By David Britton, Operation Noah Campaign Officer

The UK government has launched a consultation to review the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate, lasting for ten weeks until 23 October 2026. 

Of the suggested proposals, the one that has garnered most headlines is the option to  significantly weaken the current target of 80% of new cars to be a Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) by 2030 to just 50% by 2030.

According to Carbon Brief, a weaker ZEV mandate could cost UK consumers £3bn and in 2030, lead to the UK importing an extra 17 million barrels of oil and result in an extra 7.4m tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions (MtCO2). T&E calls it a ‘serious blow to drivers, investors and the future of the UK’s automotive industry’ with potentially up to 3 million fewer EVs on the roads. 

Operation Noah is supportive of the rapid transition to electric vehicles as an important climate solution which Project Drawdown ranks as ‘highly recommended’, alongside improving public transport and promoting active travel such as cycling and walking.

In the UK, electric cars have continued to gain popularity: there are now over 2 million on our roads. While it took 14 years to get to 1 million, it took just another 2 years to double that number. 

Drivers are on the whole happy with the switch: a Zapmap survey reported high levels of satisfaction with only 3% of customers saying they would switch back to an Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicle. 

The principal benefit, particularly with this year’s volatile oil market, is the cost of running the vehicle. Typically owners save on average £1100 a year on running costs, with potential for greater savings if the vehicle is charged from a house that has rooftop solar. 

And technology is improving all the time. As well as the cars’ battery range increasing (most EVs can manage 200-300 miles and a number of models can run for 500 miles on a single charge), there are also exciting technologies that have wider societal benefits. 

One of these is Vehicle to Grid (V2G) charging – a technology pioneered by Nissan which has been trialled by Octopus Energy. Using V2G charging, an EV can feed electricity back into the power grid. When an EV uses V2G technology, electricity flows in both directions, to and from its battery. The energy that is stored in the battery can be sold back to the grid later when demand for power is high. If the EV is charged when energy demand is lower, or the level of generation by renewable sources is high, V2G can also help reduce carbon emissions and balance the grid. 

Electric vehicles have huge potential to reduce carbon emissions, even when you take into account the carbon debt of manufacturing. Last year, analysis undertaken in the US calculated that an EV reached a “carbon breakeven” point (the point at which the carbon savings offset the initial emissions from manufacture) at around 18,000 miles, which would be less than two years for the average driver. And a recent study concluded, ‘from the perspective of emissions, it is almost never too soon to switch.’

We believe that weakening the ZEV mandate targets is a step in the wrong direction, sending the wrong signal to industry at a time when we need to transition at pace to a low carbon economy. The benefits of EVs are clear, not just for the climate but also for the customer. 

You find out more about the Government consultation here.