Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Energy Affordability) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The new vehicle efficiency standard—the tradie tax or the family car tax, as we call it—will hit everyday Aussies hard. This is why I supported the motion moved today by the member for Fairfax to refer the bills introduced by the transport minister to a committee process. We need more time to scrutinise what the impacts of this policy will be on tradies, families, farmers and small-business owners. Western Sydney is the home of tradies. Tradies get up before the crack of dawn to drive their utes to worksites across Sydney. Our tradies need utes for their work. They need to take tools and supplies to build new homes to get us out of this housing crisis. They need equipment to build hospitals, roads and schools to help ease the intense population pressures we are facing in Western Sydney. They are facing so many increases in supply costs. This would be another hit to Aussies trying to get by.

Some favourites on the market for tradies include the Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux and the Isuzu D-MAX. Why on earth, in this cost-of-living crisis, is the Albanese Labor government making tradies pay more for buying these utes they need for work? Why should tradies effectively subsidise electric vehicles for others? We on this side of the House will back in our tradies every single day of the week. We are seeing the trades sector get back to business as best they can after a tough few years, and this tradies tax will harm too many of our tradies and their small businesses.