Prime Minister Scott Morrison has alleged in two media interviews that Labor’s electric vehicle policy in the 2019 general election included plans to increase fuel prices to discourage gasoline car drivers.
Labor did not, however, have such a policy. Rather, the opposition planned to introduce average emissions standards for new vehicles, along with other measures to encourage the introduction of electric vehicles (EV), which may also require the introduction of higher quality fuels but did not include a stated plan to increase gasoline prices.
The prime minister’s claim relates to Labor’s 2019 election promise that electric vehicles would account for 50 percent of new car sales by 2030, a policy that Morrison called a “war on the weekend” at the time. On November 9, 2021, the Morrison government announced its own plans to increase the adoption of low-emission vehicles in Australia.
When asked on Nov. 11 how the government’s new policy differs from Labor’s 2019, Morrison told Channel 7’s Sunrise program, “They (Lab) would raise the price of fuel … try to get people to switch to force.”
Mr Morrison reiterated his claim during an interview on Channel 9’s Today show that same day, saying, “I mean, their (laboratory) electric vehicle policy was about raising the price of gasoline to force people to switch” .
The Prime Minister’s office did not respond to one AAP fact check Requests for information on the basis of Mr Morrison’s claim.
Labor’s EV policy ahead of the 2019 elections was summed up in a press release by Bill Shorten on April 1, 2019. The directive includes “a national target of 50 percent new car sales by 2030” and a goal that 50 percent of new government cars would be electric by 2025, among other things.
The statement also stated that Labor “would also aim to introduce (emission) standards of 105g CO2 / km for light vehicles,” which would be considered the average for retailers. These standards could be met by retailers who offset the sale of high-emission cars by selling vehicles such as electric vehicles.
The only mention of gasoline prices in the news release is a promise that Labor “will help Australians save their gas bills”. Likewise, a policy paper detailing the plans does not mention rising fuel prices in order to encourage the diffusion of more efficient or electric vehicles.
However, it suggests that the lack of emissions standards for vehicles in Australia means Australians are paying more for gasoline than they should, and adds that better standards give retailers an added incentive to sell electric vehicles, and therefore lower prices for them the cars would offer.
AAP fact check could find no evidence in news articles, speeches, or Labor policy documents from the year before the opposition’s election that ever suggested hikes in fuel prices to encourage electric vehicle purchases.
For example, Labor 2018’s national platform, which outlined the party’s key priorities ahead of the 2019 general election, said the party would “support public and private fleets in the transition to low-emission or zero-emission vehicles,” but made no mention of a policy to increase gasoline prices .
On April 1, 2019, in a doorstep interview about electric vehicles, President Bill Shorten mentioned fuel prices, but only in the context of reducing consumer spending on gasoline.
“It is time we reduced the cost and burden of driving gasoline cars and the associated fuel costs,” he said in an interview. Mr. Shorten also went into the subject of electric cars and gasoline prices in an interview on May 1, 2019, arguing that electric vehicles “save your gasoline bills”.
During the election campaign, Mr Morrison argued that Labor’s proposed emissions standards for cars would lead to more expensive vehicles, and also raised concerns that it was not known what effect the policy would have on fuel prices.
“If Bill Shorten cannot explain his policy or will not explain his policy and what it means for the price of a car and the price of gasoline, then you are not voting for it,” he said on April 11, 2019.
Two days earlier, Mr Morrison said the “Labor policy on fuels … will also drive up gasoline prices” after promising the coalition would not follow the “mandatory path” proposed by Mr Shorten to higher vehicle emissions standards . He did not explain at the time how Labor policies would lead to the alleged gasoline price hike.
During the election campaign, the auto industry lobby warned that Labor would not be able to introduce its improved emissions standards without the availability of higher quality fuels.
A government impact assessment published in August 2018 found that improved fuel standards would make it possible to bring better engine and emissions control technologies to Australia. His preferred option, which would allow the country to align with European emissions standards, would lead to an increase in fuel prices of around 1 cent per liter in the medium term. Fuel standards are currently being reviewed by the coalition government.
The judgment
Labor’s electric vehicle policy in 2019 did not include a plan to hike gasoline prices to force people to buy electric cars. Instead, the federal opposition proposed average emissions standards for new cars as one of several measures to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles. These standards could require better quality fuels, which would result in a possible price spike – however, the extent to which this would happen is unknown and the link to Labor’s EV policy is tangential.
Not correct – The claim is incorrect.
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