GoinGreen: Government grant proposals

Following the Government’s announcement of the 16 April 2009 regarding grants of up to £5,000 towards the purchase of electric cars, GoinGreen is disheartened to learn that such grants will not be available until 2011. Furthermore, the proposed grant scheme will not include the UK’s best selling electric vehicle, the REVA G-Wiz. GoinGreen pioneered the UK EV market with the introduction of the REVA G-Wiz to London in 2004 and there are now nearly 1,000 G-Wiz on the roads.

GoinGreen believes that if the Government truly wants to promote emissions-free driving, then encouraging continuing adoption of electric vehicles by the public, as new models continue to come to market, cannot be put on hold.

Although the actual announcement did not clarify the definition of the vehicles to be included, a Department for Transport representative subsequently confirmed that most electric vehicles currently on the market today would be excluded. The excluded vehicle types include quadricycles, such as the G-Wiz, and delivery trucks, such as those produced in the UK by Modec and Smith Electric Vehicles.

GoinGreen also has concerns as to the effect this announcement will have on consumer behaviour before the 2011 introduction. Armed with the knowledge of impending financial assistance, potential buyers might delay their purchase until the grant is available and therefore it is anticipated that sales of greener vehicles will decline until the start date of grant. ‘This jeopardises the whole EV market in the UK at a very crucial time. It should be remembered that when GoinGreen started selling the G-Wiz in 2004, there was actually financial assistance to purchasers available from the Government. The PowerShift scheme, administered by the Energy Saving Trust, gave grants to help with the purchase of greener vehicles; electric, LPG, hybrid and covered conversions as well as outright purchase too. This scheme was abolished four years ago, on 1st April 2005. If Britain really does want to reduce its carbon emissions, then encouraging

greener transport is more vital than ever and should not be delayed,’ says Steve Hartridge, managing director of GoinGreen.

Mike Boxwell, of the independently run G-Wiz Owners’ Club (http:/www.g-wiz.org.uk) comments; ‘We are delighted that the Government has decided to invest in the future of electric cars. The electric G-Wiz has been available for a number of years now and as owners we know the benefits - both environmental and financial - of these terrific little vehicles. However, we are very worried about the timings and that subsidies for electric car ownership have been announced, but won't be available until 2011. In effect, the Government has produced a sledgehammer blow against the very pioneering companies and products that made London the electric car capital of the world and is discriminating with no clear reason or benefit for so doing’.

Keith Johnston, president of REVA’s European operations says, ‘Subsidies for all categories of electric vehicles (EVs) are already available in other European countries. Even countries that are supposedly behind the environmental curve, such as the US and China, offer grants of $7,500 and $8,800 respectively. The Government’s announcement that a UK grant will be available, but not until 2011, will only create a sales vacuum for two years and cause widespread damage to the fledgling UK EV business, already fragile as a result of the recession. Having announced the programme, the Government must now publicly confirm the eligibility criteria and make the subsidies available immediately’.