The Government confirms there are “no current plans” for a scrappage scheme to revive sales of new cars.
A Government spokesperson told Auto Express:
“We have no current plans to change the existing incentives or to introduce a scrappage scheme. We are committed to building a greener transport system and reducing carbon emissions to reach our goal of net zero by 2050.”
Previous reports suggested the Government considered offering up to £6000 for motorists to switch to EVs or HEVs from petrol and diesel vehicles, but ministers have quashed such rumours.
Due to the COVID restrictions, new car sales were down 89 per cent in May and according to the figures released on 26th June by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT)UK car manufacturing output fell -95.4% in the same month with just 5,314 vehicles rolling off production lines. There were hopes of some form of incentive to turn the decline around.
According to the article, critics pointed out that scrappage schemes are wasteful. It removes serviceable cars from the road and makes cars for young drivers harder and more expensive to find. Others argue that scrappage schemes stimulate the economy and encourage the purchase of cleaner vehicles.
Andy Barett, Ford of Britain Boss, told Auto Express:
“Any degree of stimulus has to be fair to the industry – it’s got to be fair to all.” He added: “You can’t just stimulate the low end – and when you think about our manufacturing base in the UK there’s quite a lot of high-end business that comes out of the west midlands – so you’ve got to have something that’s fair to all the industry. It can’t be pro-the high end, and there’s got to be a degree of stimulus for the whole industry.”
Sources: www.autoexpress.co.uk www.smmt.co.uk
