The government is making a mistake in scrapping electric car grants

The upfront costs are still much higher than for petrol alternatives, which means consumers may now turn back to petrol, argues James Moore

With fuel prices rising, more people (in theory) should be buying electirc cars (PA)

As an observer of the British government, one is sometimes left wondering whether there are any lights on at all in Whitehall.

Policymaking currently seems stuck in endless cycles of reports and consultations – to the extent that business groups are left tearing their hair out – with the occasional explosion of activity when Boris Johnson hits on an idea he thinks might make one of his backbench factions hate him a little less.

Trouble is, when, occasionally, the government proves it is capable of acting decisively you usually end up preferring the paralysis. A case in point: the grants that were available to purchasers of electric vehicles (EVs), which have just been pulled out from under motorists by the Department for Transport at the drop of a motorway charging point.