RAY MASSEY: Electric dream could turn to a nightmare if the public don’t buy it

That’s the conclusion of the UK’s Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) following damning annual new car sales figures published this week.

First the good news. Car sales last year rose 2.6 per cent year-on-year to 1.953million, with Ford’s Puma crossover the biggest seller.

Two guests chatting at a party. ‘I’m writing a novel’, says one. ‘Oh really?’ says the other. ‘Neither am I.’

Thanks to Herculean efforts by manufacturers – including £4.5billion of customer discounts – sales of pure electric vehicles soared by a fifth to record levels and accounted for nearly one in five (19.6 per cent) of sales, or 381,970 vehicles.

Today, the oft-quoted joke by comedy hero Peter Cook could be adapted to replace literary works with electric car purchases.

The SMMT adds: ‘Action is needed now to amend the regulation to reflect the reality of a constrained market and ZEV demand failing to grow in line with expectations. Government must do more to stimulate private demand.’

Faster roll-out of public charging points is also vital.

The reality is EV sales depend on fleet and company car users – with just one in ten private buyers switching to an electric vehicle.

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