August 2025

by Robin Astle.

From HISTORIC, the FBHVC magazine Issue 6

Legislation – Lindsay Irvine

INTRODUCTION

I have outlined previously that the legislative threats to our movement largely come under three headings: Environmental, Technical and Social & Economic (my AGM summary in Edition 6 of 2023 expands upon this theme). In the Federation’s early days, we focused on Technical concerns, to ensure our vehicles were not put off the road by their failure to comply with ever developing construction and use regulations. We have all benefitted from past campaigns that have ensured our vehicles can operate, so long as they conform to their original specification and are not restricted on mileage or use.

Latterly, our operations shifted to the Environment. The UK and international focus on man-made climate change heralded legislation mainly stemming from International and EU law on emissions which has led to, inter alia, the inception of CAZ and LEZ and the journey to “Net Zero”. Again, we have successfully lobbied for and obtained suitable “carve outs” for HVs and benefitted from a favourable VED regime.

As evidenced by the topics raised below, the new threats/risks emerge increasingly under Social & Economic. Regulation is not always the antithesis of freedom, but it can result in extra costs and burdens which in turn restrict operations and growth. Thus, in this edition, I discuss the Online Safety Act which was highlighted on the Federation’s webpage and Ofcom’s increased jurisdiction. In previous editions I have raised the potential effect of Martyn’s Law (Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill) on club activities and the General Product Safety Regulations which regulate precisely what the title describes. None of these are concerned with the regulation of motor vehicles as such. All are intended by Government to have social and safety benefits for broader society. They have cross party-political support. The downside is they all have potential adverse effects on the operation of our member organisations. None are designed to undermine unincorporated mainly volunteer organisations but may have that effect incrementally. Our job is to try and mitigate the downside of any new provisions (as we have had some success in relation Martyn’s Law) and secure a lighter touch in relation to enforcement on clubs.

As I have said before, curtailment of our freedom to use our vehicles is likely to be incidental to other policy aims, unintended and so imperceptible as to be almost unnoticed. We remain watchful, of course.

Fuels – Nigel Elliott

The Path to Net Zero

In my last article I talked about the Government consultation to seek views on delivering the commitment to end the sale of new cars powered solely by internal combustion engines by 2030 and supporting the UK’s transition to zero emissions vehicles.

The Government has now published the outcome of the consultation as follows:

• 2030 phase out of new ICE cars and CO2 requirements for vans
• Reconfirmation of the commitment to end the sale of new purely ICE cars by 2030, with all new cars and vans being fully zero emission by 2035.
• A technology definition to permit the sale of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) post-2030, alongside zero emission vehicles (ZEVs).
• A non-ZEV fleet-wide average CO2 cap for new cars sold post-2030, with a 10% improvement against the 2021 baseline, and no vehicle level cap.
• No technology definition for new non-zero emission (ZE) vans after 2030. Therefore, allowing the continued sale of new Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vans, HEV vans and PHEV vans post-2030, until 2035.
• A non-ZEV fleet-wide average CO2 cap for vans post-2030 with no further required improvements against the 2021 baseline and no vehicle level cap.
• The exemption of all micro vehicle manufacturers (MVMs), small vehicle manufacturers (SVMs), special purpose and kit vehicles from the requirement to end the sale of pure ICE cars by 2030. SVMs will need to apply for a bespoke derogation to reduce their emissions across their fleets on the pathway to 2035. All new cars and vans must be zero emission by 2035.

ZEV Mandate

A series of flexibilities will be introduced to enable multiple pathways to support manufacturers in the transition, whilst maintaining the existing headline ZEV targets, including:

• Existing borrowing mechanism will be extended out to 2029 with new caps proposed for 2027-2029. All borrowed allowances to be repaid by 2030 at the latest, for both cars and vans.
• Ability to transfer CO2 savings from non-ZEV to ZEVs will be extended to 2029, with caps for both cars and vans. The 2025 and 2026 caps will be increased to provide additional short-term flexibilities, with new caps following the same pathway.
• Introduction of a new bidirectional car-van transfer mechanism, with an exchange rate for ZEV car to ZEV van of 0.4; for ZEV van to ZEV car of 2.
• There will be no new bonus credits at this stage, but the government will consider extending credits to vehicles with ‘vehicle to grid’ charging capabilities in due course.
• The creation of a Utility Factor flexibility, allowing PHEVs to use the current CO2 value for the purpose of Vehicle Emissions Trading Scheme (VETS) compliance, for the duration of the ZEV Mandate.

Other issues

Reduce existing compliance payment levels to £12,000 for every zero emission car manufacturers fall short of the target after all other compliance routes have been followed, and £15,000 for every zero-emission van they fall short of the target, again after all other compliance routes have been followed from 2025. This will be confirmed following engagement with stakeholders.

Regulations will be brought forward to allow UK derived or EU derived WLTP specific emission reference targets to apply from 2021-23 in the UK and in 2024 in Northern Ireland.

So, the Government has decided to stick to the 2030 date for the phasing out of internal combustion engines with a 5-year reprieve for hybrids and ICE vans to 2035.

