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Transport Secretary admits she doesn't have ‘expensive' EV – despite trying to convince drivers to make switch

Transport Secretary admits she doesn't have ‘expensive' EV – despite trying to convince drivers to make switch

The Sun11 hours ago
TRANSPORT Secretary Heidi Alexander admits she doesn't have an "expensive" electric car - despite trying to convince drivers to make the switch.
The Cabinet Minister highlighted the difficulties of living in a terraced home and not having a driveway to plug in the motor for charging.
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Her comments come as £700 million could be on the table offering subsidies to lower the upfront costs of purchasing electric vehicles.
She told the BBC "I don't have an electric car. But I'm like millions of people in this country, I bought a new car about six years ago.
"I'm thinking about the next car I will purchase, and it will definitely be an electric vehicle. I'm not in the habit of changing my car on a yearly basis, expensive as it is."
Electric car sales amounted to 47,000 in June but this is still below the mandated level which states 28 per cent of new car sales and 16 per cent of van sales should be zero emission.
She also committed to giving £25 million to councils so they could adapt paths between a house and the road for cables to be laid.
Ms Alexander said: "We do need to make it easier and cheaper for people to buy an electric vehicle.
"So today we're announcing a really big investment, £63 million in charging infrastructure across the country, £25 million for councils so that people like me, who don't have a driveway.
"I live in a terrace house, if I had an EV, I'd be asking myself questions about how I would get the electric cable across to the car."
Electric car sales amounted to 47,000 in June but this is still below the mandated level which states 28 per cent of new car sales and 16 per cent of van sales should be zero emission.
The transition to electric vehicles comes as new petrol or diesel motors should come to an end by 2030.
Just five years later, all new motors will have to be electric as part of the drive to meet Net Zero targets by 2050.
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