Unlocking the Mystery of Net Zero: A Beginner's Guide to a Sustainable Future
This image is sourced from Medium
You might have heard that the government has set out a plan to reach net zero by 2050. But what does this mean? And why does the Electric Car Scheme keep talking about it!
First things first, what is net zero?
Net zero is the balance between the greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide) that are projected into the atmosphere and those that are removed.
Scientists like to use the analogy of a bath to put this in perspective…
Running the tap will add water to the bath and, pulling the plug will drain the water away. To have a successful bath, you want the amount of water in the bath to be level. To do so, you need to ensure that the input and output are balanced.
It is inevitable that we will release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. But as this principle explains, we can balance this by taking an equal amount out of the atmosphere.
Why is it important?
According to the National Grid, Greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide are a major contributor to global warming as it is mostly generated by human activities like transport and industry. Becoming net zero will help stabilise the level of carbon dioxide and other gases in the atmosphere by reducing the amount of harmful gases and combat climate change.
The UK government’s plan to reach net zero by 2050
In 2020, the government announced plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 68% by the end of the decade. In addition, they have also pledged to achieve net zero by 2050.
These goals call for change from industry, businesses and households, as well as for the government to support the nation to make these changes. Since the announcement of the UK’s pledge to achieve net zero by 2050, the government has introduced a variety of policies including; grants and tax incentives that support and reward green alternatives.
What does The Electric Car Scheme have to do with it?
Part of the plan to achieve net zero is to stop the production of new petrol and diesel (ICE) cars by 2030. This, along with the Zero Emission Vehicle mandate which requires all car manufacturers to ensure a percentage of sales must be fully electric, will mean more drivers will switch to electric vehicles.
To support drivers to manage the costs of leasing an electric vehicle, the government introduced salary sacrifice schemes for electric cars.
What is salary sacrifice?
Well, instead of leasing an electric car in the usual way, which is paid with your post-tax (or net) income, the fixed monthly payments are taken from your salary before any income tax or National Insurance is paid. This will allow you to save 30-60%!
As a car through The Electric Car Scheme is an employee benefit provided to you, it’s therefore a ‘company car’, so there is a company car tax payable. However, the value of this “benefit-in-kind” (BIK) is set by HMRC, and set at very low rates until at least 2028.
To learn more about The Electric Car Scheme visit our company pages or watch our explainer video below 👇
Browse the latest range of electric cars on our salary sacrifice car calculator, can’t find the car you’re looking for? Book a call with one of our EV Specialists.
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