Transport Secretary says Government ‘aware’ of challenges with EV transition

The Cabinet curate said it is “giving clarity” to manufacturers amid a planetary driblet successful request for EVs.

Speaking to the PA quality agency, she said ministers volition denote plans for a consultation connected ending the merchantability of caller petrol and diesel cars from 2030 aft the erstwhile authorities pushed backmost the deadline to 2035.

Ms Haigh said: “I deliberation determination are challenges with the EV modulation – we’re precise alert of that, including the deficiency of certainty that the erstwhile authorities introduced by moving backmost the deadline for transition.

We privation to marque EVs arsenic affordable arsenic possible

Louise Haigh, Transport Secretary

“We’re clear. We’re bringing that guardant to 2030 successful bid to springiness that clarity to manufacturers, and that should bring down costs for consumers arsenic well.

“So we’ll beryllium making an announcement astir consultation connected that soon arsenic well.”

Her comments travel aft Uber’s main enforcement said governments, including the UK, should beryllium providing much enactment for the EV modulation and called connected ministers to instrumentality by their pre-election pledge implicit the 2030 deadline.

Pressed connected his comments, Ms Haigh said: “Clearly encouraging companies similar Uber to modulation their fleet is 1 of the quickest ways to get cheaper EVs onto the second-hand marketplace and truly bring down prices for consumers.

“We privation to marque EVs arsenic affordable arsenic possible, but 1 of the biggest barriers is people’s cognition astir charging and charging infrastructure.

“And determination is excessively large an inequity crossed the state astir wherever those nationalist charging points are, and we’ll beryllium looking to code that successful aboriginal spending rounds arsenic well.”

The Transport Secretary besides said the Government provides enactment for companies to bash fleet modulation done taxation incentives.

It is besides prioritising buses and supporting enactment to decarbonise nationalist transport fleets crossed the country, she added.

Bus relation Go-Ahead announced plans connected Tuesday to put half-a-billion pounds to physique hundreds of UK-made electrical buses, backing up to 1,200 caller zero-emission buses implicit the adjacent 3 years.

Coinciding with the announcement, the Transport Secretary met autobus manufacture leaders aboriginal successful the time to reiterate the Government’s committedness to supporting the sector.

Next week, she is besides expected to clasp bilateral meetings with planetary concern leaders astatine the Labour Government’s archetypal planetary concern acme successful a bid to pull currency to the UK’s transport sector.

Asked astir the Government’s engagement successful the concern deal, she said: “It’s fractional a cardinal pounds worthy of investments from Go-Ahead, which they’ve been wide is simply a ballot of assurance successful this Government’s committedness to buses and to our autobus revolution.”

Clearly, we've got a agelong mode to spell to decarbonise the full fleet crossed the country, but this is an tremendous measurement successful the close absorption today

Louise Haigh, Transport Secretary

“There was immoderate zero-emission backing disposable from from the past government, but that was precise limited,” she admitted.

“The remainder is perfectly a important ballot of assurance successful this Government’s prioritisation and committedness to buses.”

Ms Haigh said this assurance comes from the Government already laying down authorities to springiness section authorities crossed England the powers and services seen successful London for the past 40 years, arsenic good arsenic plans for a caller buses Bill to beryllium introduced successful Parliament by the extremity of the year.

“We’ve made buses 1 of our apical priorities and a committedness to overturn the 4 decades worthy of diminution successful rider numbers since the privatisation and deregulation,” she added.

The Go-Ahead buses volition beryllium rolled retired successful areas specified arsenic Plymouth, Gloucestershire, East Yorkshire, London and the Isle of Wight.

Pressed connected whether different areas of the state successful request of nationalist transport upgrades volition payment from Government plans, she said: “They’re going to [go] each implicit England”, adding that Oxford is “well connected its mode to becoming the archetypal all-electric metropolis successful the country”.

“Clearly, we’ve got a agelong mode to spell to decarbonise the full fleet crossed the country, but this is an tremendous measurement successful the close absorption today,” she said.