The owner of The Lister Motor Company has revealed that British small-volume car manufacturers are at a standstill due to uncertainty over the Government’s Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate.
Lawrence Whittaker told GB News that manufacturers are unable to make investment decisions without clarity on whether they will remain exempt from stringent regulations after 2035.
The issue affects not just supercar makers but also manufacturers of ambulances, fire engines and ice cream vans operating under Small Business Approval type approval.
“We’re all completely at a standstill until we know what the Government stance is on this,” Whittaker said.
Lawrence Whittaker has claimed that Lister ‘cannot afford’ to keep producing cars under the new mandate
GB News
Under current ZEV mandate requirements, 28 per cent of all new car sales must be electric by the end of 2025, as part of the journey towards full electrification.
The mandate stipulates that 100 per cent of new car sales must be zero emission by 2035, when the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will be banned.
Whittaker expressed concerns about committing to new model development without clear guidance on future regulations.
“If we’re going to invest £5million in the next new model, which obviously we want to do, and whether that’s electric or whether it’s petrol, obviously we just need to know what we can do,” he explained.
He noted that while Europe has confirmed exemptions for manufacturers producing less than 1,000 cars annually, British firms like Lister, Morgan and Caterham lack similar assurances.
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“We just cannot afford to make that kind of mistake,” Whittaker warned.
He emphasised the stark difference between large and small manufacturers in adapting to new regulations.
“Unlike the big manufacturers, they can afford to do some electric, some hybrid, some petrol and diesel cars – we just cannot afford that,” he said.
Small volume manufacturers have historically been exempt from certain stringent regulations, including crash testing requirements, due to cost constraints.
Whittaker told GB News that they are uncertain about the new mandate
GB News
“We don’t have to crash test three of our racing cars or three of our road cars because we just couldn’t afford to do that,” Whittaker explained.
The Government launched a consultation last December to assess manufacturers’ views on the mandate’s progress.
Ministers stated they were “determined to support automotive companies as they revamp their production lines, adjust their business plans, and develop the technology needed for the next generation of zero emission vehicles”.
