UK Prime
Minister Boris Johnson in an ambitious pro-climate move, adopted the plan to
ban sales of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030. The plan was earlier scheduled
to be implemented by 2040. Johnson made the announcement on Wednesday while
disclosing a 10-point climate change plan, a part of his "green industrial
revolution".
British
premier also introduced certain concessions for hybrid vehicles, stating that
the government would allow the sale of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles until
2035. Hybrid car makers claim that hybrid vehicles can run for tens of
kilometers on battery before switching to a conventional engine.
Johnson
in his statement said, “Our green industrial revolution will be powered by the
wind turbines of Scotland and the North East, propelled by the electric
vehicles made in the Midlands and advanced by the latest technologies developed
in Wales."
The UK government highlighted that the new climate plan would also help in job
creation and would generate about 250,000 jobs. Johnson launched the plan as
part of his prior commitment he gave during the election campaign to “level up” neglected regions of the UK. UK’s decision to
adopt a conscious climate program comes weeks ahead of the fifth anniversary of
the Paris Agreement on 12 December. On 9 December, the government environment advisers would also issue a new carbon
emissions limit for the mid-2030s.
It was
called a
“landmark” plan by
Greenpeace and “undoubtedly challenging” by the CBI business group. Johnson
assured that for the smooth implantation of the plan his administration as set
aside funds amounting to £12 billion (13.4 billion euros, $15.9 billion) - £1.3 billion for new car charging
infrastructure and £582
million in grants for purchasing electric cars.
“My 10-point plan will create,
support and protect hundreds of thousands of green jobs, whilst making strides
towards net-zero by 2050,” said Johnson in a statement. John Gummer, of the Committee on Climate Change
which advises the government, said: “I am delighted to see the breadth of the prime
minister’s commitment.”
“Bold action on electric transport,
easily the biggest pro-climate action from a UK government since hastening the end of coal power will make huge ripples overseas,”
said Jonathan Marshall at the
Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit, a UK-based non-profit, in a statement.
The other aspects of Johnson’s climate plan
included the installation of 600,000 heat pumps – an electrified, green alternative
to gas boilers – in homes and public buildings each year by 2028. It also
included following the exiting plan to quadruple offshore wind power capacity
by 2040, promoting activities like tree-planting, walking, and cycling,
gradually switching to green planes and ships and encouraging research on
climate innovation and financing.
Comments
Post a Comment