Oral Answers to Questions Debate

Full Debate: Read Full Debate
Department: Department for Transport

Oral Answers to Questions

John Pugh Excerpts
Thursday 12th January 2017

(7 years, 10 months ago)

Commons Chamber
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
John Hayes Portrait Mr Hayes
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Indeed. Was it not Ronald Reagan who said that the future does not belong to the fainthearted? We must be big-hearted and far-sighted in respect of electric vehicles, and that does mean more charging points. We will create a regulatory regime sufficient to provide those charging points and, therefore, to assuage the public doubts to which my hon. Friend has drawn the House’s attention.

John Pugh Portrait John Pugh (Southport) (LD)
- Hansard - -

Despite all the inducements, only 3% of new car sales are of electric cars. Should the Minister be doing more to encourage liquefied petroleum gas switching or hydrogen fuel cell cars?

John Hayes Portrait Mr Hayes
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

The hon. Gentleman will know about our Go Ultra Low campaign, which is match funded by industry, and which is designed to encourage the kind of learning he described. We need to persuade people that that switching is desirable. It is partly about charging points, partly about battery reliability and partly about people simply knowing that electric vehicles can be good for them. We will continue that campaign in exactly the spirit he recommends.