Motorsport UK attended the 2024 Labour Party Conference on 22 September and hosted a fringe event, welcoming MPs, Party members and the industry.  

Hugh Chambers, Motorsport UK CEO, outlined how motorsport can accelerate the future of transport to attendees before being joined by Guy Lachlan from Motor Spirit and the Historic and Classic Vehicles Alliance.  

In an open letter to delegates attending the session the Motorsport UK CEO expanded on how motorsport has a key role in helping the government achieve Net Zero: 

Achieving Net Zero is one of humankind’s key challenges, and it is welcome to see the new Labour Government’s focus on accelerating that goal through its mission-led approach. We, in the motorsport industry, are aware of our responsibility too in evolving the sport towards a zero-carbon future, and working with the new Government to come up with practical solutions to make that goal a reality. 

Motorsport is a British success story, a sport pioneered by the UK and loved today by millions in all corners of the world. Britain is a global technology leader in motorsport which employs over 40,000 people in the UK in 4,500 largely small businesses. Much of the technology that our brilliant British engineers and scientists develop for the sport – such as energy efficiency, carbon fibre materials and all-wheel drive – pave the way for innovation in your next household car. 

Electric vehicles are clearly part of the solution to achieve Net Zero. In our sport, we have showcased the all-electric Formula E from its inception in 2014 and we were thrilled to witness the climax of another nail-biting World Championship season at London’s Excel back in July. The vehicles have come a long way over the last ten years with the series acting as a competitive platform to test and develop the latest in electric technology. 

But EVs are not the only answer, and the transformation cannot happen overnight. If, for example, all road transport in the UK became electric, demand for electricity would increase by 40%, prices would surge and the grid simply would not be able to cope. Instead, we should be focusing on policy that supports investment and innovation in an eclectic mix of opportunities, including sustainable fuels. 

One thing that is key to remember is that the carbon footprint of any product needs to be considered over its entire lifecycle, not just at the point of use. This is where sustainable fuels come in as they enable the existing impact of the current fleet of UK vehicles to be off-set for the remainder of their usable life. As such, sustainable fuel needs to be recognised by government as a key carbon reduction technology. 

That’s the message we took to this week in our first ever visit to Labour Party Conference. We’re keen to showcase to Ministers, MPs and delegates how we can work together to inspire new generations of British engineers and scientists from all walks of life to win the race for Net Zero and deliver a sustainable future for British motorsport.  

Hugh Chambers 

CEO, Motorsport UK