DASHBOARD
PLUG-IN CAR GRANT AXED AS FOCUS TURNS TO IMPROVING CHARGING NETWORK • Grant that gave new EV buyers £1,500 discount on cars costing less than £32k ends • Government says it will ‘refocus’ funding on improving charging network • Sudden announcement sends shock waves through the industry • Comes off the back of two large reductions in the scheme last year
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by James Batchelor @JRRBatchelor
he government has axed the plug-in car grant, claiming it has had little effect on the current explosion in new electric car sales. In an out-of-the-blue move that sent shock waves through the industry, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced on June 14 that the scheme – which gave a £1,500 discount on cars costing less than £32,000 – would be immediately closed to new car orders. It comes as full-electric car sales have risen by 70 per cent in the past year. The DfT said the funding would now be ‘refocused’ on the ‘main barriers in the EV transition’, namely public charging. The grant is only ending for cars, however, and doesn’t affect plug-in taxis, small and large trucks and vans, mopeds, motorcycles and wheelchair-accessible vehicles. The DfT reiterated that the plug-in grant for cars was always ‘temporary’, and that despite reductions in the grant offered and the number of cars it covered, [the reductions] ‘have had little effect on rapidly accelerating sales, or on the continuously growing range of models being manufactured’. Electric cars sold by dealers via the scheme two working days before the announcement will still qualify. Transport minister Trudy Harrison said: ‘With billions of both government and industry investment continuing to be pumped into the UK’s electric revolution, the sale of electric vehicles is soaring. We are continuing to lead the way in decarbonising transport, with generous government incentives still in place, while creating high-skilled jobs and cleaner air across the UK.’ The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) was dismissive of the news, though, saying the move gave ‘the wrong message’. 06 | CarDealerMag.co.uk
INDUSTRY TALK
ELECTRIC CAR PRICES NEED TO COME DOWN THE UK’S adoption of electric cars is so far impressive, but in order to make them accessible to everyone we need prices to fall, so we’re disappointed the government has chosen to end the grant at this point. If costs remain too high, the ambition of getting most people into electric cars will be stifled.
Nicholas Lyes Head of policy, RAC
