Tesla privately warned UK that weakening EV rules would hit sales
Tesla privately warned the UK government that weakening electric vehicle rules would hit battery car sales and risk the country missing its carbon dioxide targets, according to newly revealed documents.The US electric carmaker, run by Elon Musk, also called for “support for the used-car market”, according to submissions to a government consultation earlier this year obtained by the Fast Charge, a newsletter covering electric cars.The Labour government in April worried some electric carmakers by weakening rules, known as the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate.The mandate forces increased sales of EVs each year, but new loopholes allowed carmakers to sell more petrol and diesel cars.New taxes on electric cars in last week’s budget could further undermine demand, critics have said.
Carmakers including BMW, Jaguar Land Rover, Nissan and Toyota – all of which have UK factories – claimed in their submissions to the consultation in spring that the mandate was damaging investment, because they were selling electric cars at a loss,However, environmental campaigners and brands that mainly manufacture electric vehicles said the rules were having the intended effect, and no carmakers are thought to have faced fines for sales in 2024,Tesla argued it was “essential” for electric car sales that the government did not introduce new loopholes, known as “flexibilities”,Changes “will suppress battery electric vehicle (BEV) supply, carry a significant emissions impact and risk the UK missing its carbon budgets”, Tesla said,The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, alarmed carmakers further at the budget with the promised imposition of a “pay-per-mile” charge on electric cars from 2028, which is likely to reduce their attractiveness relative to much more polluting petrol and diesel models.
At the same time, she announced the extension of grants for new electric cars, which the sector has welcomed.Tom Riley, the author of the Fast Charge, said: “Just as the EV transition looked settled, the budget pulled it in two directions at once – effectively robbing Peter to pay Paul.If carmakers push again for a softer mandate, Labour only has itself to blame when climate targets slip.”Tesla, Mercedes-Benz and Ford objected to their responses being shared, and were only obtained on appeal under freedom of information law.Several pages were heavily redacted, with one heading left showing Tesla called for “support for the used-car market”.
Tesla declined to comment on whether that support would include grants.In contrast, the US carmaker Ford and Germany’s Mercedes-Benz lobbied against more stringent rules after 2030 that would have forced them to cut average carbon dioxide emissions further – potentially allowing them to sell more-polluting vehicles for longer.Sign up to Business TodayGet set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morningafter newsletter promotionFord strongly criticised European governments for pulling support for electric car sales, saying that “policymakers in many European jurisdictions have not delivered their side of the deal”.Ford has U-turned after previously backing stronger targets.The US carmaker also pointed to the threat of being undercut by Chinese manufacturers that “do not have a UK footprint and benefit from a lower cost base”.
Mercedes-Benz argued that the UK should cut VAT on public charging from 20% to 5% to match home electricity, and added that it should consider a price cap on public charging rates.Tesla also called for a ban on sales of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles with a battery-only range of less than 100 miles after 2030 – a limit that would have ruled out many of the bestselling models in that category.Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Tesla declined to comment further.
‘Failed former Tory MPs’ who join Reform unlikely to be selected as candidates, Zia Yusuf says – as it happened
“Failed Tory MPs” are unlikely to be chosen as parliamentary candidates for Reform Uk at the next election, Zia Yusuf, the party’s head of policy has said.He made the comment in a post on social media promoting a Daily Telegraph story saying that “washed-up” former Conservative MPs who have joined Reform will not be prioritised when parliamentary candidates are being selected. The story was attributed to unnamed party sources.This week it was announced that three more former Tory MPs have gone over to Nigel Farage’s party.Yusuf said:I’ve had many messages from Reform grassroots worried about former Tory MPs joining our party
Keith McDowall obituary
In 1972, Keith McDowall, who has died aged 96, was contacted by the Conservative cabinet minister Willie Whitelaw. Direct rule had just been imposed on Northern Ireland, and Whitelaw, an uncertain media performer, was made the first secretary of state for the region. McDowall, an experienced journalist then serving as chief information officer at the Home Office, took up the invitation to join Whitelaw’s department. After hesitating initially and assuring Whitelaw that his Labour sympathies would not have an impact on his civil service duties, McDowall swiftly retrained the minister. Effective public relations became the trademark of Whitelaw’s time in Ireland, with the close-cropped McDowall frequently mistaken for a security man
Who will lose out when Labour cuts red tape? | Brief letters
Keir Starmer wants to sweep away “unnecessary” regulation to promote growth, but fails to say how the government will decide what regulation is necessary (There are those on the left and right who offer only grievance: Labour is getting on with the job of economic renewal, 30 November). He is adopting the market viewpoint rather than that of the public. The cognitive linguist George Lakoff argues that regulations should be reframed as protections rather than burdens. The key question then becomes: “Who is being protected and from what?”Sally BeanWeybridge, Surrey More than 62% of the members voted against calling the new party Your Party, and yet that is its name (Your Party members vote to make name permanent at charged first conference, 30 November). It reminds me of the general election, where more than 60% of voters voted for a party other than the one that won a massive majority
Spoilt for choice, Conspiracy Kemi grabs wrong end of every stick | John Crace
On days like this, Kemi Badenoch increasingly gives the impression of an over-excitable puppy with a low IQ. Overwhelmed by all the different smells she can pick up on her walkies. Convinced that this is going to be THE BEST DAY EVER. Spoilt for choice as she is surrounded by countless enticing sticks. Yet somehow she always manages to grab the wrong end of every one
Mark Fisher obituary
It was a source of sorry disappointment to Mark Fisher, the former Labour arts minister, who has died aged 81, that he held this government post for only a little over a year before being dropped from office. Yet such an outcome was predictable – and probably inevitable – given that he was an uncompromising lifelong idealist who never learned to deploy the sort of silky skills needed to guarantee a long and successful frontline political career.When Tony Blair’s government took office in 1997, Mark Fisher was appointed on the day following the election. It was the job of his dreams. He had been the opposition spokesperson since 1987, appointed less than four years after becoming an MP, and he had been instrumental in helping develop a strategy for the arts as an important part of Labour’s new “Cool Britannia” agenda
Foreign Office lost ‘opportunities to influence’ US after Harry Dunn death, review finds
Foreign Office failures led to opportunities being missed to achieve justice for the family of Harry Dunn, killed in August 2019 in a motorcycle crash outside a US airbase, an independent review commissioned by the Labour government has found.Dame Anne Owers, who led the review, said: “Ministers and senior officials were not involved early enough, and this meant that opportunities were lost to influence – rather than respond to – events.“Direct communication with the family was late and sporadic, and the Foreign Office was slow to realise that they were allies in achieving justice and securing positive change.”Dunn was killed aged 19 when he was hit by a car driven on the wrong side of the road by Anne Sacoolas, the wife of a US state department official based at RAF Croughton. Sacoolas, a US citizen, had been in the country for three weeks, and admitted responsibility
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Susan Loppert obituary