Matt Thistlethwaite (Kingsford Smith, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for the Republic) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Australians are missing out on the opportunity to buy cheaper model electric vehicles. It's a result of state and federal government policies which clearly discourage Australians from purchasing EVs. The Electric Vehicle Council of Australia says that Australia is the most hostile market environment for electric vehicles in the world. The managing director of Volkswagen Australia says the federal government's policy settings are 'embarrassing'. It means Australians aren't able to buy popular mid-priced models of electric vehicles sold in North America and Europe. That's because demand for electric vehicles outstrips supply in the bigger markets that are more supportive of a transition to cleaner technology. Some of the big car manufacturers say they don't want subsidies from the federal government; what they want is policy certainty around cleaner vehicle emissions standards in Australia, while from state governments they're looking for planning guidelines that make sure new public buildings come with charging stations.

Australians are now missing out on the opportunity for cheaper motoring and a cleaner environment. Only 0.12 per cent of vehicles registered in Australia are EVs. That's just over 20,000 on our roads. Even New Zealand has more EVs registered, with over 25,000 cars. We know that, in 2020, electric vehicles made up just 0.75 per cent of new car sales in Australia. That's way below the global average of 4.2 per cent last year. By comparison, the United Kingdom EV sales were 10.6 per cent of new car sales last year, with similar sales in the European Union. In Norway, more than half of the vehicles that were sold in 2020 were electric vehicles.

It's clear that the handbrake is being put on electric vehicle sales in our nation. Those Australians who are buying EVs are paying too much for them, because there is no federal government plan to encourage the transition to cleaner vehicle technology. Australians pay more in taxes for EVs than people in just about any other country in the world. There is also very little public infrastructure to support EVs, with only 1,219 charging sites throughout Australia and only 157 fast chargers. In contrast, California has 32,000 charging sites, while the United Kingdom has 13,000.

There is no national plan to encourage and deal with an increase in EVs. That's seen some of the states introduce retrograde taxes on electric vehicles that discourage purchases of the new technology. The Victorian and South Australian government's 2½c per litre tax on EVs with assessment through logbooks provides no incentive for motorists to purchase an EV. We need leadership through the federal government. This means a national plan for a transition to electric vehicles. Australia needs better emission standards, support for public charging infrastructure and encouragement for manufacturers to supply in Australia. We also need national coordination on road user charging, to avoid variations in state taxes, along with changes to planning laws. (Time expired)