NZ Government kill electric cars just when we need more electric cars
Verity Johnson is one of the best columnists in NZ, and she makes the devastating point that the NZ Government kill electric cars just when we need more electric cars…
This would be the week to drive an EV. Thanks for nothing, coalition
But unlike 1979, we now have EVs. Except, well, actually you probably don’t. Because the Government spent the last two years systemically punching NZ’s car electrification movement in the face. Then, when it was out cold on the pavement, kicking it in the head.
I wasn’t a massive fan of the last Labour Government’s efficiency. (A for effort, D for delivery.) But it deserved a gold star for the Clean Car Discount Scheme. Since it was phased in mid 2021, it actually got Kiwis out of fossil fueled cars and into EVs. We sold 20,000 new EVs in 2022, and about 26,000 in 2023.
Then the Coalition came in like a jealous, insecure new boyfriend. It threw it out like it had caught the scheme sending us nudes at 2am.
Then they dragged EVs into the road user charge net (which they’d previously been exempt from to incentivise EV uptake.) And then in late 2025, they slashed the penalties under the Clean Vehicle Standard (which had pressured importers to import low emission cars.) Now they may get rid of the Clean Car Standard altogether.
Quelle surprise, the EV market imploded. We sold a limp 9000 in 2025. If we’d have kept going with the discount, it’s estimated we’d have an extra 30,000 more EVs on the road right now. Now that’s not everyone, sure. But that is still 30,000 more households who’d be less stressed this week filling up the tank.
Stuff
… she is right.
Right wing Governments have bent over backwards fro the Trucking Lobby by expanding weights that ruin our roads and stymie rail to ensure the Trucking monopoly.
Electric Car subsides were weaponised as a culture war target as National, ACT and NZF men and women roared their masculinity to drive Utes as if it were a sexual fetish.
Well, we killed off electric car subsides (because they were woke) and now we all face being crucified by rising petrol prices.
Remember, Luxon got the EV subsidy for his wife’s Tesla, and was attempting to get it for himself until it was pointed out how hypocritical it would be.
You should all be very very vey angry at this Government and their desire to play to culture war grievances rather than common good political leadership.
The dumbest, most spiteful, most non- critical thinking, most poorly educated, economically naive, economically ignorant, economically clueless, childish government since Ruth Richardson’s ignorant destructive Chicago School of Economics budget in the early ’90s that set the country back so far that it’s never recovered..
Well done N.Z. for voting this lot in!
Do it again and you deserve all you get!!
EV were not a fight with the general public dispute their pluses from an environmental sense and now economic sense .The motor industry in Europe wrote off 91 billion in loses due to EV uptake not meeting expectation.
Priceless.
Willis slams the “millionaire” EV subsidies while Liz Truss-style BORROWING to fund tax cuts for millionaire landlords and billionaire tobacco companies, and cutting social services.
Best managers of the economy? Fuck no.
The National Economic Mismanagement Party can always be counted on to deepen a recession.
Exactly Ximonde. The Finance Minister that does nothing but give breaks to the well-to-do, uses that bullshit excuse to justify the governments seemingly bogan petrol head stance. The idea is to convert vehicles not pick and choose. Guess what Nicola those rich folk probably have multiple vehicles and don’t really care either way. There’s a lot of people that would rather not pay high prices for gas but as these complete wankers are removing clean car standards it appears they are trying to keep really cheap gas cars available. It’s like giving away the razor to sell the blades.
Yes they killed Labour’s EV scheme but the bald ones wife took advantage and got her a subsided vehicle after the sorted PM and his party trashed and crashed the policy.