Agenda item

8.1

It was formally moved by Councillor Lewis Chinchen, and formally seconded by the chair of the meeting (Councillor Anne Murphy), that this Council:-

(a)      believes that the mass uptake of Electric Vehicles (EVs) will depend on convenient and affordable charging infrastructure;

(b)      notes that EV ownership is skewed towards those with off-street parking (80% of EV owners have access to a driveway);

(c)      believes that we need to ensure that the 40% of households in this country that do not have access to off-street parking have ways to conveniently charge an EV;

(d)      notes that Sheffield currently does not have any on-street residential EV charging infrastructure;

(e)      believes that without proper investment in on-street EV charging technology, we will continue to see inequality in EV ownership between those with off-street parking and those without;

(f)       recognises that there is a chicken and egg situation where it is often not initially financially viable for the private sector to invest in new infrastructure due to the limited EV ownership in areas that need this infrastructure;

(g)      believes that a partnership between Government, this Council and innovative private sector enterprise is the best way to develop our on-street EV charging network;

(h)      notes the work of other local authorities such as the London Borough of Lambeth in expanding on-street EV charging infrastructure across 11 council estates through a partnership with a private company; and

(i)       requests the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee to consider:-

(i)       developing an EV charging strategy that outlines a vision for every household in Sheffield to be within walking distance of a public EV charging point;

(ii)       inviting businesses to Sheffield to explore innovative infrastructure solutions such as retractable chargers, as well as successful commercial models that maximise private sector investment;

(iii)      applying to the Government’s On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme and/or the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund once this becomes fully available following national pilots; and

(iv)      working collaboratively and collectively with neighbouring local authorities and the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) where appropriate to take advantage of economies of scale, share knowledge and ensure our strategies are aligned, whilst recognising the differences between our respective areas.

8.2

Whereupon, it was formally moved by Councillor Julie Grocutt, and formally seconded by Councillor Bryan Lodge, as an amendment, that the Motion now submitted be amended by the addition of new paragraphs (j) to (m) as follows:-

(j)       notes that the UK has only 15% of the charging points it needs to meet net zero – and believes that government inaction is creating a two-tier transport Britain;

(k)      notes that in June 2021 Parliament’s Select Committee on Climate Change, found that there needs to be over 150,000 public charging points operating in our country by 2025, and yet the Government is currently trailing way behind at around 42,000 public charging points overall, itself an increase of less than 20,000 in the last 12 months, therefore way off the target required;

(l)       notes that, unlike this Government, the Labour Party has a plan to support people across the country to make the switch to electric, aiding the country’s transition to net zero, by:-

(i)       making electric vehicle ownership affordable by offering long-term interest-free loans for new and used electric vehicles to those on low to middle incomes to remove the upfront cost barrier; and trialling a national scrappage scheme;

(ii)       making it easier for people to drive an electric vehicle, wherever they live, by accelerating the roll-out of charging points on streets and targeting areas left out, such as Yorkshire; and

(iii)      committing to charging points being treated as a national infrastructure project, led by central government through a National Infrastructure Bank and by working with local authorities; and

(m)     notes that the Council’s Leader and Co-Chairs of the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee are meeting with the Mayor and SYMCA to develop increased EV charging infrastructure, and the Council is currently developing an Electric Vehicle Strategy, which will be submitted to the Committee shortly, and will be bidding for the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund for pilot status, with the scheme delivering additional public EV charging infrastructure.

8.3

It was then formally moved by Councillor Tim Huggan, and formally seconded by Councillor Joe Otten, as an amendment, that the Motion now submitted be amended by:-

1.       the deletion of paragraph (e) and the addition of new paragraphs (e) and (f) as follows:-

(e)      further notes that with only 23.4 charging points in total per 100,000 people according to Department for Transport figures, Sheffield lags behind the national average of 45.8;

(f)       believes that in order to give confidence to more people without the ability to install a domestic charger that they will be able to conveniently fuel and run an EV, there is a need for substantial provision of publicly accessible charging at reasonable prices in residential areas, at workplaces and in the city centre and district centres;

2.       the re-lettering of original paragraphs (f) and (g) as new paragraphs (g) and (h).

3.       the addition of a new paragraph (i) as follows:-

(i)       regrets the lack of government leadership so far in co-ordinating a national roll out of on-street charging, and believes there has been a lack of Council ambition hitherto in providing sufficient public charging to drive take up;

4.       the re-lettering of original paragraphs (h) and (i) as new paragraphs (j) and (k).

