The number of electric vehicle charging points has declined in some parts of northern England since the beginning of 2025, Department of Transport figures have revealed.
Now, experts from LeaseLoco.com are calling for more to be done to upgrade EV infrastructure across the country.
The number of charging points per 100,000 of population has fallen slightly in the North East region since the beginning of January and now stands at 95.
Other northern regions are even less well-served, with the North West being equipped with only 69 charging points per 100,000 people and Yorkshire and the Humber region just 66.
The figures contrast starkly with London which enjoys 263 public charging points per 100,000 people.
Northern Ireland is lagging far behind the rest of the UK with the latest Department of Transport figures showing there are a meagre 35 charging points per 100,000.
In Scotland, the number of charging points per 100,000 is 123, and in Wales it is 104. The average across England is 115, but that number is massively concentrated in Greater London.
The new figures showed that the number of chargers has fallen in both the north east of England and Northern Ireland during the first three months of 2025, although across the UK as a whole it rose by four per cent, adding an additional 3,173 chargers – many in London.
However, the capital is less well-served than other parts of the country when it comes to fast charging points rated 50kW and above.
The government data shows there are only 15 of these per 100,000 people in London – lower than anywhere else in the country apart from Northern Ireland, where it is just 10.
The lack of fast chargers in London could be because most of the charging stations there are devices rated 3kW up to 8kW, which are located on residential streets.
A spokesman for Glasgow-based LeaseLoco said more should be done to standardise EV public charging provision across the entire UK.
He said: “The latest figures show some major discrepancies around the UK when it comes to EV infrastructure.
“London is far ahead of the rest of the country for the sheer number of public charging points available, this needs to be addressed because until provision is more standardised drivers will remain hesitant about making the switch to EVs.
“It’s concerning to see the number of charging points actually falling in both the north east of England and Northern Ireland during the first quarter of 2025. Clearly these areas need more investment, along with other parts of the north of England, to give EV drivers confidence.
“Unless drivers feel assured that the provision will be there when they travel to different corners of the UK in their cars the adoption of electric vehicles will be impacted.
“Uncertainty in infrastructure acts as a dampener on demand when it comes to electric vehicles so policy makers need to take a UK-wide view when it comes to planning new public charging points.”
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