There is also an exemption of all micro vehicle manufacturers (MVMs), small vehicle manufacturers (SVMs), special purpose and kit vehicles from the requirement to end the sale of pure ICE cars by 2030, however SVMs will need to apply for a bespoke derogation to reduce their emissions across their fleets on the pathway to 2035. After 2035 all new cars and vans must be zero emission.

It now remains to be seen if the Governments plans can be delivered without destroying what is left of UK car manufacturing. Alan Johnson, a senior Nissan executive, has warned MP’s that the UK is "not a competitive place to be building cars" due to high energy costs and other factors. He highlighted that the Sunderland factory "pays more for its electricity than any other Nissan plant in the world". The warning comes just weeks after the manufacturer reduced operations at its Wearside plant, which could be a further blow to the UK automotive sector.

For historic and classic vehicle owners, petrol and diesel will continue to be available for the foreseeable future, however UK refining will have to adjust to meet market demand. The UK will also still require large volumes of jet fuel as there is no viable high-volume alternative as Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) is limited by the availability of waste cooking oil feedstock. The danger is that with high energy costs and anti-fossil fuel policies, that refineries become unprofitable and are shut down and turned into import terminals thus endangering UK security of supply. The future is certainly going to be interesting.

SKILLS – Karl Carter

Classic Vehicle Apprenticeship hits new heights and new facilities too

Where are tomorrow’s classic vehicle engineers going to come from, and how do we keep skills alive? That’s an often asked question and one that the Federation has been answering consistently over the last twelve years.

The result is that now more than 300 apprentices have either graduated from, or are in training, through the Heritage Skills Academy (HSA), which is ensuring that vital skills are passed on, and a new breed of engineers is ready to step forward. HSA is the ‘delivery body’ that provides the teaching to apprentices, alongside their recruitment and employer engagement.

Many readers will be familiar with training delivered to apprentices attending local colleges one day each week. This was a key learning of the original programme. The HSA course is all block release with apprentices attending nine weekly sessions each year for three years. Those nearby can travel each day during their training week but those living and working further away stay in accommodation locally. 16 to 18-year-olds have to stay with a registered family during their week as part of the duty of care for younger apprentices. The major benefit is that block release means the course is available to any classic vehicle business anywhere in the country. It does have the cost of travel and accommodation but that is more than offset by the quality of training delivered when you have the whole group at the training centre for an intensive week.

The Heritage Skills Academy works with over 140 different businesses who wish to develop an apprentice, and they help them find the best candidate, decide which course is appropriate and then have development coaches who monitor the performance of the apprentice, both at the training centre and in the workplace too. The final part of the course is the End Point Assessment which is the test of the apprentice both in the workshop and a review of their written portfolio. Once passed, the apprentice is then qualified as a Heritage Engineering Technician trained to work on vehicles from before WW1 to modern day classics.

In March this year, we were able to celebrate a new milestone and also recognise a new charity that has funded the latest expansion. March 25th saw the official opening of a new workshop in Bicester, just a short drive from Bicester Heritage. Previously used as a bathroom and kitchen showroom and store, the building needed significant work to convert it to a teaching facility. Trustees of The Armiger Foundation had experienced our facilities at Brooklands. The Armiger Foundation was established in memory of Adrian and Hannah Berry to promote the education for the public benefit in the field of classic and historic vehicles, principally by promoting the knowledge and understanding of their maintenance, repair, restoration and operation, and assisting in the provision of apprenticeships. This was a perfect fit for the Trustees, and they agreed to work with the Federation Skills Trust to convert the building which would allow for further growth of the mechanical course. The new facility has been named The Armiger Foundation Heritage Engineering Hub.

Another recent milestone was reaching 200 apprentices in training, which after seven years is a fantastic achievement. The new building will allow that number to increase to 240 and, you’ve guessed it, we will need additional capacity if we are able to increase the numbers still further.

So, what do the apprentices think about the new facility? Well, it does not have the character of Bicester Heritage with historic vehicles being tested, but it is within walking distance of McDonalds, Greggs and Lidl so it gets their approval!

The success so far has been down to the HSA team which has also grown as the numbers increased. However, there is one problem that is not going away, and that is funding.

I mentioned the £26,000 funding band earlier which was awarded seven years ago. That is the total amount to train an apprentice for the whole three years and finance the End Point Assessment (EPA). With 20% of the £26,000 usually needed for the EPA that leaves nearly £7,000 for delivering the nine course weeks each year. Funding by government, past and present remains impacted. Funding bands have not increased; the promise of the Apprentice Levy, which is 0.5% of payroll for businesses over £3m only being spent on training, has been broken and last year £800m, which is 20% of the levy, was given to the Treasury. Allowing for inflation, the award of £26,000 seven years ago should be £35,000 today but it seems unlikely that the new government is going to do anything different. There has to be a fundamental shift in the funding of apprentices by government if it wants to develop the skills that would be needed for further growth, not just within the classic vehicle movement, but anything that needs manual skills. We all hope the current government revi ews the funding bands for apprentices, as it is likely to have a major effect for all sectors and will ultimately limit growth. Just ask a builder if he can get a bricklayer, and we are supposed to be building 1.5 million new homes!