Greater Manchester is seemingly leading the way when it comes to the gradual switch to electric cars across the country.
That’s according to global firm Howden Insurance and data pulled directly from the Department for Transport, anyway; they say that the region is at the forefront of the move away from traditional motoring, with the most electric cars of any place in the UK.
Using stats from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), there are more electric cars registered to drivers in Greater Manchester than any other British county, noting the most marked growing trend between 2009 and 2023.
In fact, over the course of that 12-year period, a total of 1,045,910 plug-in vehicles were registered by UK drivers, making up nearly a tenth of the roughly 13.5 million electric cars.
Breaking it down even more, specifically, Stockport was the town with the highest number of registered electric cars, boasting a total of 837,067 plug-ins, which itself makes up around 80% of the entire local authority’s EVs.
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And for the many of you that we’re sure are still saying ‘that’s Cheshire‘ – give it a rest.
Outer London came in second with just over 908k registered electric vehicles and our mates over in West Yorkshire landed the number three spot with around 625k, with The Hoot‘s hometown of Leeds welcoming electric cars the most (487,775 registered EVs).
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You can see the top 10 in the electric vehicle league table down below and consult the rest of the official government stats HERE.
Rank
Region
Number of plug-in cars registered between 2009 and 2023
1
Greater Manchester
1,045,910
2
Outer London
908,775
3
West Yorkshire
625,234
4
Inner London
620,365
5
West Midlands
580,289
6
Swindon
493,623
7
Milton Keynes
489,533
8
Slough
489,444
9
Peterborough
485,998
10
South Gloucestershire
333,315
The plug-in cars included all fuel types, body types and keepership types. (Credit: Howden Insurance)
A spokesperson for Howden commented on the findings: “With greater awareness of the impact of petrol and diesel vehicles on the planet, many local authorities are proposing to introduce clean air schemes.
“With the cost-efficiency of electric cars and local governments introducing EV benefits, interest in electric vehicles or low-emission vehicles has soared in the UK.
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“Areas such as the West Midlands and West Yorkshire have Clean Air Zones in Birmingham and Bradford, so these areas have invested more in EV charging points than other areas have done in order to accommodate electric vehicles.
Are you an electric car owner in Greater Manchester and would you recommend others to make the switch now or in the near future?
Hundreds of staff at four Greater Manchester hospitals to strike AGAIN next week
Emily Sergeant
Another round of strikes has been called at a handful of major Greater Manchester hospitals.
Amid ongoing disputes following the first set of strikes at the end of last month, it has now been announced that more than 350 Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust (NCA) employees – including nurses, clinical support workers and housekeepers – who are members of the union UNISON will once again walk out for three days next week.
According to the union, the dispute centres on the NCA’s use of an outside agency called NHS Professionals (NHSP) to manage overtime.
When covering staff shortages, workers are entitled to time-and-a-half pay – however in some cases, staff earn less than they would on a normal shift, and some have even been missing out on more than £80 per shift, the union added.
Operating theatre staff were previously on picket lines in June, and although an option to resolve the row was initially tabled by NCA bosses, this has now fallen through.
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week / Credit: Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
This means that staff at Salford Royal Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, and Fairfield Hospital in Bury are walking out next week on Monday 14, Tuesday 15, and Thursday 17 September.
The union’s North West regional organiser, Kevin Dolan, said the trust had given ‘no indication’ that it’s willing to re-enter negotiations, adding that operating theatre services were ‘chronically under-staffed’ and staff were choosing to work extra shifts to cover shortages.
Ahead of the August strikes, the trust declared a critical incident to help it secure extra support and keep urgent surgery running, while also announcing that some procedures would have to be postponed.
Understandably, some disruption is expected at each of the hospitals on strike days.
But Gertie Nic Philib, who is the chief people and strategy officer at the Northern Care Alliance, said that the trust will do ‘everything we can to minimise the impact on patients’ and ‘maintain high standards of care and quality at all times.’
“We also have contingency plans in place for emergency situations,” they concluded.
Featured Image – Pxhere
News
Stockport man jailed for life after kidnapping and sexually assaulting teenage girl
Emily Sergeant
A Stockport man has been sentenced to life in prison after kidnapping and sexually assaulting a teenage girl on her way home from the library.
Paul Sharpe has been sentenced to life imprisonment with an eight-year minimum term in prison after being convicted of a number of offences when subjected a teenage girl to what police called a ‘terrifying ordeal’ that lasted several hours back in May 2026.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) confirmed that the victim had been studying at Sale Library before beginning her journey home with friends at around 5:50pm and contacting her parents at 6:10pm to let them know she was on her way.
Twenty minutes later, she spoke to her boyfriend on the phone and said she was approximately five minutes away from home, but that her phone battery was about to die.
This was the last contact received from the victim that evening.
While walking along Bradgate Road in Altrincham, the victim noticed a grey Ford parked nearby and a man wearing a high-visibility jacket pressing doorbells in the area.
As she walked past, Sharpe approached her from behind, placed her in a headlock and threatened to stab her if she did not get into his vehicle.
Concerned that their daughter had not returned home, the victim’s family contacted police at 9:22pm to report her missing, and officers immediately launched an investigation to locate her.
Over the next several hours, the victim was subjected to and placed in a number of terrifying situations.
Sharpe drove the victim to several locations across Greater Manchester and Cheshire, before police located and arrested him at around 3:40am on 19 May 2026.
Following his arrested, 56-year-old Sharpe was convicted of kidnap, committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence, sexual assault, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, threats with a bladed article, and administering a noxious substance with intent to injure, annoy or aggrieve.
“This was a terrifying ordeal for a young girl who was simply making her way home,” explained Detective Inspector Karl Perry, from GMP’s Criminal Investigation Department.
“Sharpe targeted a vulnerable victim, subjected her to hours of fear and intimidation, and went on to sexually assault her.
“The victim has shown immense courage throughout the investigation and court proceedings. Through her bravery and actions, she no doubt made it harder for Sharpe to carry out whatever acts he had planned.”
Danny Jones -
22nd May 2024 
