WANT to be make sure you can charge your electric car at home? Then buy a new-build house in Swindon.

The council is proposing to update its guidance to to house builders about what they should provide per size of house, with the aim of making electric charging points more common.

Under the plan, every new house in the borough should have the infrastructure to put in a charging point.

For car parks at blocks of flats, one third must have charging points installed and another third must have the charging infrastructure in place to allow a charging point to be put in easily later.

Oliver Donachie, the cabinet member for economic development said: “Developers will be able to go over and above these minimum figures if they want.

"The idea is to give them an achievable requirement, so that there are a third of spaces ready to go. And like any of these things, once the infrastructure is in place, as demand goes, it’s easy to adapt.”

Coun Donachie said when the council asked people how they felt about electric cars, charging was one of the issues constraining them.

H said: “It’s how you do it at home. You can get a cable, and plug it in, but do you then have to have it running outside, and across the pavement, and people aren’t very comfortable with that.

“If the charging points are built in as the house goes up, then it gets much easier.”

Coun Donachie said he proposed the new standards to the council’s planning department, and was delighted when they agreed to put them in the new parking standards.

A report will be put to cabinet and will have to be ratified by councillors before they are adopted as part of the authority’s planning policies.

Gary Sumner, the cabinet member for strategic planning said: “We will also be setting standards for retail developments, which must have 10 per cent of spaces ready and another 10 per cent with the infrastructure laid on. For employment developments there must be a minimum of 20 spaces or 20 per cent of spaces.

“Swindon is pretty much ahead of the curve on this. We are ahead of most in generating 51 per cent of our electricity from renewables, and we’re taking the lead again.”

Labour councillor Jim Robbins, said: “We’d like to see the full details of these proposals rather than posts on social media, but I think we are broadly in favour.

“I’m a bit confused why another 30 per cent must have the wiring without the charging points, why not just put them in?”