Julie Anne Genter’s signature car tax isn’t winning the public over, with 69 per cent of submissions opposed to her proposal, National’s Transport spokesperson Chris Bishop says.

“The Associate Transport Minister has trumpeted that her car tax proposal is ‘winning favour with submitters’ but the facts don’t bear that out.

“Figures supplied by her office reveal most Kiwis rejected Labour’s car tax during public consultation, with 1860 of 2687 submissions opposed to it.

“This isn’t a surprise to National. We’ve said from the start that it’s not fair to make families pay thousands more for a used seven-seater van while wealthy executives get discounts on a Tesla Model 3.

“Treasury also warned the Minister that her car tax would unfairly punish New Zealanders for whom low-emission vehicles don’t exist to suit their jobs or lifestyle – all for a 0.09 per cent reduction in emissions over 20 years.

“The Minister has also revealed that announcements on whether or not the car tax will proceed won’t be made until 2020 now. Perhaps she’s finally realising that it’s bad policy.

“The fact remains that after more than two years in Government, and many more years of talking while in Opposition, Julie Anne Genter has not changed a single policy setting relating to electric vehicles from the previous Government.

“National will continue to oppose Labour’s car tax. We believe financial incentives, not penalties, are the best way to support this country’s shift to electric vehicles.”

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