The UK could unlock £106 billion of economic growth by 2030 if the country urgently commits to championing an EV industry – because by training workers, building a large enough charging network “for everyone” and other measures, it would create a tenfold rise in the annual production of electric cars.
That is the claim of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), which says in its 'Manifesto 2030: Automotive growth for a zero emission future', launched today, that production could hit more than 750,000 BEVs per year by 2030.
However, such growth is contingent on attracting top car makers to build their next-generation electric models in British factories – joining the likes of Mini – as well as scaling up an emerging EV supply chain.
As such, the SMMT has called on the UK’s political parties to commit to five pledges that, it says, will “drive industrial transformation, mobility for all, upskilling, global trade and clean, affordable energy”.
"We [the automotive sector] are as important to the UK's manufacturing future as the NHS is to healthcare," SMMT chief Mike Hawes told the trade body’s annual summit in London today, before detailing the pledges.
These pledges aim to: attract investment and secure manufacturing; build a reliable UK-wide charging network; provide investment for EV manufacturing-specific skills; secure access to global markets for tariff-free export of British-made vehicles, batteries and green technologies; and ensure net-zero-critical industries can access affordable and zero-emission energy.
The idea of making all political parties commit to these pledges means that if a change of government occurs at the next election, the push should continue, rather than – as has happened in the past – be dropped when a new prime minister takes office.
The domestic manufacture of EVs would also drive down their prices in the UK, the SMMT says, which would help to overcome what its latest survey has found as the industry’s current biggest hurdle: electric car prices.
However, that is if the threat of tariffs from tougher local content rules under the UK-EU trade deal, which come into force in just six months' time, are ugently addressed.
If not, the tariffs would make the prices of British-built electric vehicles uncompetitive in its biggest export market.
Should exports wane as a result, that would also push up EV prices for British buyers (as car makers attempt to make back money they’ve lost through a lack of export sales) just as the UK and EU try to accelerate the uptake of EVs.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: “The government has set the industry tough targets and we are committed to meeting them.
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