BYD, the Chinese electric car giant, first entered the British automobile market. It’s now taking on the traditional London bus makers.
Sources said that the Go-Ahead Group will award a contract for more than 100 double-deckers powered by all-electric technology at a cost of around £400,000 per vehicle — £100,000.000 less than UK competitors. BYD is the first company to win a contract in the UK for EV double-deckers, beating out local competitors like Alexander Dennis.
Transport for London, the London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s body that is ultimately responsible for the public transport system in the capital, has given its blessing to the decision. Khan has promised to use Greater London Authority’s spending power to make the capital “greener and fairer” for all Londoners.
Khan stated that by September 2022 new contracts would be required to require zero-emission delivery and that suppliers must agree to union recognition agreements.
A United Nations Working Group on Human Rights wrote to BYD in 2021 to inform it that “it had received information that [your company] may be involved, through your supply chain, in the alleged forced labor, arbitrary detention, and trafficking… of Uighur (Muslims) and other minor workers”.
BYD has not responded to these allegations. It has not responded to requests for comments on the allegations and its potential London bus award.
Tom Cunnington is the head of TfL’s bus business development. He said: “We were assured by the manufacturer there have been no unethical acts and we would take immediate action if evidence was provided to the contrary.”
BYD is among a group of Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers that have experienced rapid growth. In the last three months of 2023, the company briefly surpassed Tesla as the largest seller of EVs worldwide.
State subsidies allow the company to export vehicles at a much lower price than Western-made equivalents.
Sir Iain Duncan Smith (MP for Chingford, London) and former leader of the Conservative Party, regretted the decision to award BYD the contract to build buses. “We have yet again sent buses to China. What’s the problem with our domestic production? These iconic British London buses are a great example. Why do we not simply look for a company based in Europe, or even in the UK?
Can they guarantee that all parts of the buses, even the final assembly, are free of slavery and forced labour? We must be careful to not encourage the slave labour that is so prevalent in China by placing this order.
Duncan Smith called upon the London Mayor to give public assurances. “His role is to ensure that none of this happens and not to rely on private contractors to do so. He should have defined parameters for full inspections and full declarations in all parts of supply chain.”
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