The Government believes that low carbon transportation lies at the heart of a modern transport system and that will drive its approach to fleets in future.

The new Secretary of State for Transport, Lord Adonis, showed how important the issue is when he made his first public speech at an event dedicated to low carbon vehicles this month.

He emphasised the Government’s commitment to low carbon transport and why this will drive change in the industry, providing a strong lead for fleet operators on what they can expect in the future.

He said: “People need, want and have the right to travel and for many – particularly for those living outside major cities – travelling by car is an essential part of everyday life.

“But we all acknowledge the significant negative impact of road vehicles on the environment and the need to reduce this in the future.

“Climate change is everyone’s business – and the Government is absolutely serious about tackling it.”

The Government has signed up to a legally binding target to cut all greenhouse gases by at least 80% by 2050. Lord Adonis admits this is both a challenge and an opportunity for the automotive industry.

It is a challenge because it means change, not just through evolution of current ideas, but by a revolution in transport thinking if targets are going to be met.

That means swift changes, directed by powerful influences such as taxation, will change the way businesses approach transport and the type of transport they use.

Lord Adonis said: “Over the past century the internal combustion engine has dominated the manufacture of vehicles.

"But it has also left its mark on the environment – this country’s road vehicles alone account for 19% of our domestic CO2 emissions.

"So, for the automotive industry, indeed for all of us, finding ways to cut vehicle emissions is not an optional extra – it is an absolute necessity.”

The Government’s strategy is to push forward the development, manufacture and purchase of so-called ultra-low carbon vehicles.

That strategy has five key strands focused on supporting the automotive industry, investing in low-carbon vehicle technology, providing incentives for consumers, creating the right infrastructure and working in partnership with key industry sectors, including the fleet market.

Overall, this represents billions of pounds of Government investment in changing the way we think.

Lord Adonis points to the type of transport that is clearly in pole position to replace current standard diesel and petrol options in future.

He said: “We all want motorists to embrace cleaner and greener vehicles, but the reality we face is that electric and plug-in hybrids are simply not yet available in anything like significant numbers.

"I recognise that there are examples of such vehicles that are light years away from the traditional image of strange looking and poor performing electric cars.

“So our challenge is to accelerate that transition from outdated stereotypes to cutting-edge prototypes.”

And where there is a will, there is normally a very large cheque – in this case up to £250 million – to fund grants of up to £5,000 to reduce the cost of electric or plug-in hybrid cars when they hit the showrooms from 2011 onwards.

Lord Adonis added: “The scale of these incentives will not only make these cars a viable and practical alternative, they will also enable this country to be a low carbon trail-blazer and a global pace-setter.”

This isn’t just an ambition for cars, but also for vans, as recent research suggests that CO2 emissions from new vans could be reduced by around 17% if all van buyers chose the most fuel efficient model in its class.

The Government is ploughing tens of millions of pounds into procurement schemes for the public sector so it can take on cleaner vans too, in the hope that this green buying trend will encourage the private sector to join in.

Currently there are around 26 million cars on this country’s roads. Less than 0.1% of them are electric and the recharging infrastructure is almost non-existent.

But there are two solutions to that. Firstly, everyone has access to electricity at home, so recharging batteries overnight before a day’s driving is a real option.

Lord Adonis said: “One way of encouraging motorists to switch from the pump to the plug is to put in place the initial infrastructure needed to help make travelling by ultra-low carbon vehicles a real option for consumers.

“I don’t believe that means we should be rushing headlong into assuming the installation of charging infrastructure should always be led by Government.

“For one thing, there is evidence that many motorists could re-charge at home. Indeed, research by Transport for London suggests that 50% of Londoners have access to off-street parking and, therefore potentially, to recharging points.”

He added that there were also clearly opportunities for charging points at workplaces, petrol stations, supermarkets and shopping centres.

Lord Adonis added: “In the coming years, our ambitious agenda must embrace the public and private sectors both central and local government and all departments of central government, to the low carbon cause.

“All of us – Government and business, infrastructure providers and motor manufacturers – will need to work together to increase the number of ultra-low carbon vehicles on our roads.”

In the past 12 months, many fleets were able to shift to a sub-160g/km vehicle policy to take advantage of capital allowance changes that encouraged the shift to greener cars.

With the Government determined to push forward with further reductions, the industry is on a journey that will lead to sub-100g/km fleets becoming a viable option within the next few years.