Oldham 'falling behind' as demand for electric vehicle charging points grows

Oldham Liberal Democrat Leader, councillor Howard Sykes MBE

Council plans to increase electric vehicle usage across Oldham Borough have been labelled as “ineffective and empty words” by Oldham’s Liberal Democrats after it emerged that Oldham has just 36 charging points and has missed key opportunities to expand its supply.

Oldham Liberal Democrat councillors have previously raised concerns about the Labour controlled Council’s strategy for electric vehicles, pointing out existing plans would not be good enough if Oldham is to reach the key target of 3,000 charging points by 2025.

Oldham Liberal Democrat Leader councillor Howard Sykes MBE said: “Labour have dragged their heels on this for too long now. 

"We have Mayor Burnham rolling ahead with Clean Air Zone plans that will make electric vehicles ever more important, but lack of action from our Labour controlled council has led to Oldham falling far behind other Manchester boroughs. 

"If this crucial infrastructure is not put in place quickly, Oldham will be left behind on yet another issue.”

In March, Lib-Dems criticised Oldham Council for failing to incorporate electric charging points into the new Saddleworth School, raising further questions about council leadership priorities.

Cllr Sykes added: “Failure to make use of opportunities to expand our capacity like we saw with Saddleworth School, Uppermill Leisure Centre and the Saddleworth Museum just demonstrate the council simply don’t understand the urgent need to get the basics right. 

"All we have had is ineffective, empty words and no meaningful action.”

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