Drivers can get £5,000 off the price of an electric car until February, as the government extends its electric grant scheme.

If you buy a new electric car that emits less than 75g/km of CO2 then you will qualify for the government grant of £5000. That situation was going to be reviewed when 50,000 cars had been purchased, a point expected to be reached in November 2015, but the scheme has now been extended for a few months to February 2016.

This follows on the publication of data showing that registrations of ultra-low emission cars jumped in the first six months of 2015 by 256% compared to the same period last year. The Transport Minister, Andrew Jones MP, pointed out that the UK is now the fastest growing market for electric vehicles in Europe.

The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is the Number One seller in the hybrid plug-in sector, and Lance Bradley, managing director of Mitsubishi Motors said: “We have seen ultra-low emission vehicles rapidly establish a 1% share of UK sales in a period of time unprecedented in automotive terms. We welcome the government’s decision to continue these incentives in a way which recognises the fledgling nature of this low emissions market”.

The government spending review, in November, will set out more plans on what happens after the current extension expires next February.

Source: BirminghamPost