Climate Change (Transport Funding) Bill
Rahui Katene, MP for Te Tai Tonga
Wednesday 1 July 2009; 5.50pm

When I travel the roads down South, it’d be rare to see one of those energy efficient, space-saver wonders like the Honda Jazz or the Toyota Hybrid.

That’s not to say the constituents of Te Tai Tonga wouldn’t support cars which are fuel efficient and environmentally friendly. It’s just a reality that smarter cars cost more.

The writing is on the wall that vulnerable communities will become even more threatened as oil gets more expensive.

The current predictions from the New Zealand Energy Strategy is that by 2020 only 5% of new car sales will be electric – that is after all only a decade away. But as the technology advances it is likely that the numbers of new car sales that will be electric will rise rapidly to 60% by 2040.

But you can bet your last dollar, that it won’t be our whanau driving away in these flash vehicles, no matter how much we believe in energy efficiency.

So we had a good look at this Bill, to see if there were any options by which the Maori Party could support in the pathway to sustainable transport.

The proposition in this Bill is to increase the amount of investment from the National Land Transport Fund to be spent on sustainable transport options rather than on roading.

I want to be clear, that the Maori Party is very supportive of the development of public transport options to respond to the dual challenges of peak oil and climate change.

In the medium-long term, public transport will benefit lower income earners by providing affordable transport as petrol costs continue to increase.

But we have to be real about these options.

There aren’t a lot of commuter trains between Murupara and Whakatane; or Ahipara and Kaitaia; or Hokitika and the Haast.

In fact, it’s a bit of a push to find a good bus service in the electorates in which we serve.

The energy-efficient trams and underground trains in Ontario are a long way away from our situation here.

Aotearoa is characterized by having:

¨ a high level of car ownership;

¨ a high proportion of used imported vehicles and a trend towards importing older, larger vehicles;

¨ low use of public transport use;

¨ and a limited rail network.

This transport profile is not sustainable.

With peak oil upon us, there is an urgent need to prepare for ongoing oil price increases and a future down turn in availability by providing people with affordable alternatives to private motor cars.

So our policy has always been that we will support improved public transport, in order to reduce carbon emissions and to reduce the nation’s dependency on oil in the face of peak oil production.

Transport emissions currently represent around half of emissions from the energy sector, and are growing at an unsustainable rate. Bold action is required.

This Bill falls into that long term plan, for transport spending to focus on sustainable and affordable alternatives.

The Bill also requires the Minister of Transport to report annually on the performance of the Act, including its operation in relation to “the goal of a safe, integrated, responsive and sustainable land transport system”.

This is an important goal, to be able to measure progress as it occurs. Simply by making the commitment that the Minister of Transport will monitor, review, and report annually on the state of land transport in New Zealand, we have made an important first step to improve the operations of our public transport system.

We need to develop strategies to invest in public transport which is frequent, reliable and inexpensive for users. Ideally, we must be able to investigate the purchase of fuel-efficient vehicles to lease or sell to low income earners at prices they can afford.

A final point in the favour of this Bill, is that we are aware that the labour intensity of public transport is higher than for roading.

And so we reiterate the vital need to consider ways in which Maori employment strategies can be introduced, in association with any investment in new infrastructure.

We end with the final word in the letter from the member sponsoring this Bill – “the outcome is what is important”.

We need to become ‘energy literate’ to properly evaluate energy options. We need to lessen our dependence on imported oil; and in doing that – we need to invest in sustainable transport options – services, infrastructure and education.

There is a lot to be done – so we better start now – and we therefore declare our support for this Bill.

ENDS

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