Diesel and petrol vehicles to be banned from 2040, in UK

New diesel and petrol vehicles to be banned from 2040 in UK

New diesel and petrol cars and vans will be banned in the UK from 2040 in a bid to tackle air pollution, the government is set to announce.

Ministers are also to unveil a £255m fund to help councils tackle pollution from diesel vehicles, as part of £3bn spending on air quality.

Local measures could include retrofitting buses and other transport to make them cleaner, changing road layouts, altering features such as speed humps and re-programming traffic lights to make vehicle-flow smoother.

Ministers have been wary of being seen to "punish" drivers of diesel cars, who, they argue, bought the vehicles after being encouraged to by the last Labour government because they produced lower carbon emissions.

The UK announcement comes amid signs of an accelerating shift towards electric cars instead of petrol and diesel ones both at home and abroad: The government's plans will not contain a vehicle scrappage scheme.

UCJ, UNILORIN.