Vehicle charging points to become mandatory for new builds

New buildings with parking spaces will be required to provide charging points for electric vehicles under new Scottish Government plans.

Under the proposals, developers will have to ensure new residential buildings with at least one parking space also provides a charging point.

While non-residential buildings should install one charging point for every 10 parking spaces.

Each of the charging points will be required to have at least a 7kW output rating.

Announcing the move on Thursday, transport minister Jenny Gilruth said the Government would introduce legislation to make the changes.

“This step will help future-proof Scotland’s buildings as we transition to a net-zero transport system,” she said during a visit to a building site in Tranent, East Lothian.

“This supports our ambition of phasing out the need for new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030 as part of our response to the global climate emergency.

“We’ve already seen private developers delivering EV charge points as part of new builds in Scotland.

“They recognise that charge points are an attractive feature to have and offer convenience as part of a wider charging mix.

“These changes will provide a minimum standard that developers will need to consider going forward.

“We also know that many households will not have access to dedicated parking spaces and that’s why, earlier this year, we announced our £60 million EV Infrastructure Fund, to ensure that all households across Scotland can be confident that EV charging will be local, accessible and that they, too, can switch to zero emission.”