The UK’s ability to compete in the electric vehicle market could be undermined unless government responds to international competition, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) warned today.

The organisation’s blueprint - Race to Zero: Powering Up Britain’s EV Supply Chain – outlines the UK’s strengths in advanced automotive manufacturing, low carbon energy and R&D, but stresses the need for an urgent response to initiatives such as the $370bn Inflation Reduction Act in the US, and EU’s Green Deal Industrial Plan. The blueprint sets out a Green Automotive Transformation strategy that the SMMT believes would position Britain as one of the world’s most competitive locations for advanced automotive manufacturing.

The strategy has identified investment, regulation and trade as key to securing future vehicle production in Britain. De-risking private capital with more competitive incentives and action on energy costs, with support for the next British ‘unicorns’ in batteries and renewables, will stimulate greater investment in EV enterprises, the blueprint states.

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Similarly, reform of regulation will accelerate delivery of new production facilities and renewable energy generation. Maximising trade opportunities, meanwhile, would help secure access to essential raw materials. Such moves will secure the essential gigafactories which can underpin EV production.

The UK must act also on progress made by the domestic automotive sector and supply chain. To date, over £11bn has been invested by manufacturers in EV production locally, leading to fully electric or hybrid vehicles comprising almost a third of all UK-built cars last year, with an export value of £10bn. By 2025, the sector is anticipated to produce over 20 models of electric cars, vans, buses and trucks.

Meanwhile, every part of the UK contributes to the EV supply chain, with a 25 per cent increase in the number of these businesses in the last five years. Seventeen of the world’s biggest automotive suppliers have a UK base, and a new SMMT EV Supply Chain Directory reveals that Britain produces almost every component required to manufacture tomorrow’s zero emission vehicles in some capacity.

British-built EVs and their components also benefit from greener production, with the UK ranking seventh best in the world’s top 20 automotive manufacturing nations for low carbon energy.

Britain also ranks highly for university-industry R&D collaboration and further strengths can be found the nation’s skilled workforce, engineering excellence, and a market and consumer that embrace new technologies.

“Britain boasts a firm foundation of EV production, backed by low carbon energy, outstanding R&D and a highly skilled and productive workforce. We must not squander these advantages,” SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said in a statement. “With other parts of the world turbocharging their support for the zero emission vehicle transition, we need to step up to compete in this global race. Every part of the country has a stake in the switch and with fast, decisive action we can deliver for Britain the growth, jobs and green prosperity this country deserves."