Government stands firm on its ZEV Mandate electric car sales expectations

Direct warnings to the UK Government about the feasibility of ZEV Mandate targets without more work to get motorists into electric cars appear to have fallen on deaf ears.

However government ministers have promised that detailed plans of how it will phase out the sale of new internal combustion engine (ICE) cars by 2030, and a consultation on its plans, will be published soon.

This comes after the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders and BVRLA plus senior figures from the UK's biggest-selling car brands including Volkswagen Group, BMW, Toyota, Nissan, Ford and Tesla met with Transport Secretary Louise Haigh and Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds yesterday.

The consensus among manufacturers was that without adequate consumer incentives and a robust charging infrastructure, the rapid transition risks harming the new car market.

Mike Hawes OBE, chief executive of the SMMT, said the meeting was an important opportunity to restate the UK automotive industry’s commitment to both economic growth and Net Zero, however he added: "The industry also made clear its concerns about the pace of the EV transition and the negative effect this is having on the health of the overall market and the attractiveness of the UK as a manufacturing location."

Under the ZEV mandate, automakers must ensure 22% of cars and 10% of vans sold in 2024 are fully electric, with penalties of £15,000 per vehicle for non-compliance. However, some manufacturers argue these targets could undermine the competitiveness of the UK automotive sector.

Earlier this year Stellantis boss Carlos Tavares said he would review its manufacturing strategy in the UK due to the pressures on profitability caused by ZEV targets, and Nissan's Europe boss Guilllaume Cartier said: “The mandate risks undermining the business case for manufacturing cars in the UK, and the viability of thousands of jobs and billions of pounds in investment. We now need to see urgent action from the Government by the end of the year to avoid a potentially irreversible impact on the UK automotive sector.”

Ford of Britain boss Lisa Brankin has also raised concerns that driving consumer uptake of EVs is more of a challenge than the Government has anticipated.

Despite industry objections, the Department for Transport has clarified that it will not relax the mandate’s sales targets but it will consult with the industry on how the petrol and diesel phase-out will work for both new cars and new vans.

Despite progress, the UK EV market has not yet achieved the ZEV mandate's 2024 goals. The SMMT reports that 300,000 new EVs hit the road in 2024, representing an 18.1% market share—up from 2023 but still short of the 22% target.

The gap is even more pronounced in the van segment, where fully electric models account for just 5.6% of sales, far below the 10% requirement.

Looking ahead, the targets grow steeper, with a 28% EV sales goal set for 2025.

A Government spokesperson said: "Recognising the global challenges the industry has been facing, ministers underlined the Government’s commitment to working constructively and in close partnership with the sector as we support the transition to electric vehicles by 2030.

"The UK automotive sector now has the fastest growth of zero emission vehicles of any major European market, and we’re providing more than £2.3 billion to support industry and consumers in making the switch, with 57 new public electric vehicle chargers added on average each day."