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Motorists will be able to claim a 25 percent discount on the price of nine car models under the £400m initiative, which begins on 1 January; the cars in mention are: the Smart fortwo electric drive, the Peugeot iON, the Citroen CZero, the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, the Tata Vista EV, the Chevrolet Volt, the Toyota Prius Plug-in and the Vauxhall Ampera.

 

The subsidy will translate to around 15,000 cars per year; industry experts are saying that it is unlikely to have a major impact on the British car fleet. The scheme will undoubtedly increase the British car industry’s production of green cars;. Many automakers relied on leasing cars or personal contract purchase to sell electric models or sell costly sports cars in small quantities. But now like the Nissan Leaf, many electrical models will become more affordable.

 

However, only three of the nine cars are obtainable for the New Year with the other models not available until as late as 2012. The Smart, the Peugeot and the Mitsubishi will be ready for contract purchasewhen the plan of action begins at the beginning of the year. The government will fund infrastructures in the East of England, Greater Manchester, the Midlands, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The sum will go towards paying for charging infrastructure to support electric cars. London, Milton Keynes and the North East have been awarded similar grants and will receive £20m from a central fund.

Philip Hammond, Transport Secretary, said: “Government support for more affordable electric vehicles and more local re-charging points means we are on the brink of a green revolution. The year 2010 could be remembered for the year the green car took off.” He added: “Anyone who’s filled up at a petrol station recently will realise that the ability to recharge overnight at 1-3 pence per kilometre is extremely attractive. The point of supporting this technology is to get it up to scale.”

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