On 14 August 2026, the Department for Transport opened a consultation on the zero-emission vehicle mandate, launched with the devolved governments. The exercise asks manufacturers, suppliers, charge point operators, dealers, consumers and communities to comment on the route to ending sales of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030 and moving to 100 per cent zero-emission new car and van sales by 2035. In practical terms, the immediate effect is to open an evidence-gathering exercise rather than amend compliance rules on day one. The consultation runs until 23 October 2026, giving ministers a formal record of industry and public views before deciding whether the current annual sales trajectory should be retained or changed.
The government says the review is intended to keep the mandate fair for industry, responsive to global markets and supportive of growth. According to the press notice, manufacturers are currently on track to meet their 2025 targets and the scheme already contains built-in flexibilities, but ministers want to test whether the annual requirements still reflect supply-chain pressures, tariff changes and wider trade uncertainty. That matters because the mandate sits at the centre of product planning, factory allocation and model availability in the UK market. Even a limited adjustment to annual targets could affect how manufacturers schedule launches, manage volumes and plan investment across assembly, supply and retail networks. The consultation also gives effect to the government's stated commitment to keep the policy under review by 2027.
The consultation has been launched against a stronger market backdrop than many expected earlier in the transition. The Department for Transport says July produced the strongest new car market since 2019, that more than one in four new cars sold are now electric, and that electric vehicle sales were 45 per cent higher than in July last year. The government also says more than 2 million electric vehicles are now registered on UK roads. Those figures give ministers a basis for arguing that demand is moving in the right direction. The government further says industry data shows new models are becoming increasingly comparable in price to petrol and diesel cars, a point that is likely to feature heavily in consultation responses on affordability and consumer uptake.
Ministers are pairing the review with a wider industrial support message. The government says it is investing £7.5 billion to expand the market, support UK manufacturing and grow charging provision, including £4 billion for DRIVE35 projects and £3.5 billion for van, truck and car grants, the Electric Car Grant and charging infrastructure. The consumer-facing element remains important. According to the government, the Electric Car Grant provides up to £3,750 off a new electric car and has supported more than 160,000 purchases since launching last July. Ministers also continue to cite estimated running-cost savings of around £1,400 a year for drivers who are able to charge at home.
Charging access is likely to be one of the more closely examined parts of the review. The government says it is investing a further £600 million to expand charge point coverage, building on around 120,000 public charge points and more than 1 million chargers already installed in homes and workplaces. It also refers to a separate £400 million programme intended to support more than 100,000 additional public chargers across the UK. For households without straightforward home charging, installation cost remains a policy issue. The press notice says landlords, flat owners and renters can receive grants of up to £500 towards a home charger, a measure designed to widen access beyond owner-occupiers with off-street parking. For consultation respondents, this part of the package will matter because sales targets are more credible where charging access is geographically broad and financially practical.
The ministerial message is that the end point remains fixed, but the annual steps may be adjusted. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander says the review is intended to ensure targets remain practical while continuing to back British industry. Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds presents the exercise as a check on whether the present design still supports investment, innovation and competitiveness in the automotive sector. That distinction is important for market participants. In the material released on 14 August, ministers did not propose changing the 2030 phase-out of new petrol and diesel cars or the 2035 requirement for all new cars and vans to be zero emission. The consultation instead focuses on whether the current yearly targets remain the right mechanism for reaching those dates.
Industry has responded in broadly supportive terms. Mike Hawes, chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, says the sector remains committed to a zero-emission future but argues that the mandate was designed under materially different conditions. His position, as reflected in the government notice, is that the review should improve commercial sustainability while protecting competitiveness, investment and jobs. For manufacturers, dealers and charge point operators, the next two months are the point at which evidence can be placed on the record. For consumers, there is no immediate change to grants or purchase rules, but the outcome could shape model choice, pricing and the pace of infrastructure rollout well before the 2030 and 2035 milestones. The consultation closes on 23 October 2026, and the government says it wants to give industry clarity on the outcome as quickly as possible.