Hybrids Will Not Be Banned In 2040

Hybrids will be exempt from the UK’s petrol and diesel sales ban, it has been confirmed. Both the plug-in type and the self-sufficient type will be excluded from the restrictions set out this week by the British government.

The exception applies to both fuels, so Peugeot and Citroen will still be able to sell diesel-electric hybrids if they choose to, alongside the myriad petrol-electric hybrids sold by brands across the globe – not least of which is Toyota, with its hugely popular Prius; the car we love to hate.

Any continuation of designs like those in the LaFerrari, Porsche 918 Spyder and McLaren P1 will also be fine, and yet a tiny 60bhp city car with no hybrid assistance won’t be. Go figure.

According to government plans, there could also be a relaxation of restrictions on existing internal combustion-engined cars if air quality levels improve enough. Critics of the new proposals say there isn’t enough emphasis on the farming, construction and public transport sectors, which are all major contributors to the overall pollution problem.

A diesel scrappage scheme is being considered, where the government would pay a four-figure incentive for drivers of older, more polluting cars to trade them in for something brand new, but the 2009 scheme cost the taxpayer so much money that today’s government is looking at ways to target any new equivalent only at the worst ‘offenders’ in the areas where the air quality needs the most improvement.

Around four per cent of new cars sold this year in the UK have been electrified, but that number will continue to rise.