Badenoch: Conservatives to drop plans to ban new petrol and diesel cars

Kemi Badenoch says the Conservatives will abandon plans to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030 if they win the next election.

Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, the Tory leader described electric vehicle quotas as “economic self-harm”.

“The only winners in this economy are China, who have happily profited from our decision to accelerate demand for electric vehicles without first securing our own battery and mineral supply chains,” she said.

The column followed Ms Badenoch’s meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has lobbied the EU to water down its own plans to phase out the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2035.

Six EU countries, including Ms Meloni and Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk, recently called on the EU to rethink its 2035 ban on new petrol and diesel cars, saying it could hurt industrial competitiveness.

Ms Badenoch argued that scrapping the ban would “bring the UK back into line with other global markets” and give businesses “freedom” to be guided by consumer demand.

“Most importantly, scrapping the mandate will give us the space to rebuild our car industry. A Conservative approach will support innovation, not force it through regulation that ignores economic reality,” she said.

“By ending the mandate, we can prioritise research and development where the UK has real competitive advantages. It will enable us to support advances in next-generation automotive technologies, including hybrids, hydrogen and other low-emission options that give consumers proper choice.”

Plans to ban the sale of petrol and diesel cars were first introduced by former Conservative prime minister Boris Johnson and were opposed at the time by Ms Badenoch, then a cabinet member.

Meanwhile, government policy continues to support the transition to electric vehicles.

EV Excise Duty

In the recent Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced that drivers of battery electric cars will be charged 3p per mile for the Electric Vehicle Excise Duty from April 2028.

This is in response to a huge reduction in revenue from fuel duty as more drivers switch from petrol or diesel cars to EVs.

She also extended grants for the purchase of new EVs until 2030.

Some 39,965 new pure battery electric cars were registered last month, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said.

That was up 3.6% from November 2024, which was the smallest year-on-year increase since December 2023, when registrations declined by 34.2%.

That sharp fall was attributed to supply chain issues and a stronger-than-usual December 2022.

SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said: “Even in a fragile market, zero emission vehicle uptake continues to rise, which is exactly what we need.

“But the weakest growth for almost two years – ahead of Government announcing a new tax on EVs (electric vehicles) – should be seen as a wake-up call that sustained increase in demand for EVs cannot be taken for granted.”