Savings of £28k per year are estimated for an 80-space car park.

Car ports and canopies are common in southern Europe but in the cooler north, much less so.

However, that may change as energy secretary Ed Milliband and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) may make it mandatory for all new carparks and possibly extend it to retrofitting existing carparks.

There is no doubt parking under cover would offer a more comfortable experience for vehicle occupants - getting into a boiling hot car is not one of the most pleasant things to do. But also, the generated electricity could power EV charging points and thus save an estimated £28k for an 80-space carpark!

At present DESNZ are determining the feasibility and cost of installing solar PV above parking spaces. The proposal could include supermarkets, shopping centres, and office buildings too.

Miliband said: "Right now, the sun is shining on hundreds of thousands of car parking spaces across the country which could be used to power our homes and businesses.

"We want to work with businesses and car park operators to turn our car parks into solar carports to save families and businesses money with clean, homegrown British energy."