£5,000 on offer in drive to fuel switch over to greener cars

MOTORISTS are being offered £5,000 to get behind the wheel of an eco machine that can be plugged into the wall to help drive gas- guzzlers out of favour.

•The Tesla Roadster may be green but has a 90,000 price tag. Picture: JANE BARLOW

Yesterday, the government confirmed it would pay up to 5,000 to drivers who buy a low-carbon car from January.

The exact models covered by the grants have not yet been spelled out, but it is expected they will include most electric cars, hybrid vehicles and those powered by hydrogen fuel cells.

The funding, first announced by the Labour government, survived the coalition government cutbacks. The motoring industry welcomed the move, which they say will drive forward the market for cars such as the wholly- electric Tesla Roadster supercar and the hybrid Toyota Prius.

However, although most major car manufacturers have low-carbon vehicles in development, few are yet on sale and critics highlight that the infrastructure for a full-scale roll out of electric cars is not yet in place.

The grant will see buyers able to get a 25 per cent reduction on the cost of new ultra-low carbon vehicles, with a cap of 5,000.

The incentive has been agreed until the end of March 2012, with the level of grant being reviewed in January 2012.

Transport Secretary Philip Hammond said: "The coalition government is committed to low-carbon growth, tackling climate change and making our energy supply more secure.

"We are sending a clear signal that Britain is open for business and that we are committed to greening our economy. This will ensure that the UK is a world leader in low-emission vehicles."

Paul Everitt, chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, said it was an important step in helping attract new investment and create high-skilled jobs.

"This is great news for industry and a significant commitment by the new government to create UK jobs in the emerging market for ultra-low carbon vehicles," he said.

"The UK is well placed to exploit the global opportunities in the transition to low-carbon technologies and is already making significant progress through research and development, the low-carbon supply chain and vehicle manufacturing."

However, Dr Sam Gardner, climate change policy officer at WWF Scotland said more needed to be done because one in ten vehicles on Scotland's roads must be electric by 2020 to meet climate change targets.

"Although support is limited to just 5,000 per car it marks a much-needed signal from the new coalition government that it's serious about tackling transport emissions," he said.

"However, the reality is that if we are really going to slash transport emissions, then some additional measures and incentives will be required."

Prices of the low-carbon cars range from about 20,000 for a Toyota Prius hybrid to as much as 90,000 for the electric Tesla Roadster supercar.

Critics of the previous scrappage scheme, which gave a financial incentive to get rid of old cars, argued that such initiatives can simply lead to an increase in the price of cars. They fear sellers could put up the price by 5,000 to make the most of the government's funding.

However, RAC motoring strategist Adrian Tink did not think this was likely to be a problem, saying: "It will be a very competitive market. Virtually every manufacturer is working on a low-carbon vehicle of one form or another. The impact of competition should mean, hopefully, prices will be reduced."

Other critics say a massive increase in charging points will be needed before a widescale increase in electric cars on the roads can become a reality.