May's 拢106m drive to push green vehicles

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, A Nissan Leaf uses a charging point in Stockport

New funding of more than 拢100m to develop low and zero-emission vehicles in the UK has been announced by Theresa May.

The prime minister told the Zero Emission Vehicle Summit in Birmingham she wanted Britain to be a leader in green technology.

The 拢106m funding boost will also cover research and development for new battery and hydrogen technology.

Mrs May said the government had an "ambitious mission".

"Our Road to Zero Strategy is the most comprehensive plan globally - mapping out in detail how we will reach our target for all new cars and vans to be effectively zero-emission by 2040," she said.

"These measures will drive the design, use, uptake and infrastructure necessary for cleaner, greener vehicles - and in doing so, it will help us drastically reduce a major contributor to our global warming emissions."

Mrs May was also holding round-table talks on developing the zero-emissions market and attracting more foreign investment to the UK at the summit.

The talks involve supply-chain companies from Germany, the US, Japan, China, Spain and India.

The government also launched an international initiative aimed at speeding up the deployment of green vehicles and introduction of zero-emission infrastructure.

The first signatories to the so-called "Birmingham deceleration" include Italy, France, Denmark, the UAE, Portugal, Belarus and Indonesia.

The summit was also attended by International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, Transport Secretary Chris Grayling and Business Secretary Greg Clark.