There’s lots of helpful headlines in the UK this morning, about our government announcing the ban of petrol and diesel cars by 2040:
2040 is much too late of course and is an old policy being used to hide the fact that the government continues to dodge the issue of illegal air pollution in the short term.
The government is today putting forward its plan to tackle air pollution “in the shortest possible time” but is talking more about 2040 than how it will actually move away from polluting vehicles in the next few years.
This is Greenpeace’s comment on the story:
Wednesday 26 July
Expiry date on dirty cars is good, but real action needed before 2040 – Greenpeace
Commenting on the government plan to tackle air pollution published today, Areeba Hamid, clean air campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said:
“The government is right to put an expiry date on dirty petrol and diesel engines, but 2040 is far too late. We cannot wait nearly a quarter of a century for real action to tackle the public health emergency caused by air pollution. Car manufacturers like Volvo have announced their intention to move away from petrol and diesel by the end of this decade. Germany, India, the Netherlands and Norway are all considering bans by 2030 or sooner. The U.K. has the potential to lead the world in clean transport revolution, but it is vital we stay ahead now through a more ambitious phase-out date to boost our domestic market, as other countries are catching up.
“While this plan makes the right headline-grabbing noises, in reality it means that children across the UK will continue to be exposed to harmful air pollution for years to come, with potentially irreversible impacts. Providing a long term vision is not enough, Gove still needs to
protect our health right now from toxic fumes polluting our streets.”
“The government cannot shy away any longer from the issue of diesel cars clogging up and polluting our cities, and must now provide real solutions, not just gimmicks. That means proper clean air zones and funding to support local authorities to tackle illegal and unsafe pollution.”