Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders
Category: Trade Association
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) is the principal trade association for the UKโs automotive sector, existing to promote the interests of the industry โat home and abroad, to government, stakeholders and the mediaโ.
The SMMT says it accepts that air pollution is a serious health risk but has been critical of some schemes to improve local air quality. It argues that the newest, cleanest diesel vehicle models should not be โdiscriminated againstโ and that โanti-diesel rhetoricโ is counter-productive.
Its members include more than 800 UK automotive companies, including Volkswagen Group, Nissan, Jaguar Land Rover and Toyota, as well as other trade associations such as the Road Haulage Association and the Freight Transport Association, according to its website.
The organisation provides a range of services to its members, such as certification and training, as well as the Motor Vehicle Registration Information System, a database of new vehicle registrations in the UK that it maintains. It also runs a number of conferences and seminars through the year.
Its Chief Executive Mike Hawes has described the SMMT as โone of the most influential trade associations in the UK, as well as one of the oldestโ.
Based in Westminster, โin the local [sic] of Parliament and major government departmentsโ, the SMMT describes itself as being โheavily involved in political lobbying on behalf of the industry to ensure this vital sector of the economy is effectively represented to governmentโ.
It has a large Public Policy and Vehicle Legislation department, which lobbies policymakers on a range of issues. According to its website, the department works to forge โclose links with Ministers and civil servants, especially in HM Treasury, the Department for Transport (DfT), Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS)โ and โmeets with European decision makers and other key stakeholders in the public policy and industry arenasโ.
The SMMT is also an โassociated organisationโ of the main EU-focused automotive trade association, the European Automobile Manufacturers Association.
All-Party Parliamentary Motor Group
As part of its lobbying activities, the SMMT runs the All-Party Parliamentary Motor Group in parliament.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) exists to โdebate current and future issues of strategic importance to the UKโs automotive industry, motorsport industry and vehicle users, focusing on the role of the motor vehicle, including the environmental impactโ. It also aims to โpromote dialogue between politicians, these industries, users and other stakeholders.โ
The group organised a briefing in parliament on vehicle emissions in 2016, in the wake of the โDieselgateโ scandal, in which it highlighted progress made by the industry, stating that the โlatest diesel cars are the cleanest in historyโ, and claiming NOx emissions had been reduced โby 84% since 2000โ.
It is currently chaired by the Labour MP for Warwick and Leamington Matt Western. Others with named positions include fellow Labour politicians Jack Dromey, Justin Madders, Sharon Hodgson and Lord Hain; Conservative politicians Greg Clark, Andrew Griffith, Julian Knight and Baroness McIntosh; and Liberal Democrat peer Lord Fox.
Funding
Around a quarter of the SMMTโs funding comes from membership subscriptions, the levels of which are based on membersโ turnover, according to its latest annual report.
In 2018, the organisation had a budget of ยฃ21,165,000, and holds net assets of ยฃ33,790,000.
Air Pollution Lobbying
On its website, the SMMT states that the car industry has an โimportant role in improving air quality and protecting the health and wellbeing of the populationโ.
In its 2019 โAutomotive Sustainability Reportโ, it notes the progress made in developing low emission technology, claiming that โNO2 and particulate matter (PM) from road transportโ have both reduced by 76% since 1990.
It also said that since road transport was โthe single highest contributor to UK NO2 overall emissionsโ, the industry โrecognises the need for continued improvementโ.
A 2014 report by the SMMTโs All-Party Parliamentary Motor Group noted that air pollution โposes a serious risk to healthโ and stressed: โaction to address immediate air quality concerns should be a top priority for policy makers, particularly where the UK is in breach of EU air quality limitsโ.
It also said the uptake of Ultra Low Emission Vehicles (ULEV) should be promoted and โpolicies to reduce emissions from other vehicle types such as buses, taxis and trucksโ should be put in place.
In its submission to a 2017 inquiry into the governmentโs framework on Clean Air Zones (CAZ) by parliamentโs Environment, Food and Rural Affairs select committee, the SMMT said it had โsupported governmentโs approach to a Clean Air Zone Framework which puts forward consistently applied requirementsโ.
It recommended that the government โplay a leading role in setting a framework that promotes a consistent national approach but allows local authorities to implement solutions suitable for local needsโ.
However, it said there should be โsufficient timing for industry, consumers, vehicle users and businesses to adjust to implementation requirements of Clean Air Zonesโ.
It also welcomed the โfocus on non-charging elements within governmentโs planโ and said alternative measures should be explored, including โinvestment in roads and improvements to road designโ.
Since then, the SMMT has made a number of criticisms of CAZs, holding them partly responsible for a decline in UK car sales. It has argued that โconfusing messages on clean air zones have taken their toll on buyer confidenceโ, compounding political and economic uncertainty. Chief Executive Mike Hawes has said this has not been helped by the โpatchwork decision-making at local government levelโ.
In a statement to DeSmog, the SMMTโs Chief Executive Mike Hawes said it was committed to pursuing โa zero emission futureโ for its members but argued that some of the government’s current policies were not the right way to achieve this goal.
โGetting to zero is about market transformation, and a sustainable transition that supports consumers and businesses on the journey will require the full range of powertrains. Proposed blanket bans or penalties, which donโt distinguish between the latest vehicles and decades-old technologies, will cause confusion and undermine fleet renewal, which has already stalled during the coronavirus crisis.
โInstead, whatโs needed is a clear and consistent national approach to clean air policies, which gives consumers and commercial fleet operators confidence to upgrade to the latest, cleanest vehicles that best suit their needs – alongside improvements to traffic flow and investment in the charging networkโ, he said.