5.       the re-lettering of sub-paragraphs (iii) and (iv) in the new paragraph (k) [original paragraph (i)] as new sub-paragraphs (iv) and (v), and the addition of new sub-paragraphs (iii) and (vi) as follows:-

(iii)      learning from best practise in other places and finding innovative ways to overcome some of the practical and regulatory obstacles to on-street charging, recognising that different areas face different challenges, so that residents of all areas of Sheffield are able to run an electric vehicle (levelling up);

(vi)      ensuring that energy available through such charging infrastructure whether developed and managed publicly or privately is made available at reasonable prices, covering the cost of energy and infrastructure investment, and where applicable a reasonable profit margin, ensuring that EVs remain generally considerably cheaper to fuel than internal combustion engine vehicles.

8.4

It was then formally moved by Councillor Ruth Mersereau, and formally seconded by Councillor Paul Turpin, as an amendment, that the Motion now submitted be amended by the addition of new paragraphs (j) to (n) as follows:-

(j)       notes that whilst electric vehicles do address some issues of air quality, they do nothing to address congestion, road danger from vehicles, harmful emissions from tyres and brakes, and on-street vehicle storage;

(k)      notes that ownership of any type of vehicle is skewed towards wealthier households, and believes that the Council should be prioritising its subsidies to those who can’t afford to own a vehicle, and that, for greater transport equity, we must ensure that our EV policy fits within a wider transport objective of maximising active travel and public transport usage, whilst minimising private vehicle usage, especially for routine and regular trips;

(l)       notes that EV ownership is even further skewed towards those with higher incomes who can afford electric vehicles;

(m)     believes that Sheffield streets already have issues with lack of space for car parking, limited footway space, illegal parking and congestion; and

(n)      therefore requests the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee to give consideration to the following measures:-

(i)       resisting any scheme that effectively reserves parking spaces outside people’s homes, and instead supporting publicly available, high speed charging infrastructure;

(ii)       proposing that policy should be to develop reliable public charge points in public car-parks, supermarkets, neighbourhood hubs and other publicly available spaces;

(iii)      proposing that current Sheffield City Council EV charging points be made accessible to the public as well as to taxis, to increase usage and revenue generation;

(iv)      proposing that the usual Pay & Display fees associated with Sheffield City Council car parks should apply to EV charging bays where appropriate, so that drivers pay for charging and parking concurrently, as is the case in other core cities; and

(v)      proposing that the Council look to learn from other local authorities, e.g. York City Council, who are further down the road with the development of their EV policy.

8.5

The amendment moved by Councillor Julie Grocutt was put to the vote and was carried in part.  Paragraph (l) of the amendment was lost and paragraphs (j), (k) and (m) of the amendment were carried.

8.5.1

(NOTE: The result of the vote was FOR - 54 Members; AGAINST - 11 Members; ABSTENTIONS – 0 Members.  The Liberal Democrat Group members voted for, but against paragraph (l) of the amendment.)

8.6

The amendment moved by Councillor Tim Huggan was then put to the vote and was carried.

8.6.1

(NOTE: The result of the vote was FOR - 36 Members; AGAINST - 29 Members; ABSTENTIONS – 0 Members.  Councillor Lewis Chinchen voted for, but against Part 3 of the amendment.)

8.7

The amendment moved by Councillor Ruth Mersereau was then put to the vote and was also carried.

8.7.1

(NOTE: The result of the vote was FOR - 38 Members; AGAINST - 26 Members; ABSTENTIONS – 0 Members.  The Labour Group members voted for, but against sub-paragraph (n)(i) of the amendment.  The Liberal Democrat Group members voted against, but for paragraphs (m) & (n) of the amendment.)

8.8

The original Motion, as amended, was then put as a Substantive Motion in the following form and carried:-

RESOLVED: That this Council:-

(a)      believes that the mass uptake of Electric Vehicles (EVs) will depend on convenient and affordable charging infrastructure;

(b)      notes that EV ownership is skewed towards those with off-street parking (80% of EV owners have access to a driveway);

(c)      believes that we need to ensure that the 40% of households in this country that do not have access to off-street parking have ways to conveniently charge an EV;

(d)      notes that Sheffield currently does not have any on-street residential EV charging infrastructure;

(e)      further notes that with only 23.4 charging points in total per 100,000 people according to Department for Transport figures, Sheffield lags behind the national average of 45.8;

(f)       believes that in order to give confidence to more people without the ability to install a domestic charger that they will be able to conveniently fuel and run an EV, there is a need for substantial provision of publicly accessible charging at reasonable prices in residential areas, at workplaces and in the city centre and district centres;

