The ban, currently set to come into force in 2030, is set to be pushed back to 2035, according to reports. The 2030 date has been government policy since 2020.
Mr Sunak said he would give a speech later this week “to set out an important long-term decision we need to make so our country becomes the place I know we all want it to be for our children”. Industry figures had become sceptical that the 2030 date for the petrol car ban would go ahead. Car dealers predicted the ban would be delayed in recent polling - amid public anger at being forced to switch to more expensive electric vehicles.
Tory success in the summer's Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election, won largely through a campaign against the expansion of the ultra low emission zone , led to some MPs to call for Mr Sunak to water down or abandon net zero pledges. "It will potentially destabilise thousands of jobs and see investment go elsewhere. And ultimately the people who will pay the price for this will be householders whose bills will remain higher as a result of inefficient fossil fuels and being dependent on volatile international fossil fuel prices.