That this House expresses its concern about Chancellors’ policy to introduce a tax per mile on electric vehicles; believes that the UK Government should continue to actively support and incentivise the transition to electric vehicles as part of the country's efforts to reduce carbon emissions, improve air quality, and achieve its net-zero goals; notes that, while the shift to electric vehicles is crucial for the nation’s environmental and economic future, a new per-mile tax would act as a significant deterrent to EV adoption, particularly at a time when the Government is striving to achieve its climate change commitments; acknowledges that such a tax would disproportionately affect rural residents, who often rely on personal vehicles for long-distance travel due to limited public transport options and greater distances between essential services; recognises that rural households already face higher transport costs, and that a per-mile tax on electric vehicles would exacerbate existing inequalities, placing an unfair financial burden on rural communities; and calls on the Government to explore alternative, fairer methods of funding road infrastructure that do not penalise individuals for making environmentally conscious choices, and to ensure that policies designed to tackle climate change are inclusive of all regions, including rural areas.