(g)      recognises that there is a chicken and egg situation where it is often not initially financially viable for the private sector to invest in new infrastructure due to the limited EV ownership in areas that need this infrastructure;

(h)      believes that a partnership between Government, this Council and innovative private sector enterprise is the best way to develop our on-street EV charging network;

(i)       regrets the lack of government leadership so far in co-ordinating a national roll out of on-street charging, and believes there has been a lack of Council ambition hitherto in providing sufficient public charging to drive take up;

(j)       notes the work of other local authorities such as the London Borough of Lambeth in expanding on-street EV charging infrastructure across 11 council estates through a partnership with a private company;

(k)      requests the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee to consider:-

(i)       developing an EV charging strategy that outlines a vision for every household in Sheffield to be within walking distance of a public EV charging point;

(ii)       inviting businesses to Sheffield to explore innovative infrastructure solutions such as retractable chargers, as well as successful commercial models that maximise private sector investment;

(iii)      learning from best practise in other places and finding innovative ways to overcome some of the practical and regulatory obstacles to on-street charging, recognising that different areas face different challenges, so that residents of all areas of Sheffield are able to run an electric vehicle (levelling up);

(iv)      applying to the Government’s On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme and/or the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund once this becomes fully available following national pilots;

(v)      working collaboratively and collectively with neighbouring local authorities and the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) where appropriate to take advantage of economies of scale, share knowledge and ensure our strategies are aligned, whilst recognising the differences between our respective areas; and

(vi)      ensuring that energy available through such charging infrastructure whether developed and managed publicly or privately is made available at reasonable prices, covering the cost of energy and infrastructure investment, and where applicable a reasonable profit margin, ensuring that EVs remain generally considerably cheaper to fuel than internal combustion engine vehicles;

(l)       notes that the UK has only 15% of the charging points it needs to meet net zero – and believes that government inaction is creating a two-tier transport Britain;

(m)     notes that in June 2021 Parliament’s Select Committee on Climate Change, found that there needs to be over 150,000 public charging points operating in our country by 2025, and yet the Government is currently trailing way behind at around 42,000 public charging points overall, itself an increase of less than 20,000 in the last 12 months, therefore way off the target required;

(n)      notes that the Council’s Leader and Co-Chairs of the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee are meeting with the Mayor and SYMCA to develop increased EV charging infrastructure, and the Council is currently developing an Electric Vehicle Strategy, which will be submitted to the Committee shortly, and will be bidding for the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund for pilot status, with the scheme delivering additional public EV charging infrastructure;

(o)      notes that whilst electric vehicles do address some issues of air quality, they do nothing to address congestion, road danger from vehicles, harmful emissions from tyres and brakes, and on-street vehicle storage;

(p)      notes that ownership of any type of vehicle is skewed towards wealthier households, and believes that the Council should be prioritising its subsidies to those who can’t afford to own a vehicle, and that, for greater transport equity, we must ensure that our EV policy fits within a wider transport objective of maximising active travel and public transport usage, whilst minimising private vehicle usage, especially for routine and regular trips;

(q)      notes that EV ownership is even further skewed towards those with higher incomes who can afford electric vehicles;

(r)       believes that Sheffield streets already have issues with lack of space for car parking, limited footway space, illegal parking and congestion; and

(s)      therefore requests the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee to give consideration to the following measures:-

(i)       resisting any scheme that effectively reserves parking spaces outside people’s homes, and instead supporting publicly available, high speed charging infrastructure;

(ii)       proposing that policy should be to develop reliable public charge points in public car-parks, supermarkets, neighbourhood hubs and other publicly available spaces;

(iii)      proposing that current Sheffield City Council EV charging points be made accessible to the public as well as to taxis, to increase usage and revenue generation;

(iv)      proposing that the usual Pay & Display fees associated with Sheffield City Council car parks should apply to EV charging bays where appropriate, so that drivers pay for charging and parking concurrently, as is the case in other core cities; and

(v)      proposing that the Council look to learn from other local authorities, e.g. York City Council, who are further down the road with the development of their EV policy.

8.8.1

(NOTE: The result of the vote was FOR - 64 Members; AGAINST - 0 Members; ABSTENTIONS – 0 Members.  The Labour Group members voted for, but against paragraphs (e), (f), (i), (k)(iii) and (vi) & sub-paragraph (s)(i) of the Substantive Motion.  The Liberal Democrat Group members voted for, but against paragraphs (o), (p) & (q) of the Substantive Motion.  Councillor Lewis Chinchen voted for, but against paragraphs (i), (l), (m), (o) to (s)(ii) and (s)(iv) & (v) of the Substantive Motion.)