The lower house of the Dutch parliament has approved a motion that would ban gasoline and diesel car sales beginning in 2025, reports the NL Times. Only electric vehicles (EVs) could be sold in the Netherlands if the motion is passed into law.
A majority of the Tweede Kamer, or lower house of parliament, approved the motion, which was put forth by the Labour Party. The Minister of Economic Affairs, Henk Kamp, was dismissive of the motion, claiming that just 15% of the Dutch new car market could be made up of EVs in the next 10 years.
Other Dutch parliament leaders think the plan is feasible, however, including Labour Party leader Diederik Samson. Samson acknowledges that the plan is ambitious but also sees that EV technology is improving at a rapid rate.
There is also a precedent for European nations embracing EVs. In 2015, EV and plug-in hybrids accounted for 22.4% of all new car sales in Norway, which has some of the most generous incentives for buyers. This includes free parking, high-occupancy vehicle and bus lane access, as well as exemption from Norway’s high automobile taxes, which can double the purchase price of a conventional car. EV sales continue to rise in Norway, and the Mitsubishi Outlander plug-in hybrid was the best-selling vehicle in the Scandinavian nation last year.
The Netherlands is not far behind Norway in EV adoption either, with EVs and plug-in hybrids accounting for 9.7% of new car sales in 2015. The Netherlands offers incentives of up to $5,700 off the purchase of a plug-in vehicle, as well as exemption from registration fees and road taxes that can be worth another $5,000 over five years.
