Illawarra Greens. Social justice, environmental sustainability, peace and non-violence and grassroots democracy.

Electric cars: plug in before we're left behind, Greens say

The party's policy is to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2030, while subsidising electric cars and spending $150 million on fast charging infrastructure.

Read the report in The Illawarra Mercury, 9 May 2019

Electric cars: plug in before we're left behind, Greens say

GREEN POWER: Rowan Huxtable and Jamie Dixon with electric car enthusiast Tom Hunt and the campaign caravan. Picture: Anna Warr.
GREEN POWER: Rowan Huxtable and Jamie Dixon with electric car enthusiast Tom Hunt and the campaign caravan. Picture: Anna Warr.

While Scott Morrison and Bill Shorten are getting around the country in big buses, the Illawarra Greens' campaign chariot is a more modest retro bubble caravan - towed by an electric car.

The party's policy is to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2030, while subsidising electric cars and spending $150 million on fast charging infrastructure.

Greens candidate for Whitlam Jamie Dixon said Australians would be left driving obsolete vehicles unless electric car charging infrastructure was installed as a priority.

"Electric cars can travel long distances, be used by tradies, and for long weekends - as long as we have the infrastructure to support them," he said.

The NRMA is advocating for a ban on the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2030

Greens candidate for Whitlam Jamie Dixon

"The NRMA is advocating for a ban on the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2030. They are investing $10m in fast charging stations on major highways. However, the federal government is doing very little except trying to run a scare campaign on electric vehicles."

Rowan Huxtable, Greens candidate for Cunningham, said several countries will ban petrol and diesel cars within two decades.

"It's clearly poor economic management to persist with fossil fuel powered vehicles when we can use Australian made solar energy that doesn't cause climate change," he said.