New government strategy to drive diesel and petrol cars off UK roads

There will be no new diesel and petrol cars and vans in the UK from 2040, under forthcoming government measures to tackle air pollution.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove is set to reveal a new air quality strategy proposing that all cars on UK roads should eventually either be electric or hybrid.

To support the move, ministers will launch a £255m fund to help local authorities tackle emissions from diesel vehicles, as part of a wider £3bn package spent on air quality.

According to the BBC, campaigners said that although the measures are promising, they wanted to see government-backed clean air zones included in the plans.

These clean air zones would see charges levied at drivers of the most polluting vehicles when entering high-pollution areas.

The Government was ordered by the High Court to develop new plans to tackle illegal levels of the pollutant nitrogen dioxide, after a protracted legal battle that saw judges agree with environmental campaigners who said previous plans were insufficient.

As a result, the government’s clean air strategy favouring electric cars will be published later, ahead of the court’s July 31 deadline.

Measures on a local level could include retrofitting buses and other vehicles to make them more environmentally friendly, altering road layouts and features such as speed humps, and re-programming traffic lights to improve vehicle flow.

The Government identified 81 busy roads in 17 towns and cities where it believes urgent action is necessary as they are in breach of EU emissions standards.

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