UK softens EV mandate, extends hybrid sales to 2035

Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government has confirmed that hybrid vehicles will remain on sale in the UK until 2035 to mitigate the Trump tariffs and shield British automakers from their ripple effects. This is an extension of the previous 2030 ban, which Starmer reinforced as he took office.

The ban on new gasoline and diesel cars will still take effect in 2030. However, the government now wants to offer more flexibility to protect jobs and competitiveness in a tightening global trade environment.

‘Cool heads’

The announcement follows Starmer’s high-profile visit to Jaguar Land Rover’s factory, where he pledged full support for the UK’s auto industry.

His remarks come days after President Donald Trump introduced ten percent tariffs on British car imports. Starmer described the move as “something we don’t agree with,” but he said it must be met with “cool heads” rather than retaliation.

“The world has changed,” Starmer told workers at the JLR plant. “We are in a new era of uncertainty. Protecting our industries — cars, steel, whisky — is now a national imperative.”

Jaguar-Land Rover has decided to pause shipments of Britain-made cars to the US by a month over the new tariffs, reassessing its position and hoping for new developments as negotiation talks continue.

With a 10% tariff, the UK gets away relatively well, compared to 54% for China and 30% for the EU. The latter offered a zero-to-zero deal to the Trump Administration, which was rejected.  

Mild hybrids not included

Under the revised UK rules, full hybrids and plug-in hybrids will be allowed to remain on sale until 2035, but mild hybrids, which offer limited emissions benefits, will not be included.

Smaller manufacturers, producing fewer than 2,500 vehicles annually, will be permitted to sell pure internal-combustion vehicles until the same deadline. Commercial vehicles are exempt from immediate electrification mandates, although total fleet emissions must not exceed 2021 levels.

Transport Secretary in the UK, Heidi Alexander, defended the move. “The changes we are making have been carefully calibrated not to have a big impact on carbon emissions. The impact is negligible,” she said in a BBC interview.

So, the Labour government insists that the revised policy strikes the right balance between industrial support and environmental responsibility. “This is about supporting British businesses while keeping the UK at the forefront of EV innovation,” Alexander continued. “Flexibility now ensures we have a stronger, more competitive industry in the long term.”

However, environmental advocates and some political opponents argue that the decision marks a backslide. They point to the possible delay in EV price drops and block the growth of the secondhand EV market.