Government pledges £60m to double number of charging points for electric cars

Opposition MSPs said the fund would fall short of delivering the required number of charge points.

The Scottish Government has pledged £60 million to double the number of charging points for electric vehicles (John Walton/PA) (PA Archive)

The Scottish Government hopes to double the number of public electric vehicle (EV) charging points in the next few years with a new £60 million fund.

However, opposition MSPs say it will fall short of delivering the 4,000 new charging points needed annually in order to meet growing demand for EVs.

Speaking in the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday, Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said half of the money would come from the private sector.

He said the ChargePlace Scotland network currently provided 2,100 public charging points around Scotland, the largest such network in the UK outside of London.

EVs made up more than 20% of new car sales in December (John Walton/PA) (PA Archive)

In addition, he said the Government had supported more than 14,000 charge points installed in people’s homes and 1,400 in businesses.

In December, electric cars made up 21.4% of all new car sales.

Mr Matheson said: “By 2030 we might expect there to be between 500,000 and one million electric vehicles and from then it will not be possible to buy a new petrol or diesel car or van.”

Announcing the new fund, he said: “We can anticipate this investment doubling the size of Scotland’s existing network of charging points over the next few years.

“This new fund will draw in and smooth commercial investment so that the future charging network is there to work for everyone.”

The fund would ensure charging points were installed in remote and deprived areas, he said.

In July last year, a report from Transport Scotland said an estimated 30,000 charge points would be needed by 2030 as demand for plug-in vehicles increases.

Liam Kerr said 4,000 charge points a year would be needed (Fraser Bremner) (PA Wire)

Scottish Conservative MSP, Liam Kerr, mentioned this report, saying: “That means we need to be installing around 4000 a year.

“But despite the fact that I stood here in September and made exactly this point, all we have here is an intention to double the network over the next few years.”

Scottish Labour MSP, Colin Smith, said some guidance had suggested a ratio of one public charge point per 10 EVs, meaning between 50,000 and 100,000 could be needed by 2030.

He said: “Does the Cabinet Secretary accept that today’s announcement won’t deliver 30,000, never mind 50,000, of those public charging points?”

Mr Matheson acknowledged that meeting the demand would be “a significant challenge because it’s a significant piece of infrastructure that needs to be put in place”.

Seeking to double the current number showed the scale of the Government’s ambition, he said.