Tories miss another climate change target as MoD keeps petrol and diesel cars
The Tories have missed another key target to tackle the Government’s carbon emissions.
The Ministry of Defence pledged to have 25% of its non-military “white fleet” made up of ultra-low emissions vehicles by this year. The environmentally-friendly cars, vans and trucks were set to include battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
But research by a former Defence Minister found just 2,159 of the MoD’s 13,038 civilian vehicles - 16.5% - meet the criteria. Some 745 of ULEVs in the fleet are fully electric and 1,414 are plug-in hybrids. However, only one of the electric vehicles and 39 of the plug-in hybrids were built in the UK - despite Government promises to boost British manufacturing through its procurement processes.
Answering a written parliamentary question, Defence Procurement Minister James Cartlidge focused on the proportion of cars - rather than all vehicles - in the fleet. He claimed: “The Ministry of Defence has made good progress on its ultra low emissions vehicle programme and at the end of financial year 2022-23, 28% of the MoD car fleet was ULEV. We are now working toward converting 100% of our car and van fleet to be fully zero emissions at the tailpipe by December 31, 2027.”
The figures were uncovered by Labour MP Kevan JonesHowever, he was forced to admit: “Of the 13,038 cars and vans currently in the fleet, 745 are currently zero emissions vehicles and 1,414 hybrid.” Senior Labour backbencher Kevan Jones, who was a Defence Minister from 2008 to 2010 and sits on the Commons Defence Select Committee, told the Mirror: “This was a target set by MoD, nobody else.
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“If MoD cannot even procure widely available low-emission vehicles for its civilian fleet, what hope is there for more complex equipment? That only one of the MoD’s electric vehicles was made in Britain is frankly embarrassing.”
The target for a quarter of the fleet to be ULEVs was confirmed by the RAF as late as November 2020, when it boasted: “RAF Brize Norton is making a bold start in lowering emissions on our roads, with a new fleet of ultra low emission vehicles. The vehicles are starting to arrive as part of the MoD ULEV programme, which will initially replace 25% of our white fleet with ULEV electric vehicles by 2023.”
The mechanical transport officer at the Oxfordshire airbase - Britain’s biggest - said at the time: “It is vital for the need of the environment to enforce the use of electric cars where possible.”
The revelation comes amid a deepening row over Rishi Sunak’s commitment to green policies. The Prime Minister has ordered a review of low traffic neighbourhoods, which close some suburban roads to traffic and which supporters say are crucial for improving air quality. He has also backed hundreds of new oil and gas licences in the North Sea and has slammed London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s expansion of the capital’s ultra low emission zone.
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