Industry reacts to government’s electric vehicle mandate

The Department for Transport has committed nearly £400 million to accelerate electric vehicle charging infrastructure rollout across England.

The measures will support the shift to electric vehicles (EVs), as well as the production of sustainable aviation fuel in the UK – continuing the country’s transition towards net zero.

The government has today launched the £381 million Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund alongside an additional £15 million for the On-Street Residential Charging Scheme (ORCS). Taken together, the funding will support the installation of tens of thousands of new chargers across the country, increasing EV infrastructure in every area and ensuring the UK’s charging network can support the increasing number of EV drivers and those considering the switch.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said: “Transport is one of the most important sectors for achieving net zero by 2050 and so we must accelerate our efforts to decarbonise how people get from A to B while growing our economy and supporting thousands of green jobs.

“From expanding our charging network to boosting the production of cleaner aviation fuel, today’s announcement is a great stride forwards, offering people more choice on how to stay connected while delivering the carbon reductions needed to achieve net zero.”

The government has also unveiled its proposals for a zero emission vehicle mandate which, from next year, will set minimum annual targets for the percentage of new car and van sales that must be zero emission.

The plans support the government’s commitment to end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030, and from 2035 all new cars and vans must be fully zero emission at the exhaust. Between 2030 and 2034, all new vehicles must be either fully zero emission or be able to drive a significant distance with zero emissions.

The final proposals are being jointly consulted upon by the UK government, alongside Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and are the single largest carbon saving measure identified in the government’s Net Zero Strategy.

The new measures will aim to support the wide range of manufacturers in the sector by giving them flexibility through a credits-based trading system, enabling them to bank credits in years when they exceed annual targets for use in future years or trade them with other manufacturers that have fallen short. If manufacturers do not meet their yearly targets, they could face possible fines of up to £18,000 for every vehicle they miss their target by.

Technology and Decarbonisation Minister Jesse Norman said: “As today’s announcements show, the government is doing more than ever to help the UK move away from petrol and diesel and towards electric vehicles.

“That means investing in charging infrastructure and giving a clear direction to manufacturers, so they can roll out new electric vehicles faster and more efficiently. Overall, the UK is leading the way in decarbonising transport, a sector that is one of the biggest contributors to greenhouse gases.”

Industry reaction

Chris Pateman-Jones, CEO of Connected Kerb,

said: “It is clear the impact that local authorities have on delivering charging infrastructure at scale. The launch of the LEVI Capital Fund will kick-start even more partnerships between charging networks, like Connected Kerb, and local authorities around the country, enabling investments to go even further.

“Accessibility, reliability, and convenience are three crucial elements to a successful nationwide charging network, particularly for those unable to charge at home. The LEVI Fund will allow local authorities all over the country to deliver on ambitious net zero targets and accelerate us towards every UK resident living within a few minutes walk from a charging point. At Connected Kerb, we are continuing to deliver infrastructure at scale, and we hope the LEVI Capital Fund will give local authorities the confidence they need to deliver thousands of charge points, not hundreds.”

Matt Adams, Transport Policy Manager at the REA (Association for Renewable Energy and Clean Technology) said: “It is pleasing to see the Government reaffirm its commitment to the much-needed ZEV sales targets for ZEV cars in the UK as well as the extra ambition laid out today for zero emissions vans as the next logical step in the UK’s journey to decarbonising road transport. The REA has repeatedly engaged with Government since the publication of their previous ZEV Mandate consultation to ensure it is ambitious, and we are delighted to see its ambition remains through the strong sales targets for cars and vans set out today.

“Although concerns remain that the borrowing mechanisms detailed in the ZEV Mandate consultation could see a short fall on the Government’s targets in the next three years, we are keen to understand more and are pleased with the ambition and strong sales targets that enable new cars and vans to be fully zero emissions by 2035.”

“Government has overall reaffirmed its commitment to Electric Vehicles and EV charging, which is welcome, and the REA is now continuing to urge the Government to implement further supportive policies, to make the energy transition a reality.”

Jon Lawes, Managing Director of Novuna Vehicle Solutions commented: “Today’s confirmation that the Government is committed to introducing a Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Mandate next year, accompanied with its reaffirmed commitment to cease the sale of new ICE vehicles by 2030 provides welcome clarity for the sector.

“Coupled with the Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) funding announcement, we hope the formalisation of the ZEV Mandate will be the catalyst to accelerate investment required to deliver the rollout of sufficient public charge points across the UK which is failing to keep pace with EV adoption.”

“As EV registrations grow at an exponential rate, we cannot overlook the fact that the UK is significantly under-delivering on EV infrastructure and that there is urgently more work to be done on the road to net zero.”

Melanie Shufflebotham, COO of leading EV charging app Zap-Map, said: “The Government rightly recognises that EV drivers need to feel just as confident using a public chargepoint as when they used to fill up at a petrol station, so any move to simplify charging will be warmly welcomed.

“Mandates on payment methods, payment roaming, open data, pricing transparency and reliability will all provide a big boost to public confidence and encourage even more people to make the switch to cleaner and greener transport.”