Fact check: why Rowan Atkinson is wrong about electric vehicles

Last week we ran a piece by Rowan Atkinson casting doubt on the environmental benefits of electric vehicles. Here Simon Evans of Carbon Brief offers his response

In a widely shared comment piece for the Guardian, comedian Rowan Atkinson said he felt duped" by the green claims about electric vehicles (EVs).

In support of his contention, however, Atkinson repeats a series of repeatedly debunked talking points, often used by those seeking to delay action on the climate crisis.

He says EV batteries only last about 10 years". Yet most modern lithium-ion units are likely to last the lifetime of the car", according to Autocar. Tesla's batteries are designed to outlast the vehicle".

He complains that new cars are only kept for three years before being sold. Yet he does not reference the secondhand market, and the fact that British people are keeping their cars for longer than ever.

He claims that it is better to keep running old petrol cars than to replace them with EVs. Yet a new EV would start benefiting the climate in less than four years, relative to an old combustion engine.

He claims that lithium-ion batteries contain rare earth elements. They do not.