Grievance Debate

State Budget

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens) (15:16): It is pretty obvious to everyone in the chamber that the government has finally jumped the shark. When it comes to electric vehicles, I feel a lot of sympathy for the Minister for Energy. I can only imagine being told by the Treasurer that I have to implement and roll out a brand-new tax on electric vehicles. The Premier, in explaining that he is rolling out a new tax on electric vehicles, could not tell us even the basics about how this new tax will work.

Interestingly, this decision had been taken by the cabinet probably weeks ago because the cabinet papers were drawn up, printed and ready to be published today. Last week, the Premier stood up and talked about rolling out EV charging stations for plug-in cars across South Australia as if he were on some road to Damascus and had been converted to the prospect of renewable energy. What he did not say to anyone at that press conference is that he is also going to introduce a brand-new tax.

In the short time this has been public, this tax has been universally condemned around the country by groups that want to see the expansion of renewable energy and a transition away from fossil fuels towards a green low-carbon future, something that this opposition, in government, championed. We were champions of it and criticised because of it by the government.

I will leave the discussion about the EV tax to the future because I suspect we will see the Premier coming in with a backflip relatively soon. He is the type of person, in my experience, who will stand up to anything but pressure. When that pressure is applied, he will act as he has on every new tax he has applied. On land tax, he backflipped. He will backflip on this too. Of course, if he does not backflip, the Labor opposition stands ready to protect people who believe in the transition.

I also point out to the energy minister that, in the logic he is using, it would automatically remove the diesel rebate for every mining company that gets a diesel rebate for driving on roads that they build themselves because they do not contribute to other roads. If it is about a universal charge, sure, but that is not what it is about. I also point out to the government that fuel excise is not a state-based tax. We lost that argument in the High Court a long time ago. We lost that argument: it is exclusively a commonwealth charge.

What the government is talking about is introducing a new state-based charge on cars, the equivalent of a toll on electric vehicles. The minister today would not even rule out a government-mandated GPS in your car. Just think about what that means. I think the government and Treasury are again planning—I think ambitiously—in terms of revenue here, given the massive deficit the government is running. I suspect this project will not last long.

In my remaining two minutes I want to speak about South Road. I congratulate the government on finally coming up with a plan for South Road. It was the fourth iteration of their plans; they delayed it four times. Two ministers, three budgets and we are finally there, we finally know what they are planning to do in five years' time.

With that project beginning in five years' time, they need to go out and consult now. They need to be talking to people now in the western suburbs and the south-western suburbs about exactly what this means, because the graphics they have released are ambiguous and the information they have given is vague. People's anxiety levels have been relieved in some parts and elevated in others. The minister has met with some groups but not others.

The place now for the government is to treat everyone equally. Meet all groups. Give the parents in the member for Badcoe's seat the security they need; they need to know what is happening. The member for Badcoe will continue to fight for those residents and continue to stand up for those residents, but it is important that the government now be proactive: brief the member for Badcoe, brief the member for Elder, brief me on their plans.

Thus far we have heard nothing. We will find out more in estimates—at least I hope so, because the government has given us only half an hour for infrastructure. I wonder why Corey Wingard does not want much scrutiny.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for West Torrens' time has expired.