This morning’s announcement of a 60-day review or delay notwithstanding, the federal Electric Vehicle Availability Standard (aka EV mandate) is emblematic of Canada’s economic malaise. It’s also likely unconstitutional.First, the basic economics: The average electric car costs about $6,700 more than a comparable gas-powered model, and jumps to over $11,000 more for an SUV, minivan, or pickup truck.The EV mandate would force automakers to ensure that 20% of new vehicles sold by 2026 — that’s next year — are powered by battery technology. That threshold rises to 60% by 2030, and 100% by 2035. .EDITORIAL: Scrap the Temporary Foreign Worker Program so Canadian young people can work again.A coalition of 48 Ontario “auto mayors” — whose communities have the most to lose — have called on the federal government to withdraw mandatory sales targets that would “devastate local economies and undercut Canada’s manufacturing competitiveness.” Over the summer, Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin told a federal Commons committee that there are “flexibilities” within the EV regulations. However, president of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers Association, Brian Kingston, said Dabrusin remained clear that “the government will not repeal the mandate.”It must. In its current form, the EV mandate is unrealistic, costly, and draconian. .It also appears Canadians are increasingly EV-agnostic. According to the federal Department of Transport, only 12% of drivers say they’d buy an EV. (Last year, only 1.3% of cars sold in Canada were battery electrics.) A recent MEI-Ipsos poll found that 66% of Canadians consider the federal ban “unrealistic.” Not surprisingly, opposition was particularly strong among low- and middle-income households.The ban would also create significant market distortions. Carmakers would be mandated to purchase credits and/or fund fast-charging stations, while up to one million conventional vehicles could be withheld from Canadian dealer lots next year. Fines for selling a “non-compliant” vehicle would cost a dealership an estimated $20,000. .EDITORIAL: Danielle Smith must continue fight against porn in school libraries.New electric car sales in Canada declined by 23% in the first quarter, year-on-year. The largest decline (51%) was in Quebec, following its reduction of subsidies from $7,000 to $4,000 and plans to phase out subsidies altogether by 2027. British Columbia cancelled its subsidies program in May. This decline coincided with the January suspension of federal EV rebates, which subsidized car buyers up to $5,000, with a total price tag of $3 billion! While initially, dealerships were on the hook for any claims they hadn’t filed before the suspension, the federal government now says it will reimburse them, costing taxpayers another $11 million. Adding to the mess: the massive infrastructure gap. In 2024, Canada added only 6,764 public chargers, far below federal targets of 40,000 a year. The MEI estimates that up to $294 billion in electricity upgrades, from generation to distribution, would also be needed by 2040. Meanwhile, chargers across the country are unreliable, and EV driving range drops dramatically in the cold. .The constitutionality of these regulations is also fundamentally questionable. A legal challenge has been filed, with Quebec and Alberta as intervenors, alleging that the federal government has in fact overstepped its authority.Federal powers over the environment have always been a grey area. That’s why, to impose the Carbon Tax, the federal government had to deploy its constitutional “national powers” trump card under Peace, Order, and Good Government (POGG). But this did not, ruled the Supreme Court, give the feds carte blanche to environmentally regulate more broadly — or pick industrial winners and losers at will.Which, of course, is precisely what’s happened. Take the 2020 announcement of $590 million to EV-upgrade the Ford assembly plant in Oakville, Ontario — delayed until at least 2027 — or the $1.34 billion in government subsidies awarded to Northvolt, which recently filed for bankruptcy. Northvolt joins other now-failed EV companies including Nikola, Lordstown, Canoo Inc., and Arrival SA..CHAN: Canada must stand strong on canola, not bow to China.More micro-managing led the federal government to slap the 100% tariff on all Chinese EVs last year. In direct response, China imposed punishing tariffs on our canola farmers, which it has now doubled down on, with 75.8%.Bottom line: Canada must adopt a voluntary, market-driven approach. Mandates don’t work. Just ask the coalition of German mayors who recently called on the European Commission to overturn its 2035 EV mandates to prevent over half a million Germans slipping into unemployment. The mayors say that over 600,000 jobs are directly at risk, as automakers such as Volkswagen and Ford consider plant closures. This, as almost three million fewer cars are being sold in Europe this year, compared to pre-pandemic 2020.Consumers, not governments, should decide what vehicles to buy. Let’s hope the federal ‘pause’ is permanent.Bronwyn Eyre was the former Saskatchewan minister of Energy and Justice. She is a senior fellow with MEI.
