Nissan commits to 2030 electric car deadline despite delay to UK petrol-diesel ban
Nissan has committed itself to the sale of only electric cars across Europe from 2030, the year when the UK was supposed to have banned new vehicles powered by petrol and diesel.
The Japanese carmaker also confirmed that all new models to be launched on the continent from now on would be fully electric.
Its commitment to 2030 brings Nissan into line with its French partner Renault and joins rivals including Volvo and Ford.
The company issued the statement less than a week after the UK government confirmed that it was to defer its ban on the sale of conventionally-powered cars until 2035.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that while he remained committed to the battle against climate change, he had to protect “hard-pressed British families” from “unacceptable costs”.
The U-turn removed the UK’s leading role in the timing of the ban on new petrol and diesel cars and powered a backlash from industry groups, many of which complained of an own goal – that a lack of government support was a major factor.
The sector’s main lobby group declared the delay would only damage demand for electric cars in the short and medium term.
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Industry anger at green changes
Makoto Uchida, Nissan’s chief executive, said in his statement: “There is no turning back now.
“Nissan will make the switch to full electric by 2030 in Europe – we believe it is the right thing to do for our business, our customers and for the planet.”
One of two new EV models it has already confirmed for Europe will be manufactured at its Sunderland plant.
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Sunak ‘playing politics’ on climate?
There are 19 planned for launch by 2030.
The company has its own battery plant at the Sunderland site, giving it a competitive edge over rivals such as Jaguar Land Rover and Vauxhall’s owner Stellantis.
The latter warned earlier this year that the future of its Luton and Ellesmere Port operations was at risk due to Brexit trade rules, covering both UK and European operations, to ensure a level playing field.
It said 45% of the value of EVs should originate in the EU or UK from 2024 to qualify for trade without 10% tariffs being applied.
The government has confirmed dialogue on the issue with the European Union, as both sides’ carmakers struggle to meet the so-called rules of origin, largely due to high battery costs.
The vast majority are currently imported from China.
In the UK, Jaguar Land Rover, like Nissan, has secured government aid to support the production of electric car batteries at a gigafactory planned for Somerset.
Experts have warned battery capacity must grow if production is to accelerate, enabling the cost of EVs to come down.
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Colin Walker, head of transport at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, said: “Nissan’s decision is based on a clear understanding that the European and UK markets are shifting to EVs, and shifting fast.
“Fundamentally they are cleaner and cheaper to own and run, so will bring down the cost of driving for motorists.
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“As the transition to EVs moves forward, companies will be making decisions on where to build the EVs of the future, and where to build the battery factories and other elements of the supply chain that are needed to make it all happen.
“One of the things these companies will be looking for is stable government policy, something that the UK has not provided in recent days with its U-turn on the petrol and diesel phase-out date.”
Israel has said 24 hostages are alive in Gaza – after Donald Trump said there were 21.
The US president told reporters on Tuesday that three more hostages held by Hamas in Gaza had died – alarming their families.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Gal Hirsch, Israel’s coordinator for hostage issues, said the Palestinian militant group was holding 59 hostages of whom 24 were alive and 35 dead – figures unchanged since before Mr Trump‘s comments.
He said 54 of the 59 were Israeli citizens and five of them were foreign nationals.
“All families of the kidnapped are always updated with the information we have about their loved ones,” he said.
The group representing the families of hostages had asked the Israeli government to share any new information with them immediately following Mr Trump’s comments.
It argues that Israel should stop the fighting and negotiate the release of the remaining hostages.
“This is the most urgent and important national mission,” it said on a post on X.
Most of the hostages returned alive to Israel so far have been released as part of deals with Hamas during two temporary ceasefires in late 2023 and early 2025.
The most recent ceasefire that saw a pause in the fighting and the exchange of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners fell apart in March.
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Hamas took 251 hostages in its attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023 in which it killed 1,200 people.
Israel has responded with an air and ground assault on Gaza.
The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says more than 52,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since the start of the war. Its figures do not differentiate between civilians and fighters.
Israel says its two war aims are to destroy Hamas and release the hostages.
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Israel announces plans for Gaza
On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced an expansion of its offensive on Gaza – increasing its hold on the territory, for an indefinite amount of time.
The plan includes seizing Gaza, holding on to captured territories, forcibly displacing Palestinians to southern Gaza and taking control of aid distribution along with private security companies.
Pakistan says it has been targeted in a missile attack by India.
Three missiles were fired by India across the border into Pakistani-controlled territory, said Pakistani security officials.
They hit locations in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and in the country’s eastern Punjab province, according to officials.
The Indian defence ministry said it had launched Operation Sindoor as it struck “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir “from where terrorist attacks against India have been planned and directed”.
It said a total of nine sites were targeted.
A Pakistan military spokesman said the country will respond to the attacks.
Tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours have been escalating following a militant gun attack in the disputed area of Kashmir last month.
At least 26 people, most of whom were Indian tourists, were shot dead by gunmen at a beauty spot near the resort town of Pahalgam in the Indian-controlled part of the region on 22 April.
India described the massacre as a “terror attack” and said it had “cross border” links, blaming Pakistan for backing it.
Pakistan denied any connection to the atrocity, which was claimed by a previously unknown militant group called the Kashmir Resistance.
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24 April: Pakistani minister warns ‘all-out war’ possible
Since the attack, Pakistan’s military has been on high alert after a cabinet minister said Islamabad had credible intelligence indicating that India could attack.
And Pakistan’s defence minister Khawaja Asif told Sky News’ The World With Yalda Hakim that the world should be “worried” about the prospect of a full-scale conflict involving the two nations.
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Friedrich Merz has become Germany’s new chancellor after winning a second vote in the country’s parliament.
He unexpectedly failed in the first parliamentary ballot on Tuesday morning – the first time a chancellor has failed to be elected at the first attempt since the Second World War.
Initially, needing a majority of 316 out of 630 votes in a secret ballot, he received 310 – falling short by just six votes. On the second ballot he managed 325.
It means Mr Merz, the leader of the country’s CDU/CSU conservatives, has become the 10th chancellor since the end of the Second World War.
Friedrich Merz during his swearing in ceremony. Pic: Reuters
He had been expected to win comfortably after securing a coalition deal with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD).
It meant at least 18 coalition MPs failed to back him in the first round of voting.
Announcing the second vote, Jens Spahn, the head of the Union bloc in parliament, said: “The whole of Europe, perhaps even the whole world, is watching this second round of elections.”
Earlier, the leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, Alice Weidel, said on X that Mr Merz’s failure to secure a majority in the first round showed the “weak foundation” on which his coalition was built, adding that it had been “voted out by the voters”.
Mr Merz, 69, succeeds Olaf Scholz and has vowed to prioritise European unity and the continent’s security.
Mr Merz (R) shakes hands with outgoing chancellor Olaf Scholz (L). Pic: Reuters
His in-tray includes the Ukraine war and global tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy sent congratulations to Mr Merz and wished him “every success”.
The Ukrainian president added that the future of Europe was “at stake” and security will “depend on our unity”.
Mr Merz will also have to decide what to do about the AfD, which mainstream parties have refused to work with.
A “firewall” against collaborating with strongly right-wing parties has been in place since the end of the war.
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During federal elections in late February, the AfD scored its best-ever result while Olaf Scholz’s SPD dropped to about 16%.
The AfD is the second largest party in the lower house of the Bundestag and was officially designated as extremist last week by Germany’s domestic spy agency.
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