Rishi Sunak’s net zero delay ‘will slash demand for electric cars’

Prolonged use of dirtier vehicles will jeopardise the government’s legally binding climate targets. Photograph: Geoffrey Swaine/Shutterstock

Britain has downgraded its forecasts for the takeup of electric cars over the next seven years as higher financing costs and rising energy prices threaten to cut the incentive for drivers to replace combustion engines.

The latest forecast from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), released alongside the chancellor’s autumn statement, said that just 38% of new vehicles sold in the UK in 2027 would be electric, down from the 67% it predicted in March.