Politics & Council
20 March, 2024
Electric Vehicle push to drive up Mallee road user costs, says Webster
Mallee MP Anne Webster has called Labor’s push for Electric Vehicles reckless and largely unsuitable for regional road users. In a statement, Dr Webster says Mallee motorists will be cross subsidising the huge discounts the Australian Automobile...
Mallee MP Anne Webster has called Labor’s push for Electric Vehicles reckless and largely unsuitable for regional road users.
In a statement, Dr Webster says Mallee motorists will be cross subsidising the huge discounts the Australian Automobile Association (AAA) says will be necessary to achieve Labor’s rushed switch to Electric Vehicles. The price of an Electric Vehicle may have to be on average $31,000 below an equivalent petrol car and up to $47,000 below the cost of a diesel ute to encourage motorists to make the change.
“Mallee road users will pay more for their family car or farm ute under Labor’s new Fuel Efficiency Standard,” Dr Webster said.
“Nobody opposes Fuel Efficiency Standards but Labor’s crazed rush to implement them by January 1 despite the impact on the market and manufacturers is causing problems. This analysis lays bare how much taxpayers will be forking out for Labor’s green dream and how much to subsidise Electric Vehicles in the inner city. It seems Energy Minister Chris Bowen is happy to drive up costs for Mallee families to meet renewables targets.”
Dr Webster said with inadequate charging infrastructure and concerns over battery life Electric Vehicles will remain largely unsuitable for Mallee drivers.
“We all support lowering emissions, but Labor fails to acknowledge the practical reality in electorates such as Mallee,” Dr Webster said. “In the midst of a cost-of-living crisis families cannot be forced to pay more for vehicles that won’t cut the mustard for their day-to-day needs.”
Labor’s ideological and political push is driving rushed and ill thought through policies, such as the Electric Vehicle push, the reckless renewables rollout of wind and transmission line projects compromising prime agricultural land and pristine native bushland, which heaps more pain on Mallee voters.
“Labor pushes its ideology on Australians and talks down to anyone who doesn’t agree with them,” Dr Webster said.
“They are distracted from real solutions by their great white renewables hope. From their wasteful referendum on a Voice to Parliament, their flat-out denial and fear mongering over Nuclear Energy being part of the solution to Australia’s energy crisis, when there are 80 countries in the world that are building or will build nuclear in the next two to three decades. In fact, of our fellow 15 nations with the largest GDP only India, Turkey and Australia do not use Nuclear Energy.”
“Regular Australians will be left to foot the bill for Labor’s missteps and poor policy.”