Editor's note

The Chancellor of the Exchequer this week unveiled his Autumn Budget, with the headline news for the automotive industry being a £6.9bn investment – which includes £620m of new funding for public chargepoints and zero-emission vehicle grants.

While on the surface it seems like a positive move, just £1.5bn of additional spending will be provided to the sector, as the chancellor is including the £4.2bn that was promised to the industry back in 2019. While more investment is obviously welcome, the figures pale in comparison to commitments made by other leading Western governments, who have seemingly put electrification at the top of their agendas.

The COP26 climate change conference kicks off in Glasgow next month, where these issues will no doubt be discussed by the world’s leaders. The transport industry will undoubtedly come under scrutiny over the course of the event, as the market remains behind schedule on meeting the emissions targets set out over the last five years.

In the magazine this month, we have a feature from Dave Leggett exploring the challenges faced by the industry in its quest to decarbonise. The piece assesses the regulatory barriers around the world while manufacturers jostle for position on this New Frontier. We’ll be keeping a close eye on the developments at the conference, with relevant updates posted to a live blog on our website.

Motor Finance also hosted our first physical event since the pandemic, welcoming delegates and industry professionals to the Westin Grand Hotel in Munich for our 2021 Conference and Awards. It was a fantastic day, with informative talks throughout the day and a befitting evening to suit.

We will have a full write-up of the event in our November edition, so keep an eye out for that. I’d like to say a huge thank you to those who were able to make the trip to Germany and helped to make it such a great event.

Chris Lemmon, editor