Ontario won't commit to electric vehicle rebates as it promotes electric vehicle production
Ontario's Progressive Conservative government isn't committing to an electric vehicle (EV) rebate program, even as the Premier promises to make the province a leading manufacturer of electric vehicles over the next decade.
Premier Ford revealed a new strategy Wednesday to build 400,000 electric and hybrid vehicles in Ontario by the year 2030, capitalizing on the growing demand for fuel-free means of transportation.
While Ford suggested that the attitude towards rebates is evolving, the government is sending strong signals that Ontario drivers won't receive a rebate to purchase an Ontario-made electric vehicle.
"Let's see what the market dictates," Ford said.
In 2018, shortly after taking office, the premier cancelled the $14,000 electric vehicle rebate offered by the former Liberal government claiming the money would only help millionaires purchase expensive electric vehicles.
The government is now being urged to bring back the rebates to convince more drivers to ditch their gas-powered vehicles and go electric, which the NDP believes would help the premier's electric vehicle production pivot.
"An electric vehicle strategy requires more than just manufacturing batteries," said NDP MPP Peggy Sattler. "We need the charging stations, we need the rebate, we need a government that is willing to show the leadership that's necessary to move Ontario forward to a green economy."
However, several cabinet ministers and their offices wouldn't commit to either bringing back the rebate, or EV charging stations, which are also seen as key to increasing uptake.
Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy was evasive about a rebate program when asked about it several times at the Ontario Legislature.
"We're very motivated to bring electric vehicle production to this province and replace some of the manufacturing jobs that we lost," Bethlenfalvy told CTV News Toronto.
When asked whether charging stations would be built by the provincial government, Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney said "it is something we're definitely looking at."
Meanwhile, Environment Minister David Piccini's office emailed CTV News to highlight data from Statistics Canada that showed sales of electric vehicles in 2021 are at an all time high, up 210 per cent from the same time last year.
"It is worth noting that sales are increasing without an incentive and that an incentive only benefitted very wealthy people who could afford these cars with or without a rebate," a spokesperson for Piccini said in the email.
That same data, however, shows a total of 25,353 electric or hybrid vehicles were sold in Ontario in the first half on 2021, representing just shy of eight per cent of all vehicles sold during that time.
In 2020, 4.5 per centof the 600,612 vehicles sold in Ontario were electric or hybrid.
Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner says incentivizing drivers to switch to electric should be a priority for the province especially with gas prices at record highs.
"You can operate an electric vehicle at one-tenth the cost of an internal combustion vehicle," Schreiner told reporters at Queen's Park.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
Sask. father found guilty of withholding daughter to prevent her from getting COVID-19 vaccine
Michael Gordon Jackson, a Saskatchewan man accused of abducting his daughter to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, has been found guilty for contravention of a custody order.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
'It could be catastrophic': Woman says natural supplement contained hidden painkiller drug
A Manitoba woman thought she found a miracle natural supplement, but said a hidden ingredient wreaked havoc on her health.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
The Body Shop Canada explores sale as demand outpaces inventory: court filing
The Body Shop Canada is exploring a sale as it struggles to get its hands on enough inventory to keep up with "robust" sales after announcing it would file for creditor protection and close 33 stores.
Vicious attack on a dog ends with charges for northern Ont. suspect
Police in Sault Ste. Marie charged a 22-year-old man with animal cruelty following an attack on a dog Thursday morning.
On federal budget, Macklem says 'fiscal track has not changed significantly'
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says Canada's fiscal position has 'not changed significantly' following the release of the federal government's budget.