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Britain to be a Petrol and Diesel Car Free Country by 2040?

The Liberal Democrat party, under the leadership of Nick Clegg, is set to discuss a new plan that would see all petrol and diesel cars, except for freight vehicles, completely banned from Britain’s roads by 2040.

The plan will force drivers to buy ultra-low carbon vehicles, such as electric cars and hybrids, putting pressure on the British people to save up to buy new cars, when they are already struggling to pay for the growing fuel bills.

The plan is just part of a new policy paper titled ‘Transition to a Zero Carbon Britain,’ which has already gained the support of the party leaders, but will be voted on by the rest of the party at a conference to be held next month in Glasgow.

The paper states that “by 2040, only ultra-low carbon vehicles will be permitted on UK roads for non-freight purposes.”

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If party members vote in support of the policy, then the Lib Dems will be forced to include it during their manifesto during the next election campaign in 2015.

If successful in the general elections, and voted into office, the Lib Dems would then begin charging higher taxes on petrol and diesel cars during the years leading up to 2040 when the ban would take effect, in order to persuade motorists to switch to low carbon emitting versions.

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In order to help people buy new cars the government would offer a subsidy when purchasing hybrid and electric vehicles, paid for by the high vehicle emissions duty that polluting cars would be forced to pay.

Also as part of the policy paper the Lib Dems are also planning to offer councils the power to charge road tolls in order to reduce congestion in the cities; suggesting the “introduction of a revenue-neutral system of road pricing and support local authorities introducing road pricing in congested areas.”

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The current coalition government promised not to impose new tolls on existing roads in the short term, but made no mention of their future intentions for the next term in 2015.

The Lib Dems are trying to mould Britain into a zero-carbon economy, and could well focus on nuclear power and shale gas as a means of achieving this, claiming that they see no problem with fracking as long as “regulations controlling pollution and protecting local environmental quality are strictly enforced, planning decisions remain with local authorities and local communities are fully consulted over extraction and fully compensated for all damage to the local landscape.”

By. James Burgess of Oilprice.com



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  • Kevin on August 08 2013 said:
    Absolutely ludicrous lib dams are a joke and need to be consigned to the dustbin

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