On Thursday (13 November) the Minister for Aviation, Maritime and Decarbonisation Keir Mather saw first-hand how people in Suffolk are benefitting from the government’s Electric Car Grant and saving £3,750 off new electric vehicles during a visit to Ford’s dealership in Ipswich.
Latest industry data shows there has been a 118% increase in enquiries for some eligible models since they were announced as eligible for the grant. This comes off the back of upfront price difference between EVs and petrol and diesel equivalents falling by 13% since last year, and EV sales making up 1 in 4 UK car purchases last month.
The Minister met with customers who saved thousands when buying the new Ford Puma Gen-E thanks to the Government’s £650 million scheme. They are just a handful of the more than 30,000 drivers across the UK who have used the grant to make the switch since its launch in July.
Minister for Aviation, Maritime and Decarbonisation, Minister, Keir Mather said:
“It was brilliant to be in Suffolk and meet drivers who have saved up to £3750 when making the switch to electric thanks to our Electric Car Grant which is cutting costs whilst boosting the UK’s EV industry.
“Our support is also expanding access to EV chargers across the region with more than 1,200 public chargepoints added to local roads in the last year alone, it’s great to see Suffolk embracing the EV revolution.”
The Minister also met with Ford UK representatives including Managing Director Lisa Brankin to discuss how the scheme is backing British business and increasing consumer choice whilst putting money back in people’s pockets.
Chair and Managing Director of Ford UK, Lisa Brankin said:
“I was delighted to have the opportunity to meet with the Minister today to discuss the impact of the Grant and the need to continually build momentum on the EV transition.”
“The Electric Car Grant is making electric vehicles like the Ford Puma Gen-E more accessible to customers. Allied with offers like our Power Promise – offering a free wallbox, an 8-year warranty and 10,000 miles of free charging – and the case to go electric becomes even more compelling.”
The visit comes as the latest data shows Suffolk residents have greater access than ever to public chargepoints thanks to a drive from government to make charging on the go easier and more reliable. In the last year alone 1,278 chargers have been added to the East of England network– a 25% increase on the year. Growth in Ipswich overtook the county average with charger numbers in the town growing by 34% in the same period.
To support Suffolk residents to charge at home, Suffolk council have also secured £200K of investment from a £25m government scheme to expand cross-pavement charging solutions which allows residents without driveways to run discreet charging gullies from their home to cars, accessing cheaper domestic electricity rates.
Minister Mather saw how Suffolk residents without a private driveway are benefitting from the latest at home charging infrastructure solutions. Ipswich local John Taylor installed a gully charger using government support, allowing him to charge his car for as little as 2p per mile.
The discreet cross-pavement charging gullies allow cables to be run from homes to vehicles whilst remaining flush with the pavement, helping drivers charge up using cheaper domestic electricity rates.
Local resident, John Taylor, said:
“I’ve been an EV driver for nearly ten years and was used to relying on workplace chargers, public chargepoints in council car parks and at supermarkets. Having the charge gully has been transformational, allowing me to charge off my solar panels and cheap renewable grid electricity – I’m proof that it is possible for average and low earners to go electric.”
To support wider adoption of these solutions the Government recently announced it will look to cut red tape around home charging installations by consulting on removing planning permission currently needed for those without driveways to install cross pavement charging gullies.
The public charging network is also growing rapidly with more than 100,000 extra chargers being delivered through the £381 million Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund, helping ensure local councils have the funding to rollout more chargepoints needed to meet increasing EV demand.
