InstaVolt CEO praises Government’s ‘bold move’ to tackle air pollution

In latest news revealed today, the Government will outline a new policy to bring forward the last date to buy a petrol, diesel or hybrid car to 2035, a full five years earlier than previously agreed. 

InstaVolt, the UK’s largest owner-operated network of rapid electric vehicle chargers has welcomed these new Government plans to bring forward the ban on petrol and diesel cars, on the back of a severe pollution warning.

The new Government policy will be formally announced at a United Nations Climate Summit, an event that will focus on efforts to end air pollution – which now contributes to one in 19 deaths in the UK’s largest towns and cities.

A number of experts have said the original date of 2040 will be too late if the UK is to hit it’s virtually-zero emissions target by 2050.

In support of this new policy, a recent study by the Centre for Cities thinktank detailed how many deaths across the country are attributable to pollution levels.

Andrew Carter, chief executive of Centre for Cities, said: “Cities should be at the centre of the fight against toxic air and councils should take the steps needed, including charging people who drive fossil fuelled vehicles in city centres and banning wood-burning stoves.”

He urged more councils to follow London’s lead in creating Ultra-Low Emission Zones, where from April 2019 motorists who drive older, polluting cars and vans in the centre of the capital have been charged. The city has already succeeded in reducing air pollution as a result, he said.

Adrian Keen, CEO for InstaVolt said: “This latest news certainly strengthens the case for adopting EVs and is a step in the right direction. We’ve reaching a tipping point where change on a large scale is required, and though the Government announcement is a bold move, it’s one we all need to get on board with.

He added: “One of the key benefits of using electric vehicles is the reduction in emissions – population numbers increase year on year and there is a growing health crisis linked to pollution of the air we breathe. We have a shared responsibility to reduce our impact on the environment for the future.”

Although air pollution was a problem in most big cities and urban areas of the UK, it was especially heavily concentrated in the south-east, including places like Southampton, Reading, Oxford, Cambridge, Basildon and Northampton.