Is the Government Set To Gut The Clean Car Standard?

A new Bill being rushed through Parliament under urgency is evidently part of the Coalition Government’s plan to weaken the Clean Car Standard. That would see New Zealand importing more ICE power vehicles that would push up fuel bills, according to Kathryn Trounson, Chair of the Better New Zealand Trust.

The Clean Car Standard (CCS) sets targets for emissions of imported vehicles and these tighten over time. Importers of high emissions vehicles pay fines which they can offset by also importing low emitting vehicles. The CCS was introduced in 2023 to work alongside the Clean Car Discount. However, the Coalition Government scrapped the latter at the end of 2023.

Now the Government is moving to pass the Land Transport (Clean Vehicle Standard) Bill through Parliament under Urgency. This law would repeal the Clean Car targets and let the Minister of Transport set new ones without significant public consultation.

In a Scoop.co.nz item, Ms Trounson says: “The Government has been talking behind closed doors with vehicle manufacturers who want to dump their inefficient vehicles in New Zealand. We were shocked to learn Minister Simeon Brown directed the Ministry of Transport to conduct a secret review of the Clean Car Standard and only talk to advocates for dirty vehicles.

“Now, the Government is pushing through a law designed to gut the Clean Car Standard. That would remove the penalty for importers who bring in gas guzzlers and undercut importers of efficient vehicles.

“Since the Clean Car Discount was removed, the average emissions of new imports has shot up. EV sales have plummeted and importers are focusing on inefficient models instead.

“The Clean Car Standard is the one tool remaining to force importers to focus on more fuel efficient vehicles. If the Government weakens the standard for future years, it will mean higher petrol consumption and higher emissions.

“When inefficient gas guzzlers are brought into New Zealand, they stay in the fleet for decades. We estimate that just four years of a frozen Clean Car Standard will result in 3.5 billion more litres of petrol and diesel being consumed by those new imports over their lives. That will cost Kiwi families and the country billions.

“The future of transport is electric, which will both save New Zealand billions each year in oil imports and reduce our emissions. But this government seems determined to drag us back into the past,” says Kathryn Trounson.