Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen is today addressing the federal governments’ proposed New Vehicle Efficiency Standards Scheme at the Smart Energy Conference. The following experts are available for comment on why Australia needs the proposed NVES.
Liam Davies - Senior Transport Analyst at the Institute for Sensible Transport, said:
‘’The design of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard is to increase the efficiency of the overall fleet in Australia - which will help cut fuel bills, reduce climate pollution, and give consumers greater choice in the kind of car they drive.
“Nowhere in the policy proposal does it target any individual brand, model or vehicle. Car manufacturers will continue to sell a mix of vehicles, just like they do today. The majority of the world has been moving towards a cleaner fleet that is cheaper to run for decades now - an effective New Vehicle Efficiency Standard will encourage our market to do the same’’.
Bryce Gaton - EV Educator and founder of EV Choice, said:
‘’The market is moving, and has been for decades. The New Vehicle Efficiency Standard sends a clear signal to automakers that it's time to offer Australians cleaner cars that are cheaper to run, like they are already doing overseas.
“Brands like Volkswagen, Hyundai and Kia are rolling with the times, happy for Australians to finally join that list of major markets that receive their best new cars. But laggards like Toyota are trying to stop Aussies from getting this access - they don’t want to give up the profit they’re making off dumping Australians with their most expensive, polluting vehicles.
“Every day we don’t have a smart fuel efficiency standard in place, Australians are being kept at the back of the queue for the best new cars, and missing out on cheaper bills and cleaner air’’.
Contact details:
Jemimah Taylor, 0478 924 425, jemimah.taylor@climatemediacentre.org.au
