Honda is to quadruple the number of hybrid petrol-electric models it offers – with the first being an affordable family car which is due to go on sale in the UK early next year.

Currently the manufacturer offers the Civic Hybrid saloon as a rival to the Toyota Prius, but next spring the affordable five-door hybrid will arrive.

This will be followed by a sporty model based on the CR-Z concept car, plus the addition of a hybrid Jazz supermini.

Ken Keir, Honda UK’s managing director and executive vice-president of Honda Motor Europe, said: “We’ve been developing more efficient and lower emission products for decades and the experience gained over the years has helped to bring a more affordable hybrid to the market.

"Reducing our impact on the environment is – and always has – been a key part of our company philosophy.”

Honda UK expects the arrival of the new model to further accelerate the growth in hybrid sales.

So far this year, the UK company has seen sales of the Civic Hybrid model increase by 25% year-on-year from 877 units to 1,169 – mainly thanks to the UK division gaining extra capacity at the model’s factory in Japan.