New homes and buildings such as supermarkets and workplaces, as well as those undergoing major renovation, will be required to install electric vehicle charge points from next year, under new legislation announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
The PM made the pledge during the CBI annual conference, where he set out how the UK can create a first mover advantage in the biggest transformation of the global economy in 200 years, if the public and private sectors work in partnership to seize the opportunities of net zero, from electric vehicles to clean power.
In his CBI speech, he said: “This is a pivotal moment - we cannot go on as we are. We have to adapt our economy to the green industrial revolution.
“We have to use our massive investment in science and technology and we have to raise our productivity and then we have to get out your way. We must regulate less or better and take advantage of new freedoms.”
But, in response, Tony Danker, CBI Director-General, said: “If we are serious about going for growth, then 2022 has to be a year of detail and delivery.
“The UK has an opportunity to lead the world in the race to net zero. By making decarbonisation one of our economy’s big bets for growth, we can create the high value sectors, firms, skills and investment needed to level-up the economy. I was delighted to hear that the Prime Minister believes business investment is a priority and is willing to consider what more beyond the super deduction is needed to incentivise firms.
“What the Prime Minister set out today on EV charging is exactly the kind of detail we need to drive the necessary investment for a high-growth economy. That mix of high of ambition and focused detail can provide a blueprint for how government and business can work together to turn political aspiration into boardroom action.
“Business leaders will be heartened to hear the Prime Minister talk passionately about the role of the private sector working in partnership with the government to achieve our shared ambitions for a high wage, high skill, high investment economy.
“With many business leaders in the North still feeling bruised by last week’s decision on HS2, that spirit of partnership must kick into gear straight away so that Government, local leaders and businesses are able to find a better way forward to address those places that missed out.”
After the PM’s announcement to change planning policy so that all new homes are built with electric vehicle (EV) chargers, the National Federation of Builders asked who will foot the bill for the move?
Richard Beresford, NFB’s chief executive, said it supported the green industry and a green transition because it is a necessary part of change but due to how infrastructure investment works in practice.
But he added: “Once again, the Government is seeking to grow its political capital and advance big business, at the expense of the construction industry and taxpayer.”
The NFB has been raising the cost and fractious nature of mandated EV charger policy since 2017 and included it in every consultation response it was applicable. But it says the concerns of small and medium sized business have fallen on deaf ears again.
The major concern for this new taxation policy is that to achieve planning permission, constructors are required to fund substations so that electricity companies can provide enough load to new and old developments. These costs are considerable – upward of £50,000 for a handful of homes - and it is neither the builder, nor homeowner who profits from this infrastructure, it is the electricity companies who achieve revenue in perpetuity from someone else’s investment.
There is also the concern that the type of charger being installed will not meet future grid or EV charging standards and therefore the NFB has been telling the Government to standardise EV charging infrastructure and grid strategy before mandating a solution which will require mass retrofitting.
Rico Wojtulewicz, head of housing at the House Builders Association (HBA), the housebuilding arm of the NFB, said: “This Government has only been in power for two years and has already introduced four new and stealth taxes on the construction industry. EV charging will be the fifth. It’s a disgusting way to treat a sector who worked throughout the Covid-19 lockdown to help pay for furlough and the impact of Covid-19.
“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. Or perhaps it is time to bring services into public ownership because the Government is not proving able to regulate the sector in a way that doesn’t cost the taxpayer.
“As we told the Prime Minister during COP26 in relation to retrofitting and onshore renewable energy, it is time the Conservatives began risking some of their own political capital and not simply expecting taxpayers and business to risk their financial capital. The Governments green legacy is looking like taxation and flawed policy, not revolutionary change.”
The NFB wants outcomes which help meet our climate targets and these can only be achieved with deliverable solutions. The NFB recently discussed this in relation to political capital because without coherent policy positions and a skilled workforce, any money put forward by tax payers will not be optimised to its maximum potential.
