Consultation launched on Electric Vehicle Charge Points

On 23 July, the Scottish Government published the consultation Scottish Building Regulations: Proposed changes to Energy Standards and associated topics, including Ventilation, Overheating and Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure.

As part of that consultation (section 7), we are seeking views on the requirements that we are proposing to set out in legislation for the installation of electric vehicle charge points, and the enabling infrastructure, in car parking spaces for new residential and non-residential buildings, and some existing non-residential buildings.

Why?

The Scottish Government’s Climate Change Plan update (CCPu), published last December, set out the pathway to meet Scotland’s statutory greenhouse gas emission reduction targets by 2032. This includes an aim to phase out of the need for new petrol and diesel cars, and vans by 2030.

Part of that pathway is the commitment to decarbonise transport in Scotland and our National Transport Strategy 2 outlines our vision to achieve this.  The transition to electric vehicles will contribute significantly to this and, with demand for electric vehicles growing rapidly, we want people to have access to convenient and reliable charging infrastructure at home, at work and when out and about.

Therefore, through this consultation, we are seeking feedback to help inform the requirements we propose to set out in legislation with supporting guidance.

Consultation

The consultation is running from 23 July – 15 October 2021 and you can respond to the consultation at the following link:

Scottish Building Regulations: Proposed changes to Energy Standards and associated topics, including Ventilation, Overheating and Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure - Scottish Government - Citizen Space (consult.gov.scot)

In addition, we are also running a number of themed webinars which will provide opportunities for people to come together to hear about our proposals and to discuss areas of interest.  If you, or any of your colleagues, would be interested in attending any of these events, please click on the relevant link below to register.

• Electric Vehicle Charge Points for Buildings – Policy Context: Tuesday 17^th August 2021, 1000 – 1130. Click here to register for this event.

• Electric Vehicle Charge Points for Buildings – Technical Session 1: Tuesday 24^th August 2021, 1000 – 1200. Click here to register for this event.

• Electric Vehicle Charge Points for Buildings – Accessibility: Tuesday 31^st August 2021 – 1000 – 1130. Click here to register for this event.

• Electric Vehicle Charge Points for Buildings – Islands: Thursday 2^nd September 2021, 1000 – 1130. Click here to register for this event.

• Electric Vehicle Charge Points for Buildings – Technical Session 2: Tuesday 21^st September 2021,  1000 – 1200. Click here to register for this event.

Finally, the response to this section of the consultation will not run to the same timetable as the wider consultation.  Scottish Government expect to publish the response next year with legislation laid in the Scottish Parliament thereafter.