Rishi Sunak is weighing up a huge policy shift relating to some of his green policies in a move that will split opinion across the country. According to sources in the media, Sunak is considering changes that include delaying the looming ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars and pulling back on the abolishment of gas boilers.
It is expected that the Prime Minister will clarify the situation in a speech by the end of the week, although he has already issued a statement relating to the rumours. While he has confirmed he remains committed to reaching the UK’s net zero carbon emissions target by 2050, he has said that he would like to do it in a “more proportionate way.” He added:
“For too many years politicians in governments of all stripes have not been honest about costs and trade-offs. Instead, they have taken the easy way out, saying we can have it all. This realism doesn’t mean losing our ambition or abandoning our commitments. Far from it.
“No leak will stop me from beginning the process of telling the country how and why we need to change. As a first step, I’ll be giving a speech this week to set out an important long-term decision we need to make so our country becomes the place I know we all want it to be for our children.”
What Has Sunak Planned?
According to the BBC, Rishi Sunak has already drafted up much of his speech and within it are several policy shifts which will have a significant impact on how the country looks to move towards the net zero target.
Firstly, Sunak will push the ban on new petrol and diesel cars back by five years. As things stand, these types of vehicles won’t be able to be sold as brand new from 2030, however, Sunak intends to push this date to 2035.
Another big policy shift would involve reducing the number of gas boilers that would need to be phased out by 2035. Right now, the government want to have phased them out entirely by then, but new plans by Sunak would knock that down to 80% of gas boilers.
Other less severe shifts include scrapping planned new energy efficiency regulations on homes to help landlords and homeowners and pushing the looming 2026 ban on off-grid oil boilers to 2035. Additionally, there will be no new taxes imposed on the public when booking flights and no new policies to encourage certain diets.
Finally, Sunak will also scrap plans to drastically change how recycling is done in households across the country. There were previously tentative plans to introduce a seven-bin system for recycling but those are now expected to fall through.
The speech won’t just be about laying out these possible changes, though. Sunak will reportedly also use it as an opportunity to fire digs at other nations, saying that Britain has over-delivered on green policies and targets and that other countries need to do more.
Opposition
Although Sunak has received support from people on the right of his party, including Suella Braverman, who told Times Radio that “we’re not going to save the planet by bankrupting the British people”, he has also already faced several critics.
From within his party, MP Chris Skidmore said that Sunak’s plan would “cost the UK jobs and future economic growth.” He added:
“Rishi Sunak still has time to think again and not make the greatest mistake of his premiership, condemning the UK to miss out on what can be the opportunity of the decade to deliver growth, jobs and future prosperity.”
Meanwhile, the Labour Party’s Shadow Business Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, was even more scathing. Reynolds labelled it an “absolute farce” before adding:
“We are making clear that we are absolutely rejecting this completely futile, short-term and facile way of doing politics. This is not a serious way to make long-term decisions that require vast amounts of investments, where lots of jobs are at risk.”
Final thought
Rishi Sunak’s decision to water down his green policies may well stem from the result of the Uxbridge by-election in July. Ultimately, it was the Conservative’s policy to oppose Sadiq Khan’s proposed extension of London’s Ultra Low Emissions Zone that tipped the win in their favour and that may have sparked something in Sunak.
While the polls still suggest Labour will form the next government, Sunak may feel that relaxing and even opposing climate and green policies are a way to tip the scales back into the balance. It will be fascinating to see how Sir Kier Starmer responds to this shift from the Conservatives, should Sunak go through with it as expected.