The Chancellor announced today the allocation of £400m for the fitting of electric car charging points.

Alex Buttle, director of car buying comparison website Motorway.co.uk, said: “While this is fantastic news for motorists, the total investment the Government has allocated to encourage the use of electric vehicles is disproportionate to the opportunity for change.

“More electric charge points are key, but the Government also needs to put far more resource into encouraging car owners to switch to alternative fuel vehicles in the first place.

“Electric cars are still far too expensive for the average car owner, and while alternative fuel car sales are on the up, they’re not rising fast enough to phase out fossil fuel cars within the next 5-10 years.

“The government needs to be far more aggressive with supportive tax breaks and incentives to help consumers make the leap to the more expensive electric car models. It needs to be a no-brainer for motorists to take the leap, and we’re just not there yet.”