The UK’s automotive sector faces disaster unless the Government brings forward a review of the ZEV mandate, MPs have been warned.
MPs on the Business and Trade Committee (BTC) say outdated ZEV mandate thresholds are an existential risk to the UK’s auto sector. In an open letter to the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and the Department for Transport (DfT), members of the cross-party select committee warned that the combination of outdated ZEV mandate thresholds and the threat of new trade barriers with the EU pose a severe, potentially fatal risk to UK automotive manufacturing.
The BTC urged the Government to bring forward the ZEV mandate review to be concluded before the end of this year and called for measures to support the UK auto industry.
The UK’s ZEV mandate is a legally binding policy that requires car and van manufacturers to sell a rising, minimum percentage of zero-emission vehicles, mostly fully electric vehicles, each year. It was officially introduced and passed into law in January 2024.
The required percentage of zero-emission vehicles increases incrementally each year. For 2026, the target for cars is 33%, followed by 80% by 2030 and 100% by 2035, after which point everything sold new must be entirely zero-emission.
But it’s the van targets that have caused particular concern. These are set at 24% for 2026, 46% by 2028 and 70% by 2035. Latest figures from the SMMT show fully electric vans made up just 11.1% of registrations in April and 9.4% for the year to date – a huge shortfall of the 24% target.
Liam Byrne MP, chair of the BTC, said: “Britain’s vehicle makers are being asked to carry a burden that is becoming impossible to sustain. Manufacturers are now spending billions discounting electric vehicles to stimulate demand, while British-based firms are effectively paying overseas competitors for compliance credits, including companies benefiting from major state subsidy abroad.”
He added: “The transition to electric vehicles is essential. But transitions succeed when they are grounded in commercial reality and backed by a serious industrial strategy. That’s why we need a whole-market review that aligns decarbonisation with competitiveness, protects domestic production and ensures Britain remains a country that makes vehicles and not a nation that merely imports them.”
