Calls for Holyrood to provide Electric Vehicle test drives
The Scottish Lib Dems are urging the government to provide more funding for buyers of new battery powered vehicles.
The Scottish Government should be helping buyers try out new electric vehicles (EVs) on the weekend – according to the Lib Dems.
The party also want to see the return of a funding scheme that ceased last March yet continued to be advertised on the government’s website.
The Liberal Democrats claim the Government was continuing to promote its Electric Vehicle Loan scheme, which supported the purchase of new EVs.
'Misleading' Website
Transport Minister Jenny Gilruth told Scottish Lib Dem MSP Liam MacArthur: "No specific loan funding is set aside for new vehicles" in the answer to a question in Parliament.
Mr McArthur, the climate emergency spokesperson for his party, said: "The Scottish Government has clearly created a misleading picture."
"This government won't meet its climate targets by cutting support for schemes which encourage people to make the switch to low-carbon transport."
Test Drive Scheme
Mr McArthur added: "There simply are not enough used EVs on the market for everyone to transition to low-carbon transport this way so support for new purchases is clearly necessary.
The Lib Dems want all new public sector vehicles to be either low or zero emissions, and also insist the government should develop a "reliable charging network" for EVs across the country.
The party also wants there to be longer term, government backed interest free loans for those buying EVs, as well as a government run scheme to allow people to try out such vehicles over a weekend.
Government Investing in Transition
A Scottish Government spokesperson said the webpage the Lib Dems referred to "is not our primary means of communicating this information to the public".
The spokespweron said: "The information relating to EV support, on a sub-section of a page relating to renewable and low carbon energy, is out of date and will be updated.
"Our range of support is promoted by and delivered through Energy Saving Trust on behalf of the Scottish Government - where over £185 million has been provided through our Low Carbon Transport Loan to support the transition to electric vehicles."