THE hated ban on new petrol and diesel cars will be delayed by five years until 2035, Rishi Sunak confirmed today.
In a major win for The Sun’s Give Us A Brake campaign, Mr Sunak ripped up expensive net zero policies and pledged that “our destiny can be our own choosing”.
He announced that the deadline to install an expensive heat pump will be delayed.
And “no strings attached” subsidies to purchase new heat pumps will double to £7,500.
The PM also vowed that households will never be forced to use seven different bins.
In a major speech delivered from Downing Street, the PM said: “I’m here today to tell you that we do not have to be powerless, our future doesn’t have to be a foregone conclusion.
Major changes to net zero rules announced by Rishi Sunak today
- DELAY ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 to 2035
- DELAY ban on gas boilers until 2035, with poorest exempt from switching altogether
- BOOST cash grants for household boiler upgrades by 50 per cent to £7,500
- SCRAP proposed taxes on eating meat
- SCRAP proposed taxes on flying
- SCRAP a proposed edict forcing people to sort rubbish into seven different bins
- SCRAP a proposed diktat for compulsory car sharing if you drive to work
- ENSURE new carbon budgets are properly funded
- LAUNCH new energy infrastructure plan to make Britain self-reliant
“Our destiny can be our own choosing but only if we change the way our politics works.
“And that starts today with a new approach to one of the biggest challenges we face: climate change.”
The PM promised that he’s still committed to achieving net zero by 2050.
But he said he won’t burden hard-up households with huge green transition costs.
“I’m not saying there will be no hard choices, and nor am I abandoning any of our targets and commitments,” Mr Sunak said.
“But there’s nothing ambitious about simply asserting a goal for a short-term headline without being honest with the public about the tough choices and sacrifices involved and without any meaningful democratic debate about how we get there.”
In a jab at his predecessor Boris Johnson, the PM said that “previous governments” have tried to hit net zero “simply by wishing it”.
“No one in Westminster politics has yet had the courage to look people in the eye and explain what’s really involved,” Mr Sunak said.
“That’s wrong – and it changes now.”
Mr Sunak shifted position late last night after thousands backed our calls to spare hard-working Brits stumping up for expensive climate policies.
New polling from YouGov today showed Brits mainly support the move, with 50 per cent in favour and just 34 per cent against.
Ahead of his speech in Downing Street this afternoon, Tory MPs rowed in behind Mr Sunak’s change of tack.
Co-chairs of the New Conservatives group, Miriam Cates and Danny Kruger, said: “We know that new Conservative voters will welcome this announcement as a common-sense approach to the environmental challenges that we face.
“They will know that our party is on the side of working people who are trying to get on, make a living, and provide for their families.
“Our message to colleagues is to recognise the impact of this policy on those voters.”
But some fellow MPs were critical, including Tory Chris Skidmore who warned it could be the “gravest mistake” of Mr Sunak’s premiership.
Ex-PM Boris Johnson and former Cop26 President Alok Sharma also lashed out at the decision.
Boris said: “This country leads on tackling climate change and in creating new green technology.
“The green industrial revolution is already generating huge numbers of high quality jobs and helping to drive growth and level up our country.
“We cannot afford to falter now or in any way lose our ambition for this country.”
In key developments:
- The 2030 ban on new sales of fossil-fuel cars is set to be delayed until 2035
- A phasing out of gas boilers is also expected to be softened
- The PM issued a statement admitting past governments have not been open about the costs of going green
- Suella Braverman vowed Net Zero should not “bankrupt the British people”
- Downing Street insisted it was still committed to hitting Net Zero by 2050
- Some figures in the car industry hit out at Mr Sunak’s climbdown
SUNAK’S PLEDGE
After news of his climbdown was leaked yesterday, the PM got on the front foot with a message to voters.
He said: “I know people are frustrated with politics and want real change. Our political system rewards short-term decision-making that is holding our country back.
“For too many years politicians in governments of all stripes have not been honest about costs and trade offs. Instead they have taken the easy way out, saying we can have it all.
“This realism doesn’t mean losing our ambition or abandoning our commitments. Far from it. I am proud that Britain is leading the world on climate change.
“We are committed to Net Zero by 2050 and the agreements we have made internationally – but doing so in a better, more proportionate way.
“Our politics must again put the long-term interests of our country before the short-term political needs of the moment.
“No leak will stop me beginning the process of telling the country how and why we need to change.”
GIVE US A BRAKE
The Sun’s Give Us A Brake campaign asks ministers to commit to five clear promises.
- No ULEZ expansion in London or nationwide
- No Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods where the public objects
- Delay on 2030 diesel and petrol car ban until the country is ready
- Scrap edict that 22% of car sales must be electric by 2024
- No new green motoring stealth taxes and fuel duty
Polling conducted for The Sun by YouGov last month showed more and more Brits have backed The Sun’s call to delay the 2030 ban.
More than half – 53 per cent – now are now opposed to the clampdown compared to 36 per cent that support it.
September 20, 2023 at 09:02PM
from The Sun