When former Liberal treasurer Joe Hockey triggered a chain of events on the floor of Federal Parliament a decade ago that sent the car industry packing from Australia, much was lost in that rush of political hubris.
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It wasn't just the scuttling of a complex and valuable industry - which, in itself, was a terrible price to pay for such a modest subsidy - but it also opened the stopcock on our domestic manufacturing know-how.
That Aussie can-do capability and know-how would be hugely valuable now, at a time when the transport industry worldwide is going through an enormous upheaval.
The industry is accelerating at warp speed toward a battery electric future, and away from the internal combustion processes which have driven it for more than 100 years.
After our volume car manufacturing folded, Australia became a passive receptor of vehicle technology, and our transport regulatory environment - particularly around the key issues of vehicle emissions, fuel efficiency and fuel standards - has been equally as languid.
The previous Coalition government snoozed at the wheel while the rest of the world - most specifically the Europeans - drove harder, with a Tazio Nuvolari-like focus, toward tougher regulation.
The urgent, contemporary issue is cleaning up transport combustion.
Their fuel quality improved, their combustion engines became cleaner burning and - shock, horror - there were even random tailpipe tests at rego time to ensure no-one was fiddling the system.
The US attempted to wind back its environmental progress under Trump but thankfully a new president, and commonsense, has prevailed
Imposing fuel efficiency standards - which is code for tougher vehicle emission controls - is finally, firmly, on the federal Labor agenda.
But there's a lot of catching up to do. While electric cars are the future, the urgent, contemporary issue is cleaning up transport combustion.
Engine and fuel work in unison on emissions quality. Engine emissions have improved at an average 2.4 per cent per year since 2000. Our sulphur-heavy petrol is still third-world quality. It's simply not good enough. It's time to put the foot down and catch up with the world.
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