Asked by: Karen Lumley (Conservative - Redditch)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans he has to encourage car manufacturers to manufacture cars powered by road fuel gases for the UK market.
Answered by Michael Fallon
We want the UK to be at the forefront of the design, development, manufacture and use of low emission vehicles, delivering economic growth opportunities and contributing to the decarbonisation of road transport.
As part of the Automotive Industrial Strategy, Government and industry will invest around £1 billion over the next 10 years in an Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) to research, develop and commercialise the next generation of low carbon technologies. The APC is technology neutral, so can support new road fuel gas technologies if they offer significant low carbon advantages. This investment will secure up to 30,000 jobs. The Government will allocate £100 million for ULEV-specific research and development for the period 2015-2020 as part of the £500m OLEV package. This represents an increase of over 20% in support from the previous package (which was £82m over the period 2010 – 2015).
We have also allocated £4m to ensure the UK has the gas refuelling facilities HGVs need to support our freight and logistics operators in their efforts to reduce the environmental impact of their business.