Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Good afternoon. My name is Daniel Breton, and I am president and CEO of Electric Mobility Canada. I'd like to thank the members of the Standing Committee on Finance for inviting us to appear.
Created in 2006, EMC is one of the very first organizations dedicated to electric mobility in the world, representing more than 220 corporate members. They include vehicle manufacturers, electricity providers, charging infrastructure manufacturers, technology companies, mining companies, charging system providers, fleet managers, unions, cities, universities, NGOs and more.
As we will see an exponential growth of light and heavy-duty electric vehicles on the road in Canada and everywhere in the world, and as the Canadian government is working on a green recovery plan, there is one very important question that needs to be addressed: Will Canada show leadership in the fight against climate change and air pollution to create jobs in the high-tech sector of electric mobility, or will Canadians end up simply importing electric vehicles, batteries and technologies and therefore miss the boat on high-quality jobs?
That's why EMC is making 10 key recommendations for the 2021 budget. Here are some of these recommendations.
You should support Canada's zero emission vehicle manufacturing by supporting consumers purchases of EVs for all vehicle classes from cars to buses, from school buses to trucks.
For passenger vehicles, we recommend maintaining the current $5,000 federal rebate and getting more Canadians into zero emission vehicles by increasing the base MSRP cut-off for pickup trucks, SUVs and minivans since they have a higher MSRP than smaller vehicles, whether they're gas or electric. This will help increase regional equity and access for people who need larger vehicles.
For low-speed, off-road and microelectric vehicles, we recommend a rebate of up to $2,000, especially since some of these vehicles are built in Canada.
You should offer a cash for clunkers incentive focused on EV transition by getting people from used gas vehicles to EVs.
You should implement a GST and HST exemption for both new and used zero-emission vehicles to increase access to the benefits of driving electric.
You should incentivize all Canadians to buy electric vehicles with a used zero-emission vehicle incentive of up to $2,000.
We also recommend a federal ZEV standard in line with Canada's ZEV targets and aligned with California, B.C., Quebec and other jurisdictions around the world. We also recommend a ZEV standard for heavy-duty vehicles inspired by the new California regulation to help achieve Canada's drive to zero pledge.
We recommend expanding targets for the zero emission vehicle infrastructure program and the electric vehicle infrastructure deployment initiative, including in rural and remote areas, by setting and funding higher one- and five-year targets for charging station deployment.
We recommend setting zero emission vehicle targets of 100% for new government fleet vehicle purchases starting in the 2023 financial year, wherever feasible, and ensuring that Crown corporations are eligible for the same programs as private companies to support those purchases and the deployment of charging stations.
We recommend that you pre-order or bulk buy heavy-duty electric transit and school buses to take advantage of economies of scale and create manufacturing jobs in Canada.
We recommend expanding the funding for ZEV training programs for consumers, but especially for workers who are looking to work in a company with positive prospects for the future. Many Canadian companies are looking for workers in electric mobility.
As a Canadian NGO dedicated to electrifying transport, Electric Mobility Canada can use government support to help its mission. In return, we will provide our expertise and our experience to help the Canadian government carry out its green recovery plan.
We are currently part of an industrial coalition looking to establish a solid supply chain for the zero emission vehicle industry, from British Columbia to the Maritimes. We therefore want to ensure that Canada positions itself in the global transition to zero emission vehicles.
This initiative seeks to bring together the country's main stakeholders, from mining to mobility, from research and development to marketing, and from assembly to infrastructure. We are anxious to share our work with you.
We must remind the committee that light- and heavy-duty vehicles contribute to climate change and air pollution. Air pollution causes 14,600 deaths per year, which is 7.5 times the number of deaths caused by vehicle accidents. According to Health Canada, the economic consequences of air pollution represent $114 billion per year. Electric vehicles have a major, positive impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.
You will find more information on all of our recommendations in our full brief.
Thank you.