Electric car charger rollout slowdown delivers blow to Labour plans

Published: 31December 2025
The English Chronicle Desk
The English Chronicle Online

The electric car charger rollout slowdown has delivered a significant setback to Labour’s push to accelerate the transition away from petrol and diesel vehicles, after new figures showed a sharp fall in the number of public EV chargers being installed across Britain. The decline marks the first time on record that installation rates have failed to rise year on year, raising fresh doubts about whether the country’s charging infrastructure can keep pace with growing demand for electric vehicles.

Data from Zap Map, which supplies official statistics to the Office for National Statistics, shows that just 13,469 public electric vehicle chargers were installed across the UK in the first 11 months of this year. That compares with 19,834 installations over the whole of 2024, representing a fall of around 30 per cent. Industry experts say the slowdown comes at a critical juncture, as ministers attempt to reassure drivers that the infrastructure will be in place to support the planned phase-out of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030.

The figures have intensified political scrutiny of Labour’s transport and climate policies. Critics argue that without a rapid and sustained expansion of charging infrastructure, drivers will be reluctant to abandon conventional vehicles, regardless of future bans or incentives. The slowdown has also coincided with warnings from the automotive industry that additional measures, including a proposed pay-per-mile tax on electric vehicles, could further undermine consumer confidence and dampen demand.

Labour has already come under pressure to reconsider the timetable for banning petrol cars, particularly after the European Union scrapped its own proposed ban that had been due to take effect in 2035. Under current UK policy, the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will end in 2030, with hybrid vehicles following in 2035. Opponents argue that the charger rollout is not keeping pace with these ambitions, risking a mismatch between policy goals and practical reality.

Richard Holden, the shadow transport secretary, seized on the latest figures as evidence of a broader failure. He accused Labour of being “wilfully blind” to the costs imposed on ordinary people by its drive towards net zero, while failing to deliver the infrastructure needed to make electric vehicles a viable option for all. With charger installations falling, he argued, the Government was making it harder rather than easier for drivers to make the switch.

Concerns have also been raised within the industry itself. Ginny Buckley, chief executive of Electrifying.com, said the pace of charger installation must keep up with rising electric vehicle sales if adoption is to continue. She warned that visible gaps in public charging provision risk reinforcing “range anxiety” among drivers, particularly those without access to home charging.

The slowdown casts doubt on the Government’s ability to meet its own target of at least 300,000 public charge points in operation by 2030. Fewer than 90,000 are currently in place, meaning that more than 40,000 would need to be installed every year for the rest of the decade to hit the goal. That would require more than double the annual record set in 2024, a challenge that now looks even steeper given the latest decline.

Even that target is considered modest by some analysts. The Department for Transport has previously estimated that between 250,000 and 555,000 charge points could be needed by the end of the decade to meet demand, depending on how quickly electric vehicle ownership grows. Falling behind the lower end of that range could have serious implications for accessibility, particularly in rural areas and for drivers without private driveways.

Charging providers point to a combination of economic and logistical pressures behind the slowdown. Energy costs have been described as “prohibitively high”, with some operators reporting that standing charges have increased by more than 400 per cent in recent years. These costs directly affect the viability of new installations, particularly rapid and ultra-rapid chargers that require significant power capacity.

Delays in securing grid connections have compounded the problem. Operators say lengthy waits to connect new chargers to the electricity network have slowed projects and increased costs. At the same time, delays in payments from the Government’s £450m local electric vehicle infrastructure fund have created cashflow challenges for companies relying on public subsidies to support expansion.

The decline has been seen across all categories of charger, from slow lamppost-style units to ultra-rapid devices capable of recharging a vehicle in as little as 15 minutes. The steepest fall was recorded among rapid chargers, with outputs of between 50 and 150 kilowatts, where installations dropped by nearly half. Slow chargers also saw a significant decline, underscoring the breadth of the slowdown.

ChargeUK, the industry body representing charging operators, has warned that rising costs are threatening investment. Its chief executive, Vicky Read, said that while 2024 had been a bumper year for growth, momentum had slowed in 2025 due to higher energy prices and delays to government support. She insisted that companies were still building ahead of demand and expressed confidence that numbers would recover in 2026 and 2027 as government contracts are finalised. However, she cautioned that stable regulation and lower cost burdens would be essential to protect billions of pounds of planned investment and thousands of jobs.

The Department for Transport has sought to strike a more optimistic tone. A spokesman said the Government recognised that concerns over charge point access remained a barrier to electric vehicle adoption and highlighted more than £600m announced this year to accelerate the rollout. Ministers point to the fact that there are now more than 87,000 public charge points across the UK, a 21 per cent increase on last year, and additional funding to help councils deliver a further 100,000.

Public charging is expected to play an increasingly important role as electric vehicle ownership grows. While many current owners can charge at home or at work, a significant proportion of drivers rely on public networks, particularly in urban areas and among those living in flats. Ensuring reliable, affordable access is seen as crucial to maintaining momentum in the transition.

Electric vehicle sales have continued to rise this year, with fully electric and plug-in hybrid models accounting for more than a third of all new car sales. Yet drivers have faced a series of policy changes that have dented the financial appeal of going electric. Electric vehicles are now subject to car tax, and owners of higher-value models face the so-called luxury car tax. In November’s Budget, Rachel Reeves also announced plans for a pay-per-mile charging system, which the Office for Budget Responsibility has warned could result in hundreds of thousands fewer electric vehicles being sold.

The Treasury has attempted to offset some of these pressures by committing £100m to charging infrastructure and introducing a decade of business rates relief for operators. Campaigners, however, continue to call for VAT on public charging to be reduced to match the 5 per cent rate applied to home charging, arguing that the current disparity unfairly penalises those without private driveways.

As Britain pushes towards its 2030 deadline, the electric car charger rollout slowdown has become a focal point in the wider debate over how quickly and fairly the country can decarbonise transport. Whether the current dip proves a temporary pause or a sign of deeper structural problems will be crucial in determining the success of Labour’s net zero ambitions.