David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

POCOCK () (): My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Minister Watt. The price of petrol most Australians are paying has been sitting above $2 a litre for weeks. That means many Australian motorists are spending more than $100 a week, potentially more than $5,000 a year, on fuel. Adding insult to this cost, this huge expense is paid to multinational oil companies. What is the government doing to make sure Australians don't have to continue paying through the nose for transport?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator David Pocock. I know he has an interest in electric vehicles. In fact, we took a spin around parliament in an electric ute at one point last year. We are seeing tradies, along with many other people in the community, increasingly turn to electric vehicles as a way of relieving their cost-of-living pressures. I'm certainly aware that petrol prices are pretty high at the moment and they are putting pressure on family budgets, so assisting those families who wish to move across to electric vehicles is a key policy of the Albanese government.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's interesting, the people who are piping up: Senator Rennick, Senator Canavan. Who were the people who held us back for 10 years? It was characters like them. We've finally got to a point in this country where we have a government that doesn't run around saying that electric vehicles will end the weekend. There are more electric vehicles on the weekend. There are more electric vehicles on the weekdays as well. This government, as a result, Senator Pocock, has released Australia's first National Electric Vehicle Strategy, delivering on our commitment to provide greater choice for Australians to drive cars that are cleaner and cheaper to run.

Again, the coalition had 10 years in office to do something about electric vehicles, but, of course, all they did was run another scare campaign. It was up there with their $100 dollar lamb roasts. It was up there with ending the backyard barbecue. Electric vehicles were going to end the weekend. Well, every day when I get out on the roads, I see Teslas. I see other electric vehicles. Occasionally we get to have a weekend. We don't get a lot of weekends in this job, but a lot of Australians do, and the weekend has survived 10 years of the coalition in power and survived electric vehicles as well.

It is good to see the uptake of EV is continuing to increase, with recent figures showing that sales during the first half of this year have already passed the total from all the 2022. That's a good thing and it shows what can happen when you have a government supporting EVs.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Pocock, first supplementary.

David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Minister. It's good to hear that you have a strategy. I'm interested in the promise of fuel efficiency standards going into the last election. We're over a year in now. What is the time line for delivering them, because that is what will actually deliver for households who can't access electric vehicles through their business?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister Bowen, who of course is leading this effort with Minister King, has said that their goal is to release a draft fuel efficiency standard by the end of this year. I know that they have been meeting with a range of stakeholders on this issue, from the Electric Vehicle Council to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, to ensure they have a full cross-section of views. There are claims that you see being made from around that kind of area, saying fuel efficiency standards will increase the cost of cars, but yet again they are claims that don't stand up and are not supported by experience in the US or the EU, which have longstanding fuel efficiency standards.

What we've seen internationally is that fuel efficiency standards increase electric vehicle supply because they incentivise vehicle manufacturers to provide electric vehicles to our market to avoid penalties. As I said, the minister's intention is to release draft fuel efficiency standards by the end of this year, and there will be further consultation once that happens.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Pocock, second supplementary?

David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

ator DAVID POCOCK () (): It's great to hear that there is a time line. I've heard concern from stakeholders about just how long this is taking. Australia is the only OECD country without these. Russia and Australia are the two that have that mantle. We're not reinventing the wheel here. Why is it taking so long?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Good question—and the answer is right over there. There were 10 years of no action on this front, 10 years of running scare campaigns about electric vehicles, about renewables, about backyard barbecues, about lamb roasts, about Whyalla wipeouts. All those scare campaigns, and here's one of the chief offenders.

Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise on direct relevance. Senator Pocock asked a serious question that I would also like the answer to, and this minister continues to blame the opposition.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! That's a debating point. Minister, please continue.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's stunning that Senator McKenzie of all people should get up and ask for an answer on this. We know that they had 10 years to do something about this, but certain ministers—I won't name anyone—were a bit busy with colour-coded spreadsheets for 10 years. Maybe that's what they were putting their time into rather than fuel efficiency standards.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Pocock?

David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd also like to raise direct relevance. I asked about this government, not the former government.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Pocock, your question went to why it has taken so long. The minister is being relevant, but I will remind him that in the last couple of sentences he had drifted away from the question. I'll direct him back to the question.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Pocock, I would argue that, given when we came to office, we inherited zero work on the issue and had to start from scratch—as we did on so many other climate and energy related issues—the fact that by the end of this calendar year we intend to release a draft fuel efficiency standard is a good outcome. If the former government had done anything on this, it would have been a matter of implementing it, but we've had to start from scratch. I can assure you it is a priority for this government. (Time expired)