7. Question No. 7—TransportSHANAN HALBERT (Labour—Northcote) to the Minister of TransportQuestion No. 7—Transport7. SHANAN HALBERT (Labour—Northcote) to the Minister of Transport: What recent announcements has the Government made about electric vehicle charging?Hon MICHAEL WOOD (Minister of Transport): Last week I launched public consultation on Charging Our Future Aotearoa New Zealand's first electric vehicle (EV) charging strategy. The strategy which the Minister of Energy and Resources Megan Woods and I have developed over recent months with the sector sets out a vision and plan to develop a First World EV charging infrastructure that is accessible affordable and reliable. Emissions from our light vehicle fleet are the single-largest source of transport emissions in New Zealand partially due to having some of the most fuelinefficient and emissions-intensive vehicles in the OECD. We know that increasing zero-emission vehicles to 30 percent of the light vehicle fleet by 2035 requires tens of thousands of public and private chargers to be rolled out around the country. The strategy proposes that we work alongside the private sector and local government to facilitate infrastructure that supports the different trips and journeys that EV drivers make and ensures that rural and provincial New Zealand locations are accessible for residents and visitors with EVs.Shanan Halbert: What targets does the EV charging strategy set out?Hon MICHAEL WOOD: The Government recently completed its work to deliver EV chargers every 75 kilometres along 97 percent of the State highway network. The strategy proposes a new set of targets that will support the national roll-out of chargers in the coming years. These include large-journey charging hubs every 150 to 200 kilometres at key locations on our State highways to help manage range anxiety and support tourism chargers for every 20 to 40 EVs in highly developed urban areas to support EV uptake in those places and public charging at community facilities for all towns and cities with 2000 or more people to ensure that the distribution of chargers is equitable in all parts of New Zealand.Shanan Halbert: What responses has he seen to the launch of the EV charging strategy?Hon MICHAEL WOOD: I've seen a range of responses to the launch and I've been encouraged to see ChargeNet the AA and JOLT all come out in support of the strategy. Those organisations are all positive about the role of the Government in setting out the strategy and to work alongside private sector charging providers to support investment in infrastructure ahead of the roll-out of EV chargers across the network. We're working alongside the sector through the clean car leadership group as we've developed the draft strategy and we'll continue to work closely with industry and local government as we finalise the strategy. Right across New Zealand Kiwis are getting in behind cleaner vehicles; that's something that we understand on this side of the House even if the other side still knocks it.Shanan Halbert: What other work is the Government doing to support the uptake of low- and zero-emission vehicles?Hon MICHAEL WOOD: The EV charging strategy will complement the Government's work to support the uptake of low- and zero-emission vehicles through the highly successful Clean Car Discount and Clean Car Standard. We're seeing massive progress with more than 70000 EVs now on our roads—70 percent more than at the end of 2021. In December 2022 30 percent of all new passenger car sales were electric making us one of the world's leading markets for EVs and as recent Drive Electric analysis showed that has the potential to remove 2 million tonnes of carbon from our carbon emissions by the 2030s. Our Government is serious about tackling climate change and these policies are making a real difference.