23 per cent of Government Car Service fleet electric

Twenty-three per cent of vehicles on the Government Car Service, which provides ministers with cars, is electric.

The Transport Secretary Chris Grayling has now written to every government department to reinforce the pledge to move towards a completely electric government fleet by 2030, which was highlighted in the Road to Zero strategy. The shorter term aim is for 25% of the government's fleet to be electric by 2022.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling, said: "We want the UK to be the best place in the world to own an ultra-low emission vehicle, and as a government we have to lead by example.

"I am pleased with the change we are making to the Government Car Service, but this now needs to be reflected in all fleets that are controlled by government.

"The Prime Minister made the bold commitment that the UK will end its net contribution to climate change by 2050. It is absolutely vital that all parts of government play their part in delivering this ambitious target."

Every department has been given guidance on how they can drive this transition in their own fleet, asking them to publish a yearly progress report.

BVRLA Chief Executive Gerry Keaney commented: “We welcome the news that Transport Minister Chris Grayling has written to every other department urging them to play their part in delivering the government’s pledge to have a zero-emission car fleet by 2030.
 
“Unfortunately, this big gesture will have a relatively small impact. To make a real difference, we would like to see the government review its internal policies relating to the use of personal cars for business – known as grey fleet.
 
“The BVRLA Grey Fleet report published in 2016 estimated that the Civil Service grey fleet mileage was in the region of 265 million miles a year, costing £126m in mileage claims from civil servants doing business using their own vehicles.
 
“The average grey fleet car is around eight years old and emits 16% more CO2 than an average rental car, which is what Government staff should be using for their journeys in the absence of a practical public transport option."