Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of extending the eligibility criteria for plug-in vehicle grants to private cars.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
There are now over a million battery electric cars registered in the UK, and their sales continue to grow. The Government is targeting its incentives where they have the most impact and deliver the greatest value for money. Plug-in Grants will continue until at least financial year 2024/25 for motorcycles, vans, taxis, trucks and wheelchair accessible vehicles.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he is taking steps to encourage uptake of electronic vehicles among all socioeconomic groups.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government is committed to keeping the transition to electric vehicles (EVs) affordable for all consumers. Plug-in vehicle grants have been in place for over a decade to support the transition to EVs, and remain in place for harder to transition vehicles such as vans.
The uptake of EVs continues to be supported through generous tax incentives. The 2022 Autumn Statement extended favourable benefit in kind tax rates for EVs out to April 2028, and EVs are either exempt or pay minimal Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) until 2025. From 2025, EVs will still have preferential first year rates of VED in comparison to the most polluting vehicles.
To transform the availability of charging for drivers without off-street parking, the Government introduced the £381 million Local EV Infrastructure Fund. This will deliver tens of thousands of local chargepoints, ensuring the transition to EVs takes place in every part of the country. The Government also continues to provide funding for domestic and workplace chargepoints. This includes the recently announced grant for eligible households without off-street parking, to install a cross-pavement charging solution.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with representatives of the electric car manufacturing industry on (a) incentives and (b) infrastructure development to support the decarbonisation of commercial fleets.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
DfT Ministers have regular engagement with individual automotive manufacturers and the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), to discuss the Government’s plans to reduce potential barriers to the adoption of zero emission vehicles.
The Government recognises the challenge of decarbonising car fleets, and the charging requirements of fleets. It has invested significant funding in the rollout of charging infrastructure, including £381m through the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund and the £70m Rapid Charging Fund pilot. The Plug-in Van Grant also remains in place to support the uptake of vans, which can be used to support commercial fleets.
Asked by: Louise Haigh (Labour - Sheffield, Heeley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to page 73 of the Autumn Budget and Spending Review, which policies were identified for receipt of core net zero spend funding from the £1 billion allocated to fund decarbonisation of cars and vans in the financial year 2024-25 at the time that Budget was published; how much funding each of those policies was due to receive; and whether any of those policies have been discontinued since 2021.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The £1 billion allocated to fund the decarbonisation of cars and vans for the financial year 2024-25 in the 2021 Spending Review was allocated to a range of policies across the Department for Transport and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (now the Department for Business and Trade).
For the Department for Transport, HM Treasury allocated £619m for policies relating to zero emission vehicles, electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure and air quality.
This sum was subsequently allocated by the Department to specific policies, including the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund, the Rapid Charging Fund, the Plug-in Vehicle Grants, EV Homecharging Schemes, the Workplace Charging Scheme and the Joint Air Quality Unit’s NO2 programme. All grants are kept under continual review to ensure best value for money for the taxpayer.
The remaining funding (£333m) was allocated for the Department for Business, Energy and Industry Strategy, for the electrification of UK vehicles and their supply chain, including through the Automotive Transformation Fund Programme. This aims to support the creation of an internationally competitive EV supply chain in the UK, through research and development and capital investments.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of changing regulations on the weight of vans during the transition to electric vehicles.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Electric powertrains can make zero emission vans heavier than their petrol or diesel equivalents. To incentivise the uptake of electric vans with a viable payload (weight of goods they can carry), the Department has increased the regulatory weight threshold from 3.5 tonnes to 4.25 tonnes for driver licence and operator licence rules.
The Department has announced plans to further optimise these driver licence rules by removing current conditions for utilising this additional weight allowance. The Government is also reviewing weight thresholds that impact regulations for electric vans in other areas, including roadworthiness testing (MOT) and drivers’ hours rules. Safety is a primary consideration in assessing any changes to regulatory weight thresholds.
Asked by: Paul Girvan (Democratic Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Government plans to provide funding to small hauliers to incentivise the transition to zero emission vehicles.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Government grants have been in place for over a decade to help reduce the up-front purchase price of electric vehicles. Since 2011, the Government has provided over £1.8 billion in grant funding to bring ultra-low emission vehicles onto UK roads, which has supported over 500,000 ULEVs. 355,000 of which are zero emission vehicles.
The Plug-in Van and Truck Grants remain available until at least the financial year 2024/25. Through these grants, customers can secure funds of up to £2,500 for small vans and £5,000 for large vans.
