A broad coalition of carmakers and EV-sector companies is calling on the government to avoid weakening the UK’s Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Mandate ahead of the Budget, warning that policy instability risks slowing electric vehicle uptake just as the market begins to scale.
Electric Vehicles UK (EVUK) - which brings together manufacturers including Polestar, Volvo, Tesla, Chery, Omoda, Jaecoo and Changan, alongside energy, charging and finance firms such as Octopus and OVO - says the mandate remains a “strong framework” and one that industry is already planning against.
The intervention comes amid pre-Budget lobbying for the mandate to be diluted for the second time this year. EVUK argues that any further softening would undermine business confidence, investment certainty and public clarity at a point when EV adoption is rising.
Rising demand underlines the stakes
New battery electric vehicles (BEVs) now routinely account for more than 25 percent of UK new-car registrations, used-EV sales continue to grow, and surveys suggest more than 90 percent of current EV drivers would not return to combustion. Industry voices say this momentum relies on clear direction.
Matt Galvin, Managing Director of Polestar UK, said the mandate gives manufacturers long-term certainty: “Car companies have long product planning lifecycles and now is not the time to change the mandate, to which manufacturers have been planning for many years.”
He added that weakening the framework could confuse consumers and jeopardise progress towards the 2030-35 phase-out timeline. Polestar points to rising EV acceptance and the technology required to eliminate tailpipe emissions already being in place.
EVUK CEO Tanya Sinclair said the Budget presents a key moment for clarity: “The enemy of business growth is policy instability.” She said unconfirmed plans around vehicle tax and the ZEV mandate risk delaying investment decisions across the mobility sector.
Industry warns against further dilution
EVUK’s founders say the earlier mandate adjustment in 2025 has already had an impact. Dan Caesar, Founder of EVUK, said the revisions are estimated to have cut as many as two million BEV sales from the projected 2030 total.
He argues that the industry as a whole is on track to meet the targets and that any further change would chiefly benefit slower-moving legacy manufacturers: “To further dilute the targets… could be catastrophic for the industry, its adjacent sectors, and for the UK’s economic growth.”
Building consumer confidence
The coalition forms the basis of EVUK’s #CheaperBetterBatteryElectric campaign - an industry-funded initiative aimed at improving consumer understanding, supporting test-drive programmes and highlighting the economic and environmental case for EVs.
Carmakers within the group emphasise the need for stable policy to support charging investment, ease of use and affordability.
Nic Thomas, UK Managing Director at Changan, said a consistent mandate helps create the conditions for wider adoption: “With more than 1.5 million fully electric vehicles already on UK roads, it’s clear that consumers are increasingly interested in EVs and are ready to make the switch… A strong and consistent mandate gives the entire EV industry the certainty to invest and innovate.”
Infrastructure providers echoed that view. 3ti, OVO, ClearWatt, JOLT and trueCharge all said their work to expand charging networks, improve battery data and support urban charging depends on a stable policy environment.
A united message before the Budget
The coalition’s position is clear: the UK is close to establishing itself as a leading EV market, but that progress hinges on predictable, long-term policy. With the Budget approaching and further adjustments being debated, the EV sector is presenting a united front to the Treasury - urging ministers not to reverse course just as battery-electric vehicles gain mainstream traction.
