Electric Vehicles: Charging Infrastructure
(Windsor) (Con)
10. What steps his Department is taking to support the roll-out of
charging infrastructure for electric vehicles. [901499]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport
()
As the Chancellor announced yesterday, the Government are
providing an additional £500 million over the next five years to
support the roll-out of a fast charging network for electric
vehicles, ensuring that drivers will never be further than 30
miles from a rapid charging station.
I thank the Minister for that answer. I commend the Government on
the progress that has been made on charging infrastructure over
the last decade, from dozens to hundreds and now thousands of
charging points; that challenge is being well met. My concern is
that, even with the current grants, the purchase price of
electric vehicles is still out of reach for most people on lower
incomes. Does she agree that, if we are to see more electric
vehicle use in the years to come, the purchase price of electric
vehicles is equally as important as the availability of charging
infrastructure?
I thank my hon. Friend for his remarks about the Government’s
support. It is right that the Government are committed to
supporting the up-front cost of an electric vehicle. That is why
I am pleased that, at yesterday’s Budget, a further £532 million
of funding was announced to keep the plug-in vehicle grant for
another three years. He will know that those with fully electric
cars will pay no company car tax this year, and vehicle excise
duty for all electric vehicles in all price brackets has been
abolished.
(Cambridge) (Lab)
The extension of the plug-in taxi grant until 2022-23 is welcome.
That works for bespoke vehicles, but what about cities such as
Cambridge, where the city council rightly expects higher
standards, but for hard-pressed drivers, the cost of the vehicles
is prohibitive, as the hon. Member for Windsor () said? What are the Government
doing to help them?
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question and for what is
happening in Cambridge. He will know that a range of support is
available for all vehicles, including taxis that want to upgrade
to electric vehicles, and the Government are committed to
continuing the funding for those grants.
(Wellingborough) (Con)
I wonder whether the Minister could help me with the next vehicle
I should buy. I used to drive a petrol car, then Dave persuaded
us all to go green, so I bought a biofuel car, which was
destroying the planet, so they said, “Buy a diesel car because it
emits less CO2,” so I bought a diesel car, and now I am poisoning
people. An electric vehicle might be the solution, though it
might be terrible because of the batteries, but I live in a flat
both here in Westminster and in my constituency, so an electric
car is not the answer. Is it a diesel car with AdBlue? Help me!
I am delighted to assist my hon. Friend. I encourage him to think
about purchasing an electric vehicle. The answer is to ensure
that there are charging points at his block of flats and across
the country. In fact, the Government have doubled the funding
available to local authorities to install charging points for
electric vehicles on-street, to £10 million. I am sure that that
will assist him.
Mr Speaker
Or he could get roller-skates!