All Plug-in Vehicle grants are kept under continual review to ensure best value for money for the taxpayer.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to encourage the transition to fully electric taxi fleets in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Taxi policy is a devolved matter in all UK nations. However, the UK Government provides Plug in Vehicle Grants to support the transition to zero emission vehicles across the UK. These include a number of harder to transition vehicles including taxis, wheelchair accessible vehicles and vans. The eligibility for these grants is based on the vehicle design and capability. All grants are kept under continual review to ensure the best value for taxpayer's money.
Some local authorities in the devolved administrations may have received money to support chargepoint installation through the Levelling Up Fund, such as in Northern Ireland, which received £3 million towards the upgrade of the electric vehicle charging network.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he is taking steps to incentivise the uptake of four and six-axle electric HGVs.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has already taken steps to support uptake of electric HGVs by increasing their maximum gross weight limit to reduce any payload loss compared to a diesel equivalent. The Road Vehicles (Authorised Weight) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 came into force in July 2023, and there is an associated published impact assessment.
The Department is also in the procurement process for a research project on weights and dimensions of zero emission HGVs. The project will provide an evidence base to inform policy discussions regarding weights and dimensions within the UK. The deadline for bids was on Sunday 19 November.
Since the plug-in van grant was launched in 2012, it has supported over 40,000 electric vans and HGVs across the UK. There are now almost 60 models of electric vans and trucks eligible for grants. These include a wide variety of specifications, such as differing wheelhouses and roof heights, and benefit from lower running costs than internal combustion engine vans.
Finally, to further increase the evidence base on performance of the largest zero emission HGVs, the Department’s £200m zero emission HGV and infrastructure programme will demonstrate zero emission HGVs and their associated charging and fuelling infrastructure at scale on UK roads. The four winning projects will roll out up to 370 zero emission HGVs, around 50 battery electric charging sites and up to 7 hydrogen refuelling stations.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of the impact of battery weights on 4 and 6 axle electric HGVs on the payload they are able to carry to remain within maximum axle weights and gross vehicle weights.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has already taken steps to support uptake of electric HGVs by increasing their maximum gross weight limit to reduce any payload loss compared to a diesel equivalent. The Road Vehicles (Authorised Weight) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 came into force in July 2023, and there is an associated published impact assessment.
The Department is also in the procurement process for a research project on weights and dimensions of zero emission HGVs. The project will provide an evidence base to inform policy discussions regarding weights and dimensions within the UK. The deadline for bids was on Sunday 19 November.
Since the plug-in van grant was launched in 2012, it has supported over 40,000 electric vans and HGVs across the UK. There are now almost 60 models of electric vans and trucks eligible for grants. These include a wide variety of specifications, such as differing wheelhouses and roof heights, and benefit from lower running costs than internal combustion engine vans.
Finally, to further increase the evidence base on performance of the largest zero emission HGVs, the Department’s £200m zero emission HGV and infrastructure programme will demonstrate zero emission HGVs and their associated charging and fuelling infrastructure at scale on UK roads. The four winning projects will roll out up to 370 zero emission HGVs, around 50 battery electric charging sites and up to 7 hydrogen refuelling stations.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of increases in battery weights on the uptake of four and six axle electric heavy goods vehicles.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has already taken steps to support uptake of electric HGVs by increasing their maximum gross weight limit to reduce any payload loss compared to a diesel equivalent. The Road Vehicles (Authorised Weight) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 came into force in July 2023, and there is an associated published impact assessment.
The Department is also in the procurement process for a research project on weights and dimensions of zero emission HGVs. The project will provide an evidence base to inform policy discussions regarding weights and dimensions within the UK. The deadline for bids was on Sunday 19 November.
Since the plug-in van grant was launched in 2012, it has supported over 40,000 electric vans and HGVs across the UK. There are now almost 60 models of electric vans and trucks eligible for grants. These include a wide variety of specifications, such as differing wheelhouses and roof heights, and benefit from lower running costs than internal combustion engine vans.
Finally, to further increase the evidence base on performance of the largest zero emission HGVs, the Department’s £200m zero emission HGV and infrastructure programme will demonstrate zero emission HGVs and their associated charging and fuelling infrastructure at scale on UK roads. The four winning projects will roll out up to 370 zero emission HGVs, around 50 battery electric charging sites and up to 7 hydrogen refuelling stations.