UK to ban sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2030

Date for ban is five years earlier than pledge made by prime minister in February

The sale of hybrid cars and vans will be banned from 2035 in Britain. Picture: Adam Peck

Britain has confirmed it will ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2030, five years earlier than previously planned, as part of what Prime Minister Boris Johnson is casting as a “green revolution” to cut emissions to net-zero by 2050.

Mr Johnson, who is grappling with Europe’s most deadly Covid-19 crisis, Brexit trade negotiations, and the departure of his most senior adviser, wants to underscore his green credentials.