What actions are people taking to reduce CO2 emissions?

Ian Jutson: We’ve had CO2 caps on our cars for a number of years and in the past six months we’ve reduced them even further.

We have a cap of 100g/km, 110g/km and 120g/km for small, medium and large vehicles respectively.

There was some resistance at first because drivers thought it would restrict choice, but overall, because technology is improving, it hasn’t.

Our average CO2 has reduced from the mid-140s five years ago to about 109g/km for new deliveries.

Peter Spiller: We average 130g/km across the fleet, but we don’t include commercials.

We’re trying to drive this downward trend as we have to report it in the same way all government departments do.

It’s not the primary driver, however: the vehicle has to be fit-for-purpose, and that’s our number one priority. The problem we face is that some of the most fuel-efficient vehicles are the premium brands.

Clive Buhagiar: If you look at wholelife costs, they’re the ones to go for financially. But having a fleet of BMWs, Audis or Mercedes-Benz models, or any premium brand, doesn’t look too great for a public sector organisation.

Isn’t the issue of running premium brands something that the Environment Agency has had to deal with?

Ian Jutson: Three years ago, when the spending review was underway, questions were asked in Parliament about why the Environment Agency was using BMWs and Audis.

The decision was taken that there wouldn’t be any premium vehicles on the fleet.

Georgina Smith: We’ve got a CO2 cap, but I’ve found it’s just one more thing that pushes people into grey fleet. They’re paying low benefit-in-kind tax, but they don’t want the car.

Ian Jutson: We don’t have that problem, because we also have usage caps on our grey fleet. It’s capped at 3,000 miles per annum and 75 miles per trip. That’s how we get them into the travel hierarchy.

Has anybody looked at alternative powertrains, either hybrid or electric vehicles to reduce their impact on the environment?

Peter Bonney, fleet controller, The Salvation Army: Our people have a hybrid choice and a lot of them go for it because it saves them tax. However, nobody’s even thought of asking for a plug-in vehicle.

Ian Jutson: We’ve used hybrids and fully-electric vehicles, and we’re currently trialling the Nissan Leaf.

We’re also looking at the new Nissan van, which may be able to satisfy some of our commercial needs. It’s important that we look carefully at the technology available and assess whether it can do a job for us.