Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of hybrid vehicles in improving air quality.

Air pollution has reduced significantly since 2010. Emissions of nitrogen oxides have fallen by 45 per cent and fine particulate matter PM2.5 by 10 per cent.

The same regulated air pollution standards apply to hybrid vehicles as to conventional vehicles. Hybrid vehicles may have lower exhaust emissions while operating in electric mode. However, there is limited evidence regarding the difference in total emissions from hybrid vehicles versus non-hybrid equivalents. The National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory provides public information on the latest emissions factors for road vehicles, which is available online at: https://naei.beis.gov.uk/data/ef-transport.