Can Europe get up to speed? Turbulent switch to electric vehicles

The Debate

Can Europe compete? Part of the answer is on display in Hall 5 of the Paris Motor Show, which opened its doors to the public on Tuesday. Chinese maker BYD is signalling its play for the French market with affordable – albeit subsidised – fully electric models. We ask about EU pushback against those subsidies, and how the homegrown competition is faring.

Governments invested massively in the switch away from gas guzzlers, in what seemed like a masterstroke for a continent in need of both tackling climate change and a fresh start coming out of the pandemic. But now, public money is running dry. The most glaring example: France has been forced to slash its subsidy to EV buyers. We will ask if a burgeoning electric vehicle market could cave.

As we recently saw when looking at the US presidential race, we see how here too the green transition has become a battleground in bitter culture wars. So where's the middle of the road?