The Beis committee has today called to accelerate a ban on new sales of petrol and diesel vehicles by eight years.
Mike Hawes, boss of trade group the SMMT, told Today programme: “The government’s target, which is basically ending the sale of conventional petrol and diesel cars by 2040, was hugely ambitious.
“To bring that forward to 2032 at a time when we don’t have the necessary [electric vehicle charging] infrastructure – and after the government has cut incentives for plug-in hybrids – would make it impossible to achieve.”
Beis chair Rachel Reeves MP agreed the target was challenging, but said it could be achieved if the government boosted investment in charging points and maintained subsidies for electric car buyers.
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