VANCOUVER, B.C.: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling on the B.C. government to immediately repeal the Zero Emission Vehicle Act, which will ban the sale of new gas and diesel vehicles in the province by 2035.

“Canadians forced Ottawa to retreat from its ban on the sale of new gas and diesel vehicles and B.C. should end its unaffordable policy too,” said Carson Binda, CTF B.C. Director. “The B.C. government is out of step with the rest of Canada and shouldn’t push forward with this policy that will drive up costs and take away British Columbians’ ability to choose the vehicle that works best for them.”

Today the federal government announced it is ending its ban on the sale of new gas and diesel vehicles by 2035 through its electric vehicle mandate. However, Ottawa is replacing that policy with billions in new corporate welfare and subsidies as well as expensive new regulations.  

Meanwhile, B.C. still hasn’t repealed its plan to ban the sale of new gas and diesel vehicles by 2035, through the provincial Zero-Emission Vehicle Act.  

B.C. Energy Minister Adrian Dix admitted the province’s plan to ban the sale of new gas and diesel vehicles won’t work. 

“Those current targets, which are at 90 per cent by 2030, and 100 per cent by 2035, are no longer realistic,” Dix said. 

Dix also said that the B.C. government was waiting to see Ottawa’s plan before modifying the provincial government’s approach. 

“Dix should stop procrastinating and immediately scrap B.C.’s plan to ban new gas and diesel vehicles,” Binda said. “And B.C. needs to do better than Ottawa by scrapping the ban without blowing the budget on corporate welfare and subsidies.”