Latest figures for 2021, show that the number of new registrations is up 5% in the UK, with a 77% increase in plug-in vehicles. The shift in fuel type used across the vehicle market has led to record highs for electric vehicles on the road and a record low for average CO2 emissions for new cars. At the end of December 2021, there were 40.3 million licensed vehicles in the UK, an increase of 1.2% compared to the end of December 2020. More hybrid electric (HEV) cars (264,000) were registered for the first time in the UK during 2021 than diesel cars (195,000) in the UK, following a 57% increase in HEV cars compared to 2020. By contrast, over the same period there were falls of 10% and 36% for petrol and diesel cars respectively.
The Editor’s View
