I'm not sure the EV industry is as divided as you make out. Public statements don't necessarily reflect private opinions. The Stellantis presentation I went to last month was 100% positive about EVs. Car companies can't just ask for money directly, and charger operators can't blame councils and planning rules too loudly.
The initial public enthusiasm centred around low running costs and excellent residuals.
The latter was purely down to lack of supply and was never going to last.
Unfortunately charging costs have hit the public imagination, and while in real life they are minimal non-EV drivers still assume they will need to make regular full charges. It is very difficult of the government to do anything, as a VAT cut for example would go straight into landlord's pockets via higher rents.
Car tax is also now a headline problem, especially as it's based on list price and EVs now often sell at a huge discount, but cutting costs for something that only affects those rich enough to afford a new car is an inevitable ethical problem.
All that means the only options open to the government are tinkering with the mandate, which would be a disaster or subsidise new manufacturing plants which I suspect is what manufacturers really want. Buying jobs is generally popular with the public and is probably a better use of money than the bottomless pit that is the NHS.
I'm not sure the EV industry is as divided as you make out. Public statements don't necessarily reflect private opinions. The Stellantis presentation I went to last month was 100% positive about EVs. Car companies can't just ask for money directly, and charger operators can't blame councils and planning rules too loudly.
The initial public enthusiasm centred around low running costs and excellent residuals.
The latter was purely down to lack of supply and was never going to last.
Unfortunately charging costs have hit the public imagination, and while in real life they are minimal non-EV drivers still assume they will need to make regular full charges. It is very difficult of the government to do anything, as a VAT cut for example would go straight into landlord's pockets via higher rents.
Car tax is also now a headline problem, especially as it's based on list price and EVs now often sell at a huge discount, but cutting costs for something that only affects those rich enough to afford a new car is an inevitable ethical problem.
All that means the only options open to the government are tinkering with the mandate, which would be a disaster or subsidise new manufacturing plants which I suspect is what manufacturers really want. Buying jobs is generally popular with the public and is probably a better use of money than the bottomless pit that is the NHS.