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Tucked into the government\u2019s signature tariff relief package announced Friday was a pause on Canada\u2019s Electric Vehicle Availability Standard<\/a> until 2027 and a 60-day review of the policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The move certainly hasn\u2019t gone unnoticed, with climate groups worrying this new Liberal government might abandon its climate efforts policy by policy while American automaker lobbyists call for the standard\u2019s full repeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Canadians who believe that shifting to clean energy is generally a good thing, the situation boils down to two questions in need of clear answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One is why this particular policy is the solution we need. And the second is, if we keep it, whether and how the policy should change in a new political environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since the first question is existential, let\u2019s start with why Canada\u2019s EV Availability Standard needs to stay in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The EV standard has always been first and foremost a policy for consumers. As the regulation ramps up requirements on automakers to offer more electric vehicles over time, carmakers are incentivized to produce lower-priced models to meet more of the market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One study<\/a> found the policy would reduce the average price of electric vehicles by 20 per cent, while another<\/a> showed that jurisdictions with EV mandates see more EV models offered than those without (like the new Kia EV5<\/a> coming to Canada but not the U.S.).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, some have suggested<\/a> that Canada should merely use another policy, its U.S.-aligned tailpipe emission standards, to get cleaner cars on the road instead. The problem with that idea is the perennial problem of 2025: Donald Trump, who just introduced a bill<\/a> to scrap these Biden era standards and is also going after<\/a> the EPA\u2019s authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions altogether. There will very likely not be any U.S. standards to align with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Canada\u2019s EV Availability Standard is the only policy Canada has to regulate cleaner cars on the books post-2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Other ideas that have been put forward \u2014 that we should just invest in public EV charging or include conventional hybrids in the policy \u2014 fail to replicate the mandate\u2019s transformational nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Charging is important, but it\u2019s also a non-issue for most EV drivers. The vast majority of charging already happens at home where it\u2019s cheapest and most convenient and Canada\u2019s public network is growing rapidly: over the last year, the network grew by about 25 per cent, with tens of thousands of additional chargers already federally funded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In fact, one of the best ways to support private sector investment in Canada\u2019s public charging network is to keep the EV mandate in place. Utilities integrate EV targets into their electricity demand projections, while charging station providers use them to determine whether the business case will pencil out if they invest in charging in certain areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Indeed, a recent<\/a> PBO<\/a> report<\/a> found that the policy would get us almost entirely to where the charging network needs to be by 2030 simply by unlocking private sector investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As for conventional hybrids, they are not a long-term climate solution, nor where the world is headed. As EV adoption stumbles in North America, it\u2019s accelerating globally, with more than 1-in-4 cars sold this year projected to be electric worldwide<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to Electric Mobility Canada, a Honda Civic Hybrid driven in Quebec would emit 365 times<\/a> as much CO2 per kilometre as a Hyundai Ioniq 6 EV for most of its lifespan (including manufacturing emissions).<\/p>\n\n\n\n In short, Canada needs and benefits from its Electric Vehicle Availability Standard. That doesn\u2019t mean it can\u2019t adapt to a new reality, however.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prime Minister Mark Carney has made clear<\/a> that one of his top priorities is \u201cBringing down costs for Canadians and helping them to get ahead.\u201d A thoughtful retooling of the program could deliver on this promise, significantly easing the second-biggest household cost<\/a> Canadians endure, transportation, by unlocking money-saving EVs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In addition to any adjustments to the targets themselves, other thoughtful tweaks would provide automakers secondary pathways to satisfy the requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, carmakers could receive extra credits under the system for selling EVs below a price point of $40,000, the maximum price most Canadians<\/a> wish to spend on a new car. Many of these vehicles already exist, being sold in markets such as Europe. Similarly, carmakers could also gain credits for offering zero-interest financing on new EVs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are, of course, other tools the government should explore to help improve Canada\u2019s uncompetitive EV market, including adopting European safety standards to open the gate for European models in Canada, reintroducing EV incentives to lower upfront costs, and yes, lowering Canada\u2019s 100 per cent tariff on Chinese EVs in a way that still balances protection for the auto industry with a healthier car market for consumers, much as Europe has done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But whatever we do, let\u2019s keep our hands on the wheel of our own car market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This post was co-authored by Joanna Kyriazis and first appeared in the Toronto Star.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n