{"id":21999,"date":"2020-06-09T12:43:49","date_gmt":"2020-06-09T11:43:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=21999"},"modified":"2020-06-10T15:27:52","modified_gmt":"2020-06-10T14:27:52","slug":"leadership-and-incentive-now-call","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=21999","title":{"rendered":"Leadership and incentive now call"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Unless the government takes additional measures to support infrastructure and the UK manufacture of electric vehicles, proposals to introduce a car scrappage scheme to help address climate change will fail to provide a vital boost to the UK\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s car industry, Unite has warned.<\/p>\n

Responding to speculation that the government is considering introducing a new\u00c2\u00a0car scrappage scheme<\/a> \u00e2\u20ac\u201c which would see buyers being given \u00c2\u01416,000 to exchange their petrol or diesel car for an electric model, Unite has warned that further urgent\u00c2\u00a0investment and infrastructure development is needed to maximise the success of any initiative.<\/p>\n

Moreover, its\u00c2\u00a0introduction now could well delay consumers from buying existing models \u00e2\u20ac\u201c including hybrids \u00e2\u20ac\u201c which keep the UK industry alive and provide the investment needed for the transition to full electric vehicles.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe introduction of a car scrappage scheme must also coincide with a dramatic move to produce a far higher number of electric models and components in the UK, otherwise the scrappage scheme will simply benefit overseas producers and not domestic production,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 commented Unite assistant general secretary Steve Turner.<\/p>\n

Currently the UK does not have the charging infrastructure in place to make electric cars an attractive proposition for many drivers.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0If the scheme were to be brought in now, it wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be advantageous to the UK\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s struggling automotive sector, as\u00c2\u00a0very few electric-only cars are currently built in the UK.<\/p>\n

So with the transition to electric cars not realistically\u00c2\u00a0imminent in the UK, Unite believes consideration and support must also be given to highly modern low emission internal combustion engines \u00e2\u20ac\u201c which are being built in the UK.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0098Intergrated approach\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bAs part of an integrated approach to transitioning the automotive sector this could be a game changing initiative,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 believes Turner. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bBut for that to be achieved the government will need to announce a rapid expansion of the\u00c2\u00a0charging infrastructure and, in particular, the provision of fast charging points.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bDrivers are not going to invest in an electric car\u00c2\u00a0if they are concerned about its range and worried about the difficulty of charging it.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe transition to electric vehicles will not occur overnight.\u00c2\u00a0 During this period the government must also be promoting and assisting the new generation of low emission, internal combustion engines that are produced in the UK,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he added.<\/p>\n

Of further concern for Unite is that the UK doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t currently produce a transit-sized electric van \u00e2\u20ac\u201c a huge missed opportunity to actively contribute to meeting the climate change challenge.<\/p>\n

Steve Turner believes now the government must turn its eye to keeping jobs and skills in the UK.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWith the combination of the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit, tens of thousands of automotive jobs are at risk and any initiatives that the government considers must be focused on securing and promoting skilled employment in the UK.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt is essential that the government provides leadership right now and introduces any incentives, as the French have done, with measures targeted at promoting UK manufacturers and component suppliers.\u00c2\u00a0Incentivising the industry to produce an electric van here in the UK would be a good start,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said.<\/p>\n

Compiled by Amanda Campbell @amanda_unite <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe transition to electric vehicles will not occur overnight.\u00c2\u00a0 During this period the government must also be promoting and assisting the new generation of low emission, internal combustion engines that are produced in the UK,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":14362,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1308,1214],"tags":[386,1295,854,55,603],"wps_subtitle":"Car scrappage scheme in itself won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t protect UK jobs, warns Unite","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21999"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=21999"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21999\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22001,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21999\/revisions\/22001"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14362"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=21999"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=21999"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=21999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}