Labour 'planning to water down 2030 diesel car ban' as hybrids set to evade ban until 2035

14 September 2024, 22:50

Labour is planning to back away from plans to ban the sale of diesel cars in 2030 - by allowing hybrid models to be sold until 2035.

In their manifesto, Sir Keir Starmer's party had vowed to ban petrol-powered cars in the next six years - but has now appeared to backtrack.

The document said that the party would ban the sale of “new cars with internal combustion engines” by 2030 as part of efforts to reach net zero.

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The language had suggested that new hybrids – which uses a petrol or diesel engine in conjunction with a battery – would be covered by the ban.

A government spokesperson told the Telegraph: “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.”

Conservative frontbencher Helen Whately said: “This new plan is the worst of both worlds. It doesn’t do much to drive down emissions and it’s moving too fast for businesses and motorists.

“Labour spent years in opposition telling everyone they’d give businesses certainty, but they’re backsliding within months.

“This dithering creates a huge headache for manufacturers and ultimately hurts economic growth.”