Kemi Badenoch has committed to scrapping the 2030 petrol and diesel car ban, undoing one of Labour's flagship policies. The Conservative leader blasted Labour for "clinging to rigid mandates and political deadlines" as she outlined her latest plan for office should she win the next General Election.

Kemi claims she managed to convince former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to push back the ban on petrol and diesel cars from 2030 to 2035. However, Ms Badenoch claims that she fought to scrap the scheme completely after realising that the programme wasn't working. But Labour quickly made the move one of their top priorities as they quickly moved the deadline back to 2030.

Manufacturers now have to follow strict Zero Emissions Vehicle (ZEV) mMandate goals with rules to stop selling emission vehicles by the end of the decade. Writing in the Telegraph, Kemi said: "It's time to scrap the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate. This little-known law bans future sales of petrol and diesel cars and is a well-meaning but ultimately destructive piece of legislation.

"Shortly after becoming Business Secretary in 2023, I held meetings with many of the major car manufacturers in Britain. In public, they welcomed the drive to make vehicles electric (no one wanted to look like they were not on the green bandwagon).

"In private, however, they were very downbeat about demand for EVs, scathing about the pace of supporting infrastructure such as charging points, and very, very worried about their financial futures."

Her move comes just days after the EU announced plans to water down its 2035 petrol and diesel car ban rules. MEP Manfred Weber explained that the 2035 cutoff date would be softened next week in a major U-turn of the policy.

Kemi explained that the EU's sudden change of heart on electric vehicles is likely to leave Labour even more isolated. She explained that continuing with a petrol and diesel ban would have left the UK's domestic car industry at a disadvantage.

Kemi added: "Most importantly, scrapping the mandate will give us the space to rebuild our car industry. A Conservative approach will support innovation, not force it through regulation that ignores economic reality."