The mandate will also apply to new office blocks and retail sites and could result in the installation of up to 145,000 extra chargers across England each year, the Government claims.

Developments undergoing large scale renovations which leave them with over 10 parking spaces will also be required to put in place electric vehicle charging facilities.

Boris Johnson announced the measures at the CBI’s conference on Monday following a public consultation process. Government’s response to the consultation states: “We believe these new measures are a vital step towards decarbonising England’s transport system and will pave the way for the mass transition to zero emission vehicles.”

Industry response has been mixed. Centre for London head of data and insight Nicolas Bosetti said: “If car parking spaces have to be built, then making sure that electric vehicles can charge while they park makes sense.

“But electric vehicles won’t solve our congestion problem,” he added. “An EV traffic jam is still a traffic jam. We should avoid building car parking spaces in new developments where possible and instead improve the availability of bus, tube and rail options, as well as access to bike and scooter hire.”

Law firm TLT’s head of clean energy and real estate Maria Connolly described the announcement as a “game changer” for electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

“It’s hugely positive to see the Government grasp the need for significant action on the climate and use the policy tools at its disposal to force a market wide change that will drastically increase the number of charging points available and go a long way to eliminating any lingering doubts consumers may have over the accessibility of charging infrastructure for EVs,” she said.

However housing developers have criticised the move. The National Federation of Builders raised concerns that constructors will be required to fund the additional electricity infrastructure needed to power charging points in order to achieve planning permission.

It also warned that the Government must standardise electric vehicle charging infrastructure before introducing the proposed mandate, in order to avoid the need for future retrofitting.

House Builders Association head of housing Rico Wojtulewicz added: “The Government needs to think very carefully about how it achieves a green revolution. It must require electricity companies to shoulder this cost, as they will be profiting from these investments in perpetuity.”

(Photograph: husjur02 - Shutterstock)