powered moped, which might be more practical in the post-industrial apocalypse to which all the diversion signs are pointing to.
BiND,
Can they just be honest and say “EVs”. The energy drain of laptops and phones is miniscule by comparison.
I have a feeling that the real future of solar is massive arrays of panels in empty places where it’s nothing but sun for 10 hours a day and you create synthetic hydrogen and other fuels and can store and ship them.