I rise with great pleasure to speak on the Zero and Low Emission Vehicle Distance-based Charge Bill 2021, and I am smiling because, as the member for Footscray said, ultimately this bill, this framework, is about equality. It is about fairness. I know that my colleagues and I absolutely love coming to this place to talk about equality and fairness. We have had so many bills go through this house and the other place, bills that go to the heart of equality and fairness for all Victorians.

Now, I would love to talk about the equality and fairness in this bill, but what I am really afraid of is if I start talking about equality and fairness, that side of the chamber will empty pretty quickly. Because for the last 2½ years when we put bills through this house about fairness and equality, those opposite quite often cannot even be bothered to turn up to debate a bill about equality and fairness. So what I am going to talk about is the framework that this bill is actually creating. It is creating a greener future for our transport industry by raising revenue for electric vehicle infrastructure. It integrates zero- and low-emission vehicles or electric vehicles into our road maintenance system and it makes it possible for everyone to contribute to the infrastructure that Victorians need to create a greener future for our roads.

Electric vehicles are a growing market in this country, without a doubt, and that is a really good thing. We know it is critical to a low-carbon future. In fact we announced on the weekend just gone our renewable energy target of 50 per cent renewables by 2030. I want to reassure people who may be listening today that our government is committed to making sure that electric vehicles are more affordable. That is why we invested over $45 million last year in electric vehicle infrastructure. It is also why we are rolling out a fast-charge network on our major highways and at major tourist destinations. It is why we are looking into electrifying our buses and introducing EV infrastructure. Just last weekend we announced a subsidy of $3000 for electric vehicles, and we have a plan to have 50 per cent electric vehicle usage in 2030.

Victorians can be assured or excited—I think they should be excited—that this is just the beginning. There is so much more that we will see in this space. Achieving net zero emissions by 2050 is our government’s plan, and believe me, electric vehicles will play a role in that transition. This is something that Labor knows must happen, and this is why it is also pleasing to see that the federal Labor Party has announced it will cut tariffs and fringe benefits tax from electric vehicles, both of which would shave thousands of dollars off the cost of buying an electric vehicle.

That is in stark contrast to the federal Liberal government, who do not seem to have a clear plan for the future of electric vehicles in this country. Then again, I seem to remember, if I cast my mind back, that these kinds of policies were something that those opposite and their mates in Canberra compared to a war on the weekend. That was indeed quite bizarre. I think it is also bizarre that those opposite who oppose this bill are worried that the charge will undermine jobs and industry. They would not, by any chance, be talking about the car industry that their federal counterparts practically chased out of this country, a decision that was so reckless that Victorians are still paying for it. The fact is the commonwealth is not acting in this space. The whole nation knows the commonwealth is not acting in this space. And if they do not, what Victorians can be sure of is that our government, the Andrews Labor government, will.

Now, over the past couple of weeks I have received a number of emails—not a lot; just a couple—from constituents who have raised their concerns about this bill with me. I am really pleased to see that there are a couple of people in my community, both young and old, who are so passionate about the future of electric vehicles in this country, because I can wholeheartedly say, as someone who spends quite a bit of time on the roads in and around my electorate, that I do not see a lot of electric vehicles around the district of Tarneit.

A member interjected.

Ms CONNOLLY: There ain’t no Teslas, or not many, in the outer west.

People in my community have asked me why it is that we are introducing this charge and they have told me they are worried this is going to hurt the uptake of electric vehicles. Now, I want to be clear. This is not a tax on buying an electric vehicle, for God’s sake. It is a distance-based charge on the use of the roads by electric vehicles. This is not too dissimilar to internal combustion vehicles, owners of which pay a similar charge through the commonwealth fuel excise. We know that year by year the revenue brought in from the fuel excise goes down, and it continues to go down. At the same time we have an ambitious road infrastructure program whereby we have just seen the likes of $1.8 billion of roads right across the Tarneit electorate completed, and what we know in Tarneit, more than most, is that road infrastructure programs are ambitious and they cost a hell of a lot of money. What we have been told by experts is that if we do not implement a change like this, then the increased uptake of electric vehicles will work against the development of our transport network and our cities—livable cities, like Wyndham.

In fact what is worrying is, according to Professor David Hensher from the University of Sydney, that the lower operating costs of electric vehicles run the very real risk of increasing congestion significantly if governments continue to reject road pricing reform. With low costs to run and no price signal to minimise unnecessary travel, the roads of the future will be clogged. They will be run down faster than ever before. Now, when I think about my community in Tarneit, well, we rely extensively on our government investing in our roads, and the need for this charge becomes even clearer. Whilst we have effectively a fuel tax which allows petrol users to pay for our roads, we do not have anything similar for electric vehicles, so it does not stack up. And when the member for Footscray talks about fairness and equality, she is talking about how it does not stack up that introducing a charge on electric vehicles using the roads would hurt their uptake when they have a lower tax burden and still cost more than a regular combustion engine vehicle.

Ms Vallence: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, I just think the member is perhaps misleading the house, and the reason I say that is because it was quite clear in the bill briefing provided by the department that this revenue raised would not go to a road infrastructure fund. They expressly said, ‘No, it will go to consolidated revenue’. So I think the member is misleading the house.

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Evelyn, that is not a point of order.

Ms CONNOLLY: I have so much to say and so little time. What you ultimately have, in essence, is a system where wealthier Victorians who can afford the cost of an electric car then pay less than other road users in costs. We know the charge of charging an electric car can be far cheaper than refuelling a car with petrol, with some full charge costs being as high as $22. Compare that to filling a petrol tank at $1.50 per litre. As the member for Tarneit, a municipality where seven out of 10 people get in their cars for work and travel hours each day to get to their jobs, $1.50 per litre ends up costing a lot of money per week. On top of this, vehicles which use the standard internal combustion engine can cost up to $890 a year in charges and tax—not even considering the TAC charges that we pay in our registration fees. The need for a distance-based charge for EVs has been supported by a number of automobile bodies, including Roads Australia, who called it a sensible measure and said it was an important step in ensuring fairness in the road contribution system.

In finishing up in the 30-odd seconds I have got I will say that what this bill is about is ensuring that everyone fairly contributes to our roads, and if those opposite do not believe in fairness and equality and fairness in contribution towards our roads, then I am absolutely appalled. Our government stays committed to the rollout of electric vehicles in Victoria, and I look forward to seeing future announcements on ZLEV infrastructure investment. Not everyone is going to like this bill, but it is a step in the right direction, and I commend it to the house.