Responding to the Government’s annoucement to end the Plug-In Car Grant, Energy UK’s Deputy Director of Policy, Charles Wood said:
“The Plug-in Car Grant (PICG) has helped encourage motorists to switch to Electric Vehicles by levelling the purchase cost with petrol and diesel counterparts – particularly important given that transport is responsible for the biggest proportion of the UK’s carbon emissions. However its immediate removal, instead of the phased withdrawal we have called for before the Zero Emission Vehicle mandate comes into force, threatens to undermine this goal. While schemes obviously need to evolve, the sudden removal of subsidies can have a negative effect on the very markets they are intended to support by damaging investor confidence and creating uncertainty. We’d urge the Government to better coordinate changes to avoid any more cliff-edge outcomes in future.”