The government in the form of chancellor Philip Hammond has today confirmed that as part of the budget it will spend £400m on a national charging network for electric cars.
This pledge further builds on the government’s commitment to encourage the adoption of electric or low-pollution vehicles such as hybrid cars.
In addition the government has pledged £100m to a grant for plug-in-hybrids and £40m for research into creating new technologies for electric car charging.
For those people who own an electric car and have free charging through their company the government has some more good news.
“People who charge their electric vehicles at work will not face a benefit in kind tax,” said the Chancellor.
Last month the government announced a brand-new bill that could actually force petrol and service stations by law to install charging stations for electric and hybrid vehicles.
There are currently only 4,500 charging stations around the UK, the bill would enable this number to increase drastically along with the implementation of roadside charging points in areas where charging at your home is impossible.
The bill’s arrival comes just months after the government finally confirmed that it would be banning the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles by 2040.
While the date set is further away than most other countries, a recent report by Dutch bank ING predicted that by 2035 almost all vehicles sold in Europe will be electricanyway.
In addition to government support, the car industry has already started making commitments to move all its cars over to either electric or hybrid engines.
Volvo confirmed that all its cars would have an electric motor by 2019 while the Volkswagen Group also announced that it would move all 300 of its models over to an electric powertrain by 2030.