The ACT government's recent decision to ban the sale of fossil fuel cars by 2035 has been the trigger in turning what was a simmering, back-room discussion over Australia's future light vehicle emission standards into a heated public debate.
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Australia has a sorry record on vehicle emissions. On sale here now are some of the "dirtiest" new light vehicles in the developed world, in terms of what comes out of tailpipes. For the past few years, our top-selling vehicles have been diesel engine 4WDs.
Two of Australia's three best-selling vehicles last month, the Toyota Hilux and the Ford Ranger, both rate "worse than average" in terms of emissions on the government's official Green Vehicle Guide.
The previous Liberal National government took a hands-off approach to this issue and how well many people may remember when the previous prime minister even took a strong anti-electric vehicle stance into the 2019 election, telling people how EVs would effectively ruin their weekend.
Now the wheel has turned yet again, and very quickly, for Australia's car industry.
The richly funded Canberra-based Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries lobby group, which takes membership fees and tops up its coffers through the monthly VFACTS statistical sales analysis, spotted this as an emerging issue before the May election and attempted to head it off with its own "voluntary" emissions standards.
It wants a 2030 target of under 100 grams of CO2 per km for passenger cars and light SUVs, and under 145 for heavy SUVs and light commercial vehicles.
And those targets, of course, suit them well, particularly the FCAI's biggest financial contributor and Australia's top-selling brand, Toyota, which is heavily committed to hybrid vehicle technology. Hybrids are not pure electric vehicles, but use internal combustion to top up and supplement their batteries. They are emitters.
The industry's voluntary standards seek to appease the federal Labor government's strong climate change stance and at the same time portray the car industry as "progressive" on emissions.
The industry is pulling out all stops, preparing to back its position using its multimillion-dollar war chest, aiming to win hearts and minds, publicly and with behind-the scenes political lobbying, to get its position entrenched as the so-called sensible one for our market.
However, the car industry's fog of self-interest appears to have blinded it to the strength of public sentiment on this issue.
The Japanese car manufacturers haven't moved as smartly on electrification as the Europeans, where companies like VW and Volvo are totally committed to net zero.
The risk posed by going soft on this issue in Australia is to be completely out of step with what is happening in the rest of the world.
The rush toward electrification is on and Australia is well advised to jump on board.
The legacy car brands, through the FCAI, have always been comfortable in deal-making with government. It worked very well for the nine years before the May election.
But its position has now been eroded by the rapid rise in influence of new bodies like the EV Council and the Australian Electric Vehicle Association. The public voted with their feet on the weekend with over 10,000 people attending the EV Expo in Canberra.
The car industry is consumer-driven and technology is fast overhauling the tired old arguments against EVs. Set tough standards and the industry will respond because it wants to sell product and make money.
