2030...35 deadline? Here's what you need to know....

In the world of automobiles and fleets, there’s one topic that’s dominated all headlines, column inches and news broadcasts this week:

Rishi Sunak’s announcements about changes to the UK’s net zero approach.

We've seen an awful lot of exaggeration and incorrect commentary on it, so we thought we'd put together a quick article to clarify what you actually need to take away from it:

#1 The deadline on petrol and diesel car sales has been pushed back by 5 years (but that might not last)

Previously, all sales of new petrol and diesel vehicles were due to be banned by 2030. Now, under a government led by Sunak, that’s been pushed back to 2035.

However, it’s worth mentioning that Labour has pledged to reinstate the 2030 deadline, and – although politics is a funny old game – they’re currently leading in the opinion polls.

Whether Sunak gets the opportunity to push back to 2035 remains to be seen, but I certainly wouldn’t be betting the house on it.

#2 The ESG agenda still remains key

For businesses that run fleets, the Environmental, Social and Governmental agenda remains critical, and a huge part of that is the decarbonisation of your fleet – if you are looking to decarbonise your fleet, you’ll find this article useful.

#3 EVs are still far more affordable for your employees

Using the salary sacrifice scheme, electric cars continue to be the best way of providing your team with vehicles at a lower personal cost – if you want to demystify salary sacrifice, and understand exactly how it works, click here.

#4 The Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate still stands

The ban on new sales may be pushed back, but the Zero Emission mandate is still here – this starts next year and requires manufacturers to sell an increasing percentage emissions cars. Next year it’ll be 22%, and increase from there.

Car manufacturers don’t appear to have changed course, despite the announcement; Jaguar will be all-electric by next year, Ford and Volvo plan to be all-electric by 2030

#5 Electric cars are still going out in their droves

53% of new cars supplied by leasing companies are zero emissions vehicles – the ball is already rolling, and I can’t see this announcement slowing anything down.

So there you have it – what you need to know about Sunak’s announcement.