Diesel Vehicles
In February 2020, the SMMT criticised the government for its proposed 2035 phase-out date for new petrol, diesel and hybrid cars, saying it had โseemingly moved the goalposts for consumers and industryโ. In a statement, it claimed the move would โdestroy value todayโ without a credible plan.
Along with carmakers including BMW, Ford, Honda, Jaguar Land Rover and McLaren, it argued against a ban on new internal combustion engine vehicles being brought forward from 2040 to 2030, in submissions to the government seen by the Guardian.
Pointing to its own modelling, the SMMT claimed a 2030 ban would cause UK car sales to drop from 2.3 million in 2025 to only about 800,000 in that year. A 2035 ban would reduce UK car sales to about 1.2m in that year, it claimed, compared with more than 2 million if a 2040 deadline was allowed.
In 2017, when the proposed target was 2040, the SMMT warned that the sector could be undermined if it did not have enough time to adjust. It said: โOutright bans risk undermining the current market for new cars and our sectorโ.
The SMMT argued that diesel cars have an โimportant role to play in addressing climate changeโ in its 2019 Sustainability Report. The organisation has previously condemned what it calls an โanti-diesel agendaโ, claiming that around half of the rise in average carbon dioxide emissions for new cars sold in the UK was attributable to the decline in diesel demand.
Research on carsโ โreal-worldโ emissions published by the International Council on Clean Transportation in 2018 found that even the latest Euro 6 diesel vehicles had significantly higher NOx emissions than petrol equivalents and exceeded emissions limits.
The SMMT argued in a September 2019 report that commercial vehicle operators should โhave access to a range of new and existing technologies including diesel, hydrogen and natural gas methaneโ.
In 2017, the SMMT criticised the โbacklash against cleaner, low emission dieselsโ and said the government should โcreate the right policies and incentives to encourage all low emission vehicles irrespective of fuel typeโ.
In its submission to a parliamentary select committee inquiry into the governmentโs Clean Air Zone Framework, it said CAZs should be โtechnology neutralโ, defending the role that the latest diesel vehicle models could play in providing โsignificant emission reductionsโ. It argued that the government should โavoid an approach that discriminates againstโ the latest Euro 6 emissions standards.
Tests commissioned in 2018 by the consumer group Which? found that many new diesel models exceed the legal limits for NOx under these standards. The SMMTโs Chief Executive rejected the โnon-officialโ findings and said only the official EU tests could โaccurately compare models on a like-for-like basisโ.
It has also said that โanti-diesel rhetoricโ is counter-productive, arguing that it leads to diesel vehicle owners keeping older, more polluting cars on the road for longer.
Hybrid Vehicles
Responding to the proposed 2035 ban on new petrol, diesel and hybrid cars in February 2020, the SMMT argued that hybrid cars were โessential to deliver air quality and climate change goals nowโ.
In 2018, it criticised the government for its plans to abolish grants for plug-in hybrids, which contain both a petrol or diesel engine and an electric motor.
Hybrids have been criticised by campaigners because their emissions savings can be quickly negated by driving in petrol or diesel mode, while โextended-rangeโ electric vehicles can arguably offer the same benefits in terms of mileage.
Electric Vehicles
The SMMT has publicly voiced support for electric vehicles, calling on the government to provide a โworld-class package of incentives and infrastructure so the UK can be fit for an electrified futureโ.
Ahead of the 2020 Budget, it asked the Chancellor to remove VAT for electric vehicles to boost sales and previously expressed concern about the future of government grants for EVs when this was in doubt.
In a September 2019 report setting out its priorities, it urged the government to โsustain and enhanceโ its industrial strategy to further the โtransition to ULEVs [Ultra Low Emission Vehicles] and the development of battery technologyโ.
However, it has also cast doubt on the level of demand for EVs, which it says are responsible for โjust a fraction of salesโ.
Key Arguments in Order of Prominence
- CAZs are leading to a โpatchworkโ of different measures across the country, causing confusion
- The CAZ policy has contributed to a decline in UK car sales by giving out confusing messages and damaging consumer confidence
- Anti-diesel rhetoric is counter-productive because it leads to diesel vehicle owners keeping older, more polluting cars on the road for longer
- Other measures should be explored before charging zones are introduced, such as better road design
- The latest, cleanest diesel models can play a key role in reducing air pollution
- Anti-diesel rhetoric has caused average CO2 emissions of new cars to rise because of a consumer switch to petrol
- Individuals and businesses need more time to adjust to CAZ schemes
Areas Active
Bristol: the SMMT has strongly opposed a planned ban on diesel cars in the city centre, which it has called โdraconianโ. In October 2019, it argued the proposal failed to โdistinguish between modern vehicles and decades-old technologiesโ. It also said it would cause confusion and be counter-productive by discouraging people from upgrading to the latest Euro 6 diesel models.
London: in its response to a consultation on strengthening the emissions standards of the cityโs existing Low Emission Zone (LEZ) and expanding the cityโs Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), the SMMT said it supported the requirement for heavy vehicles to meet the Euro 6 standard but said it wanted to see a โflexible approach to enforcementโ for operators planning to upgrade their vehicles. It also said a cost-benefit analysis should be published and called for โadditional measuresโ to support the uptake of ULEVs.
Key Actions
Associated Politicians
Labour
- Matt Western
- Jack Dromey
- Justin Madders
- Sharon Hodgson
- Lord Hain
- Fabian Hamilton
- Karin Smyth
- Ian Lucas
Conservative
- Greg Clark
- Andrew Griffith
- Julian Knight
- Baroness McIntosh
- Lord Astor
- Heather Wheeler
- Victoria Prentis
- Nigel Adams
- Maria Caulfield
- Sir Graham Brady
- Nigel Evans
- Mark Prisk
Scottish National Party
Liberal Democrat
Related Organisations
Social Media
- @SMMT on Twitter.