Scottish Government's Electric Car-Charging Target Delayed by 12 Years

author: FutureCar Staff    

The Scottish Government's target of installing 30,000 electric car-charging stations could be missed by 12 years, according to analysis by the Tories. This comes after Rishi Sunak, the UK's Chancellor of the Exchequer, delayed a ban on new petrol and diesel cars until 2035. First Minister Humza Yousaf criticized the five-year delay and warned that it could jeopardize Scotland's target for net zero emissions by 2045.

ChargePlace Scotland, the charging network owned by the Scottish Government, reported that 169 chargers were added between October 2022 and August 2023. However, earlier figures released by the Scottish Government stated that there were nearly 4,000 charging stations across Scotland as of June 2023. Despite this, the government has acknowledged that 30,000 charging points will be needed to meet the expected increase in demand for electric vehicle charging.

Analysis from the Scottish Tories suggests that the government is far from reaching the target, with only around 1,900 charging points installed between January 2022 and 2023. The Tories estimate that it could take until 2042, 12 years after the deadline, for the government to reach 30,000 charging points.

Douglas Lumsden, the energy and transport spokesman for the Tory party, criticized the slow progress and called it typical of the SNP/Green Government's poor record on environmental targets. Lumsden also highlighted that over 4,000 charging points need to be installed every year to meet the target by 2030, which the current pace is unlikely to achieve.

Transport Scotland responded by stating that the Scottish Government is assessing the implications of the UK Government's decision to delay the ban on petrol and diesel cars. They also highlighted the Scottish Government's investment in the development of the ChargePlace Scotland network, which has resulted in Scotland having the highest number of rapid or ultra-rapid charge points per capita outside of London. They emphasized the need for increased investment in the public charging network and the importance of private sector involvement in financing and delivering the infrastructure.

The Scottish Government's EV Infrastructure Fund aims to leverage £60 million of public and private investment to increase the network size to 6,000 charge points by 2026. They also mentioned the introduction of legislation requiring car parks of new buildings to install charge points. The government's EV Vision, published in June, outlines the ideal public charging offer for cars and vans.

FutureCar Staff