Sir Richard Branson: Ditch diesel for electric cars before 2040

Sir Richard Branson says plans to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles from 2040 need to be brought forward.

The Virgin founder funds a team in Formula E, the motorsport which is pioneering new technologies for electric cars.

He says the deadline should be brought forward to 2025, in line with some other European countries.

Roads minister Jesse Norman says 2040 is a “sensible compromise”.

Newsbeat has spent the last seven months following Formula E, the competition where electric cars reach 140mph racing on streets around the world.

We’ve followed DS Virgin Racing, the team owned by Sir Richard, who says that “every month the technology is getting better and better”.

“The teams want to be the best out there, so they’re pushing for improvements in battery technology.

“That will mean that when more cars are driving on batteries, they’ll be able to go hopefully a few hundred miles rather than maybe 150 or 200.”

Read more: BBC

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