Mr Bean Blamed for Low Electric Vehicle Sales in the UK, No Really!

Stories about the low sales of Electric Vehicles (EV’s) are all of the internet: the slump is so massive in the UK that the Government there has halved the sales forecast for them and launched a House of Lords enquiry to find out why.

Previously the UK Government had mandated that some 67% of all new cars sold by 2027 would be EVs but now they have had to revise this down to 38% and you simply will not believe who they are blaming for this.

No, they are not blaming the high cost of an EV compared to a car with an internal combustion engine (ICE), they are not blaming the high cost of insurance, nor the limited range and lack of charging infrastructure they are not even blaming the fact that electricity is so expensive in the UK that it can cost more to charge your battery than fill up with gas.

No-no they have found the culprit to low electric vehicle sales and it is no other than actor Rowan Atkinson the man behind Mr Bean. 

The British house of Lords, in their enquiry,  has blamed Mr Bean or rather actor Rowan Atkinson and an editorial article entitled ‘Why I am feeling flat about electric cars’ for the decline in popularity and hence the countries potential failure to reach their goal of phasing out all new ICE vehicles by 2030.

A little while ago we ran a story about Mr Atkinson feelings on the current technology in EVs in which he stated, “The problem lies with the lithium-ion batteries fitted in nearly all electric vehicles: they’re absurdly heavy, huge amounts of energy are required to make them, and they are estimated to only last ten years” he added “Electric propulsion will be of real global environmental benefit one day, but that day has yet to dawn.”

Rowan Atkinson is a petrol head of note, but he was also an early adopter of EV technology. So if he is casting doubt on the future that the powers to be are trying to sell us on perhaps we should take at least a little notice especially as he is talking from personal experience.

Around the world some 50% of EV owners regret the decision to purchase an EV and plan to swap back to an ICE vehicle when they next change their ride. 

You also have companies in Germany and the US who are both closing EV plants simply because there is no demand for the product.

What is probably worse though is that in China this year they will be bringing some 43 new Coal fired power plants online to cater largely for the surge in EV sales in the country.

This brings into doubt the country’s goal of carbon emission reduction. It also highlights the fact that with EVs, we are not stopping pollution, but merely moving the point at which we pollute.