MPs call for 2030 ban on sale of new petrol and diesel cars to be scrapped

A group of 13 MPs and Lord Lilley have condemned the Government’s plan to end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030.

They’re endorsing a new report from the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), which suggests seven alternative ways to lower emissions.

APPG chair Craig Mackinlay MP said the Government lacks the courage to stand up to “climate fanatics”.

Within the document, the APPG suggests the threat of a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles should be removed immediately.

It says the Government should incentivise the move to clean fuels by motivating industry and entrepreneurs to develop technologies that will not impact adversely on the economy, drivers, or businesses.

Mackinlay said: “We have listened to thousands of road users, from cyclists, bikers, motorists, through to our vital frontline and essential much undermined commercial vehicle drivers.

“We have put together a range of recommendations to Government that are both constructive and economically viable to help reduce emissions without hurting 37m drivers or UK’s economy.

“It is imperative we bring the majority of the electorate along with us in the changes being demanded of them. Not using a ton of un-consulted millstones. It must be through consultation and consensus and a rational debate about the cost and alternatives. That will mean compromises on all sides of the green agenda. Above all, using common sense and practical, achievable solutions.”

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the Government’s plan to ban the sale of new purely petrol and diesel-powered cars and vans by 2030 as part of a 10-point “green recovery” plan, in November 2020.

Despite confirming a five-year grace period for some hybrids, the Government has yet to provide clarity on how it will achieve the target.

Some ministers have suggested that a mandate compelling car makers to sell increasing numbers of electric vehicles (EV) could be the key to driving greater adoption.

Howard Cox, architect of the report, founder of FairFuelUK and secretary to the APPG, said: “All common sense has been thrown out and cluelessly replaced by a set of virtual signalling policies, that have been overwhelmingly rejected by the majority of UK’s drivers.

“The APPG report shows that the economic recovery would collapse if fossil fuelled car use is squeezed through these needless cliff edge bans. Motorists did not vote for the Green Party in the 2019 General Election, but that is what we have got. The result being a deliberate insidious policy to use cyclists against drivers under the cover of a well-financed ill-informed emotive green agenda.”