This must too be joined up with the wider policy to road transport taxation. In the most recent budget, VED rates were raised on new internal combustion engined cars while fuel duty was frozen. Throw in the lack of incentives to buy electric cars, and together these three things simply encourage people to stay in their existing cars for longer and opportunities are missed to lower CO2 and increase the amount of zero emissions vehicles on the road.
Question 9: What are your views on whether small volume manufacturers (between 1,000 and 2,499 registrations) should be subject to the 2030 requirements for cars and/or vans?
Question 10: What are your views on whether micro-volume manufacturers (fewer than 1,000 annual registrations) should be subject to the 2030 requirements for cars and/or vans?
Question 12: What is your opinion on exemptions for kit cars from the 2030 requirements for cars and vans?
We have grouped these questions together because we have the same answer for each of them. Autocar strongly believes that small, micro-volume and kit cat manufacturers should be exempt from the 2030 requirements. Such firms are a key part of the wider British manufacturing industry, helping to drive technical innovation and employee skills development that benefit the wider economy.
Due to their low volume and the use case of most vehicles they produce, their overall impact on the UK’s CO2 emissions is negligible, while subjecting them to cost-prohibitive electrification requirements could prove insurmountable for many. Most of these vehicles will stay on the roads for decades and do minimal mileage each year. We do recognise that many of these firms are already looking at electrification solutions, so we would welcome incentives and support for them to pursue innovative and cost-effective emission-reduction technology that could ultimately benefit the wider industry.
