Guy Nathan: Road User Charges Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Guy Nathan: Road User Charges Amendment Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:655;Page:4906] 
Hon NATHAN GUY (Associate Minister of Transport) 
: 
 For those who were listening I say that the previous speaker was Sue Moroney. She spent most of her time speaking about what is obviously a pet project of hers: a railway line between Hamilton and Auckland. Listeners need to know that Sue Moroney is indeed a list MP and is not representing the people of that area. No one in that area is listening to Labour right now apart from the local MPs who are doing a fantastic job. The 
Road User Charges Amendment Bill is vitally important. I am sure the bill will pass its first reading today judging by the speakers that have already spoken about it in the House this afternoon and last week. It is a very very important bill and it is important that we crack on with it. That is why it has been given a report-back date of 27 July—the end of this month. 
I want to make some introductory remarks and talk a little about electric cars and the road-user charges that are proposed in this bill. I think the important thing is to realise that this bill is very forward-thinking about electric cars and it might be a while until—I think it is 2011—we get up to a predicted 500 electric vehicles in this country. But we need to ensure that we are ready for that and that we are encouraging it. Indeed the first reading of this bill today shows that this Government is very much prepared to listen and think ahead to the future. The important thing is that we need economies of scale to kick in to bring the charge of these vehicles down because right now they are very expensive. There is the battery cost and there is a premium to purchase one of these vehicles on the market. That vehicle premium might be in the vicinity of 50 percent or maybe 70 percent more than what one would endeavour to purchase a new vehicle from a motor vehicle dealer for. Across the world New Zealand may not initially be a priority market for manufacturers focused on large subsidised markets that can absorb the technology premium. Although New Zealand is not a light electric motor vehicle manufacturer the Government plays a very very important part in endeavouring that we are getting on with this technology. Part of that role is to remove the barriers that could prevent or delay the uptake of the market of light electric motor vehicles in New Zealand. 
The other important comment I want to make is on road-user charges and yes a review was done last year when the previous Labour Government was in office. Of course many in this House will remember the gridlock that was created by the previous Minister of Transport the Hon Annette King when she came out and said that road-user charges would increase. Truckies across New Zealand were up in arms about it and there was gridlock across Auckland City Wellington City and most of our cities throughout New Zealand. Trucks came in protest from my electorate from Kapiti and Horowhenua down State Highway 1. So it is important that we get this process right. This 42-day notice of any increase in road-user charges to all diesel motor vehicle owners does that. It gives forward notice. Giving transport operators 42 days’ notice on road-user charge increases provides them with time to pass on those costs to any of their consumers if they wish to which most probably they would choose to do. To minimise the potential revenue loss caused by pre-purchasing of road-user charges by the heavy motor vehicle industry following a notification of an increase the original road-user charges will expire 1 month after an increase comes into effect. 
This is a very important bill. It is very forward-thinking. We need to be aware that there will be zero pollution with electric vehicles. Right now across the country—and indeed across most of the world—we are having the climate change debate. More electric cars will mean that there is less pollution. Of course we need to be mindful of the fact that those vehicles are a lot quieter which is interesting. When I was walking in Wellington recently a Segway went racing past me and nearly knocked me over because I had not heard it coming. Mr Assistant Speaker I am not sure whether you have any down in Invercargill. One stands on them and they are driven by electricity. They are very very quiet and they transport people around communities; they are seen mainly in cities. These Segways are about 11 times more efficient than the average-sized American car. They cost about $15000 Mr Assistant Speaker; they would be very good down in Invercargill for you to get around and see your constituents. The point I am making to the House is that electric cars are the way of the future but I guess there will be a road safety component—particularly for pedestrians. They might be used to hearing a vehicle and it may indeed be a diesel vehicle which history shows tends to be a bit noisier than petrol vehicles. But these electric vehicles will be a lot quieter. As I said I nearly got caught out by a young gentleman motoring past me on a Segway the other day. I make that contribution in this debate. 
I also wish the Speaker of the House the Hon Dr Lockwood Smith all the very very best for his wedding in the weekend. Indeed in the House this afternoon we have the Minister for the Environment the Hon Dr Nick Smith who has an electric car. I wonder whether he has offered his car to the Speaker of the House the Hon Dr Lockwood Smith as an opportunity for him to transport himself to his wedding with his soon-to-be bride. That is an opportunity that the Minister for the Environment may have already offered to the Speaker of the House. We know that the Speaker has a tendency towards larger-engined vehicles so that opportunity may be turned down. I know that the Minister for the Environment had his electric car at his recent wedding. On that very light note I wish this bill all the best for its passage through the Transport and Industrial Relations Committee with a report back towards the end of the month on 27 July. I commend this bill to the House. 
Bill read a first time.