last updated 21st April 05
by 4ecotips.com

Another body blow to government aspirations

Car fuel efficiency figures released by the motor industry deal another body-blow to the government's commitment to tackling climate change, Friends of the Earth has said. The Government was counting on a cut in transport emissions to meet its domestic target of reducing carbon dioxide emissions to 20% below 1990 levels by 2010

Figures released by the Society for Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) on the average carbon dioxide emissions from new cars sold in the UK in 2004, show that it is now highly unlikely that the industry will meet its promised target for making cars more fuel efficient.

The motor industry agreed a voluntary target that all new cars sold in EU member states should emit on average no more than 140 grammes of carbon dioxide per kilometre (gCO2/km) by 2008. But figures for the UK show that in 2004 new cars emitted an average of 171.4gCO2/km - an improvement of only 0.4 per cent on 2003 [1] and nowhere near the improvement needed to meet its target.

The government has blamed the slow progress on the preference of UK car buyers for larger vehicles and the slow introduction of new technology. But Friends of the Earth says that government policy is also to blame - the current system of Vehicle Excise Duty (VED, or car tax) provides little incentive for car buyers to choose smaller, more fuel-efficient cars rather than gas-guzzlers.

Friends of the Earth's Senior Transport Campaigner Tony Bosworth says: “These new figures are yet another body-blow to government promises to tackle climate change. Whoever wins the election must give motorists more incentive to buy more fuel-efficient cars. The Chancellor must significantly increase tax on gas-guzzlers and cut it for fuel efficient vehicles. The UK Government cannot lead the rest of the world in tackling climate change if it fails to act at home.”