Why Labour would delay promised ban on petrol and diesel cars by 5 years

A Scottish Labour net zero minister has confirmed the UK government is pondering watering down a pledge to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles through a “transition period” for hybrid vehicles.

Sir Keir Starmer had vowed to reinstate the 2030 end date to allow the sale of new petrol and diesel cars that was pushed to 2035 by Rishi Sunak as part of his strategy to roll back on net zero commitments.

READ MORE: The 'lacklustre' Scottish Government climate change dossier branded an 'appalling lack of ambition'

Labour’s manifesto ahead of the Westminster election pledged that “new cars with internal combustion engines” would not be allowed to be sold by 2030. Hybrid vehicles contain a combustion engine and an electric battery.

But Scottish Labour minister Michael Shanks has warned his government is now considering whether to allow new hybrid vehicles to be sold until 2035, warning that fully electric vehicles (EVs) are not yet cheap enough, while blaming the previous Conservative government for putting off investment.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer with Scottish Labour energy and climate minister Michael Shanks (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Nicola Sturgeon had set out an ambition to phase out "the need" for the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles in Scotland by 2030, but this was contingent on UK-wide policies. 

A watering down at Westminster would have an impact on Scotland’s stuttering progress in reaching net zero by 2045, with emissions from transport failing to hit targets. 

Speaking to BBC Scotland’s Sunday Show, Mr Shanks, who is a minister in the UK government’s Department for Energy Security and Net zero, insisted “no decision has been made” on whether Labour would roll back its manifesto commitment.

But he added: “What’s being looked at is whether there is a middle ground between pure petrol and diesel cars and pure EV cars that could be a transition period.

“The reality is - a few years ago, industry was ready to meet the 2030 target. There was a rolling out of factories that would have moved on to EV that would bring the price down.“

Labour could allow new hybrid vehicles to be sold up to 2035

Mr Shanks said: “What we need is a tipping point where the price of EVs comes down considerably. The last government ditched that target and all of that progress towards that disappeared.

“What we now need to make sure we see is a credible ramp-up towards that target. We still want to phase out petrol and diesel new cars.”

Mr Shanks said it was “important that there’s a sensible roll down towards getting to the point where we have EV as the predominant car”. He said: “We know it’s better for the environment, it’s better for clean air and it’s also important for industry.”

A UK government spokesperson said: “This government’s policy has always been to revert to the original 2030 phase-out date for the sale of new vehicles with pure internal combustion engines.

“The original phase-out date included the provision for some hybrid vehicle sales between 2030 and 2035. We will set out further details on this in due course.”

The decision to weaken a pledge on banning the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles is likely to boost the Treasury as Labour aims to plug a £22 billion gap in public finances.

Tax revenues from petrol and diesel cars are declining as the sale of electric vehicles ramp up, with no strategy yet in place to replace that income for the UK government as fossil fuel vehicles are phased out.

Watering down the policy could help Labour’s fortunes with consumers after what Mr Shanks described as a “very, very difficult week” after coming under fire over winter fuel payments.

Mr Shanks insisted the policy had not been a mistake, but stressed his colleagues “could communicate the decision more clearly to people”.

His comments came as the boss of Octopus Energy said energy suppliers should “be helpful” to the government and give extra support to elderly people losing their winter fuel payments.

Greg Jackson, who founded Octopus in 2016, said: “We all know there were some people receiving the winter fuel allowance who didn’t need it – that costs everyone else money.” He added: “But then there’s the grey area of people losing it that need it – that’s where we can help.”

Under plans announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in July, winter fuel payments will be restricted to those receiving pension credit. It means around 10 million people will lose out this winter.

The Scottish Government has replicated the decision, saying it had been forced into means testing as the funding coming to Holyrood for the payments would be cut by £160 million.

Mr Jackson, who has been vocal in his support for previous Labour policies, said: “In these transition periods, it’s easy for people to kick and scream. Alternatively, companies and others can say ‘how do we make this work in a way that is best for Britain and, in our case, best for our customers?’”

Octopus, the UK’s largest energy supplier, announced last month that it would continue its £30m assistance fund into this winter for pensioners who do not qualify for state support.

Mr Jackson said the government had to “make difficult decisions, so now let’s be helpful in making sure that when you make those decisions, we can look after the people who will be worst affected”.

Regional pricing is “the critical thing we need to do”, Mr Jackson said, citing a recent report carried out by FTI Consulting, which claimed it could save bill payers £51 billion by 2040. But critics say it would be unfair for people to pay less based on where they live.

Mr Jackson said that while the biggest discounts “will be the areas with the most electricity generation”, such as areas of Scotland, the price would drop “in every region” because the transmission system would also be “more efficient”.

The Labour Government has introduced a swathe of changes since the general election, including forming a new state energy investment firm, GB Energy, to help boost renewables in recent months.