The plug-in car grant, which gave car buyers £1,500 off the price of a new electric car, has been scrapped.
The UK Government has said it wants to 'refocus' funding by investing in the UK's public charging network.
The plug-in car grant was launched in 2010 to encourage car buyers to switch to alternative-fuelled vehicles, initially offering £5,000 off the price of a new electric car or plug-in hybrid.
It was subsequently scaled back, including a cut from £3,000 to £2,500 in March 2021 and a further reduction to £1,500 in January this year.
The Government now intends to put £300 million towards plug-in grants to boost sales of plug-in taxis, motorbikes, wheelchair accessible vehicles plus vans and trucks instead.
However, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said that scrapping the ban sent the 'wrong message' to car buyers.
Its chief executive Mike Hawes said: ”We are now the only major European market to have zero upfront purchase incentives for EV car buyers yet the most ambitious plans for uptake.
“If we are to have any chance of hitting targets, government must use these savings and compel massive investment in the charging network, at rapid pace and at a scale beyond anything so far announced.”
All existing applications for the grant will continue to be honoured and where a car was sold in the two working days before the announcement on 14 June, but an application for the grant from dealerships has not yet been made, the sale will also still qualify for the grant.
