Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department had discussions with the Office for Product Security and Safety prior to drawing up the Electric Vehicles (Smart Charge Points) Regulations 2021.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Electric Vehicles (Smart Charge Points) Regulations 2021 were jointly developed by DfT and BEIS policy officials who worked closely with the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) in their development.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of (a) the costs of compliance with and (b) the wider impact of the Electric Vehicles (Smart Charge Points) Regulations 2021 on the electric vehicle charging industry.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Electric Vehicles (Smart Charge Points) Regulations 2021 are estimated to have a net economic benefit of up to £1.1bn (with a central estimate of £500m) by reducing the need for expensive electricity system infrastructure. This is expected to translate into lower energy bills for all consumers and support the uptake of electric vehicles by facilitating their integration into the electricity system at least cost.
An Impact Assessment was published alongside the Regulations that includes a detailed assessment of the costs and benefits that were considered in developing the regulations: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1015290/electric-vehicles-smart-charge-points-regulations-2021-impact-assessment.pdf
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on mitigating the effect of rising energy prices on drivers of electric vehicles.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
I have various and ongoing discussions about the Government’s policy for supporting the transition to electric and zero emission driving with my Ministerial colleagues.
The Government will continue to work with the energy sector to identify options to mitigate the impact of high energy prices on consumers, including in respect of the transition to electric vehicles. The Government is considering what reforms are needed to retail market regulation to support progress to net zero through the 2020s. In considering these reforms, we will take account of the lessons of the current market.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the impact of rising energy prices on the cost of charging an electric vehicle.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
I have various and ongoing discussions about the Government’s policy for supporting the transition to electric and zero emission driving with my Ministerial colleagues.
The Government will continue to work with the energy sector to identify options to mitigate the impact of high energy prices on consumers, including in respect of the transition to electric vehicles. The Government is considering what reforms are needed to retail market regulation to support progress to net zero through the 2020s. In considering these reforms, we will take account of the lessons of the current market.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support his Department is providing to manufacturers of electric vehicle chargers to meet the recent change in regulations that requires all new home chargers to be smart.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
In 2021, Government passed regulations to mandate that private chargepoints sold in Great Britain must be smart and meet minimum device standards. The new regulations will drive the uptake of smart charging, to enable the transition to electric vehicles whilst minimising cost to consumers. The majority of these new requirements apply from 30 June 2022.
Government officials worked closely with the charge point industry to develop the regulations, and we are continuing this engagement in collaboration with the enforcement body to address any concerns or queries manufacturers may have.
We will also shortly publish a guidance document for the regulations, to assist charge point sellers, including manufacturers, in complying with these new obligations.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many hydrogen depots were built for commercial vehicle use in 2021.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The UK is well placed to lead on hydrogen powered transport, and we have supported the use of hydrogen cars, vans, buses and lorries through our £23m Hydrogen for Transport programme. As of December 2021, there are fourteen publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling stations across the UK, two of which were opened in 2021 providing hydrogen for road vehicles, serving a fleet of just over 350 hydrogen vehicles (buses, cars, vans, refuse collection trucks) operating on UK roads. Additional refuelling infrastructure will be included as part of our plans to demonstrate at scale hydrogen fuel cell trucks on UK roads.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many public electric vehicle charge points were installed in 2021 compared to 2020.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
As of the 01 January 2021, there were 20,775 public electric vehicle charge points installed in the UK, an increase of 4,270 compared with 01 January 2020.
Additionally, the most recently published statistics show that as of the 01 January 2022, there were 28,375 public electric vehicle charge points installed, an increase of 7,600 compared with 01 January 2021.