Britain to ban sale of Petrol and Diesel cars from 2040

Britain is all set to ban the sale of petrol and diesel cars and vans (including the hybrid ones) from 2040. This move comes soon after Volvo declared that they will be making only hybrid or electric cars from 2019, and the French announcement to similarly ban sales of petrol and diesel cars from 2040.

While the French government is taking this step to meet their targets under the Paris climate accord, the British government is concerned over the increasing amount of nitrogen oxide content in the air and its effect on people's health. Ministers believe that the environmental health risks pose a serious productivity loss and has estimated the loss for one year to be around 2.7 billion GBP.

A spokesperson said that the government is hastening the process for a new 3 billion GBP fund to the various local councils to clean up the dirty atmosphere around their local area. These measures include new low-emission buses, cycle tracks, improving the charging infrastructure, and an additional grant for plug-in schemes. This drastic step is further supported by a report that claims that UK's high pollution is responsible for over 40,000 premature deaths a year.

Source:The Guardian