David Martell, chief executive of Chargemaster, said: “The package of support announced by the Chancellor in the Budget is good news for the EV sector.

“We welcome the continued incentives for electric car purchases through the plug-in car grant. Of course, these incentives will not be needed indefinitely, and manufacturers predict that the cost of building an electric car will drop below the cost of producing a petrol or diesel car within the next five years.

“It is also worth pointing out that consumers can buy an electric car for as little as £5,000 in the used market.

“The £400m announced to support EV charging infrastructure is good news for charge point suppliers and operators such as Chargemaster, and we hope that some of this funding will be directed towards preparing network connections and reinforcing the electricity grid where required.

“We have already attracted private investment into the deployment of charge points across the UK, and having sufficient suitable sites at which to install them is important.

“As a British manufacturer of charge points, and the only company to make rapid chargers in the UK, we welcome the additional £40m of R&D funding for the EV charging sector, having already brought some of the most innovative charging products to market, such as our Ultracharge rapid charger.

“The Chancellor’s clarification that employees who charge their electric car at work will not face any benefit-in-kind taxation is great news, both for EV drivers and employers, giving businesses even more reason to install charging points at their premises for their employee, fleet and company vehicles.”