The Science & Technology Committee also said that Government’s decarbonisation plans lack detail about how significant challenges facing its targets will be overcome, including the ambition to end sales of new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030.

It warned that faster deployment of infrastructure for electric vehicle charging is needed to deliver around 325,000 charging points by 2032, including rapid chargers in towns and on strategic roads.

Government should support councils to develop and implement strategies for the roll out of public charge points, it added, and “suitable options must be provided for those without dedicated parking spaces or driveways”.

In the longer term wireless charging should be developed and evaluated for transport applications, it also said. In addition, the user experience of charge points should be simplified such as through the standardisation of technology and payment methods as soon as possible.

The UK’s current trajectory of battery manufacture is also insufficient to support the automotive industry’s transition to electric vehicles, the report said. Major expansion of production capacity is needed alongside training and upskilling efforts.

The report also warned that decarbonisation of the railways is being held back by major delays in the electrification programme, which must be accelerated, and pointed out that technological solutions for decarbonising shipping and aviation are far from ready.

Commenting on the report, the Science & Technology Committee chair Lord Patel said: “The Committee found that the Government’s ambition to reach net zero emissions is not matched by its actions. The Government must align its actions and rhetoric in order to take advantage of the great opportunity presented by batteries and fuel cells for UK research and manufacturing.”

A Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy spokesman said an electric vehicle infrastructure strategy will be published later this year, setting out a plan for charging infrastructure roll out ahead of 2030. He added that Government and industry have supported the installation of almost 25,000 publicly available charging devices including more than 4500 rapid devices, one of the largest networks in Europe.

Meanwhile, the Competition & Markets Authority says further action is needed to deliver more electric vehicle chargers, forecasting that the number of charge points currently available in the UK (25,000) needs to grow by more than 10 times by the end of the decade. It adds that access to chargers is something of a postcode lottery, with the number available per head of the population in Yorkshire and the Humber a quarter of that in London.

The Authority has also launched an investigation into the supply of electric vehicle charge points on or near motorways following long term exclusive arrangements entered into by two providers of equipment and three service area operators.

In a further zero emission vehicles report published today, the Transport Select Committee calls on the Government to work with National Grid to map coverage of electric chargers across the country. This would help to eradicate so called ‘not spot’ areas and to identify locations where the Grid may not be able to cope with additional usage.

(Photograph: Amani A - Shutterstock)

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