Regit’s motorists have emphatically backed the postponement of the 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel-powered cars, with 80% saying they support the decision.
The postponement of the ban was announced last week by PM Rishi Sunak but the decision has caused huge controversy within his party, while motor manufacturers and eco-activists were left raging.
Over 4,000 of Regit’s users completed the survey.
The poor rollout of infrastructure has been cited as the primary reason why people back the postponement, with 79% saying they don’t expect it would be good enough by 2030, while 70% said the cost of switching to electric is too high and therefore the ban shouldn’t go ahead.
59% said they don’t believe electric vehicles are as clean as they’re made out to be while 50% said the priority for investment should be on alternative fuels.
Of the 20% who were against the postponement, 62% said it sends mixed messages about what’s important, 61% said it will damage our planet even further and 54% said it will dissuade manufacturers from investing in the UK.
As a result of the postponement, 47% said it’s now more likely they will buy a petrol or diesel car next, while 38% said it’s reduced the likelihood of them ever owning an electric car.
58% of those surveyed now don’t believe they will ever own an electric car while 63% do think they will own a car powered by alternative fuels.
1 in 4 motorists still think they will own an electric car before 2030, but 61% now don’t believe they will own one until after 2035.
72% don’t believe we will achieve our net-zero target by 2050.
The postponement has proven to be a smart move by Sunak purely from a voter perspective, with 37% of those surveyed saying they;re now more likely to vote Conservative at the next election while 20% said it’s less likely.
Labour has said it will reintroduce the ban if it is elected but 67% said they will now be less likely to vote for them as a result.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, 89% said they don’t trust politicians to stick to the commitments and promises they make.
Chris Green, Regit CEO and founder, said: “The decision to postpone the 2030 ban has been a long time in the making and is the result of years of mismanagement and poor planning by this government. The cost of living crisis has ultimately forced their hand and made Mr Sunak make the announcement to postpone now, as the cost to switch to electric vehicles for the majority of us is too high.
“Given we’re the only major European economy to not offer any financial support for those switching to electric vehicles it’s no real surprise that motorists are being priced out and, when you add the well-publicised problems with infrastructure into the mix, it’s clear this government has simply put too many barriers in the way of mass adoption.
“The news has quite rightly angered manufacturers who have been doing their bit to help with the switchover, but the focus now needs to be on getting as many people as possible into cleaner vehicles in line with what they can afford - and I expect hybrids to play a huge role here. There will be many more twists and turns to come ahead of 2035 and it remains to be seen whether alternative fuels can also prove to be a viable solution.”
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