An extra £350m for electrification of UK vehicles
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pledged an extra £350 million of its £1 billion commitment to support the electrification of UK vehicles and their supply chains.
The announcement made today (19th October 2021) was part of the government’s Net Zero Strategy, which it has revealed ahead of the COP26 that will be hosted in Glasgow in November.
Part of a 10 Point Plan, the electrification strategy also includes another £620 million for targeted electric vehicle grants and infrastructure, particularly local on-street residential charge points, with plans to put thousands more zero-emission cars and vans onto UK roads through a zero-emission vehicle mandate.
Prime Minister Johnson said: “With the major climate summit COP26 just around the corner, our strategy sets the example for other countries to build back greener too as we lead the charge towards global net zero.”
Financial support for vehicle grants
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps added: “We’re going further and faster than ever to tackle climate change. Together with an additional £620 million to support vehicle grants and charging infrastructure, our plans for an ambitious zero-emission vehicle mandate show that we’re leading the world on the switch to EVs.”
Tanya Sinclair, Director of Policy UK, Ireland and Nordics, ChargePoint said: “ChargePoint welcomes the government’s bold step towards transport decarbonisation by announcing the introduction of a ZEV mandate today, the first commitment of its type in Europe. We have seen the positive impacts on EV uptake of these schemes in North America, where they have significantly built up availability and consumer confidence of electric vehicles.”
Stellantis' EV-only plant in UK
Paul Willcox, Managing Director, Vauxhall, said: “Vauxhall welcomes the UK government’s announcement to implement a zero-emission vehicle mandate which will provide clarity to the UK motor industry and the rest of the electric vehicle ecosystem, on the basis of a 360-degree approach. Vauxhall believes a ZEV mandate can work in the UK provided there are complimentary targets on the other key parts of the electric vehicle ecosystem which are key to driving Britain to a more sustainable transport infrastructure. With our Ellesmere Port plant set to become the first electric vehicle only factory within the Stellantis group, we look forward to working with the government on the detail of how a ZEV mandate can be implemented and help support a sustainable vehicle marketplace in the UK.”
Image showing the cover of the UK Government's net-zero strategy document, courtesy of gov.uk
