Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what cross-Departmental steps he is taking to help make electric cars more affordable for UK consumers.

We offer a range of measures to support the purchase of electric cars in the UK. The Plug in Car Grant (PiCG) provides up to £2,500 for those making the switch to electric driving. Government also offers generous tax incentives, including favourable company car tax rates confirmed until FY24/25, which can save drivers over £2,000 a year. We have also put in place a tax regime that rewards the cleanest vehicles. Building on the £1.9 billion from Spending Review 2020, the Government has committed an additional £620 million to support the transition to electric vehicles. This will support greater uptake of zero emission vehicles for greener journeys. Electric car drivers also benefit from comparatively cheaper running costs. Once fuel costs and tax incentives are factored in, we expect the total cost of ownership to reach parity during the 2020s, compared to petrol and diesel cars. It costs from 1p per mile to run a new electric vehicle, compared to around 10p per mile for new diesel or petrol vehicles.