The UK is implementing a new pay-per-mile tax for electric vehicles in the new budget. A ban on gas- and diesel-powered vehicles goes into effect in 2030, meaning that all residents who own cars will have to buy electric or hybrid vehicles and be subject to the per-mile tax.
The move from the government is an attempt to reach "net zero" by 2035. Cars, buses and trains were "responsible for more than a quarter of emissions in 2023, making it the largest emitting sector," the BBC reports.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick slammed the EU and UK net-zero policies. While these policies make sense in China, he said, when implemented in the UK and EU, they only benefit China.
"Globalization has failed the West and the United States of America," Lutnick said, noting that these policies are to "export, offshore, far-shore, find the cheapest labor in the world, and the world will be a better place for it."
These policies, he said, have left America and the American worker behind. "You shouldn't offshore your semiconductors, you shouldn't offshore your entire industrial base and have it be hollowed out beneath you. You should not be dependent for that which is fundamental to your sovereignty on any other nation and if you're going to be dependent on another nation, it darn well better be your best allies."
He slammed the World Economic Forum for promoting solar and wind power above fossil fuels, saying, "why are you going to do solar and wind? Why would Europe agree to be net-zero in 2030 when they don't make a battery? They don't make a battery! So if they go 2030, they are deciding to be subservient to China who makes the batteries. Why would you do that?
"Why would the United States of America, which has oil and natural gas, try to convert to all electricity? China does not have oil and natural gas. Electricity makes perfect sense to them. That is practical and logical," he said.
Lutnick was seated next to Rachel Reeves, Chancellor of the Exchequer in the UK, who has backed the 2030 policies as well as the extra taxes on electric vehicles, which the government is pushing people into driving.
As of April 2028, all those who drive electric will be forced to pay 3 pence per mile and those who drive hybrid vehicles will have to pay 1.5 pence per mile. Inflation will increase the costs each year.
For London drivers, this is in addition to congestion pricing that goes into effect this year. Electric cars that cost over €40,000 are subject to luxury taxes, as well.
The EU is also banning the sales of new gas- and -diesel powered vehicles in 2035 and new hybrids will only be available in the UK until 2035.
The move from the government is an attempt to reach "net zero" by 2035. Cars, buses and trains were "responsible for more than a quarter of emissions in 2023, making it the largest emitting sector," the BBC reports.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick slammed the EU and UK net-zero policies. While these policies make sense in China, he said, when implemented in the UK and EU, they only benefit China.
"Globalization has failed the West and the United States of America," Lutnick said, noting that these policies are to "export, offshore, far-shore, find the cheapest labor in the world, and the world will be a better place for it."
These policies, he said, have left America and the American worker behind. "You shouldn't offshore your semiconductors, you shouldn't offshore your entire industrial base and have it be hollowed out beneath you. You should not be dependent for that which is fundamental to your sovereignty on any other nation and if you're going to be dependent on another nation, it darn well better be your best allies."
He slammed the World Economic Forum for promoting solar and wind power above fossil fuels, saying, "why are you going to do solar and wind? Why would Europe agree to be net-zero in 2030 when they don't make a battery? They don't make a battery! So if they go 2030, they are deciding to be subservient to China who makes the batteries. Why would you do that?
"Why would the United States of America, which has oil and natural gas, try to convert to all electricity? China does not have oil and natural gas. Electricity makes perfect sense to them. That is practical and logical," he said.
Lutnick was seated next to Rachel Reeves, Chancellor of the Exchequer in the UK, who has backed the 2030 policies as well as the extra taxes on electric vehicles, which the government is pushing people into driving.
As of April 2028, all those who drive electric will be forced to pay 3 pence per mile and those who drive hybrid vehicles will have to pay 1.5 pence per mile. Inflation will increase the costs each year.
For London drivers, this is in addition to congestion pricing that goes into effect this year. Electric cars that cost over €40,000 are subject to luxury taxes, as well.
The EU is also banning the sales of new gas- and -diesel powered vehicles in 2035 and new hybrids will only be available in the UK until 2035.
