2 April 2024
Caravanning to Join Off-Roading in Killed Off Industries Under Labor’s New Emissions Standards
Federal Member for Herbert Phillip Thompson is calling for significant changes to Labor’s proposed emissions standards which are not only set to drive the price of cars and utes up by thousands, but cripple associated industries.
Phillip Thompson met with NQ Caravan Rentals Owner Hayden Lilley who says the future of his business hangs in the balance as vehicles capable of towing caravans may no longer be on the Australian market.
“If this passes, towing vehicles may not even be available because manufacturers decide it’s all too hard in Australia, or they’ll be a lot more expensive,” Mr Lilley said.
Mr Lilley, who has been operating since 2018, has four staff and several plans to expand operations, is now at risk of being shut down.
It’s a reality that Phillip Thompson says will be a black mark on the Albanese Labor Government’s record.
“I want to see this small business and others in town, continue to thrive, but with these changes being brought in, they will potentially have to close up and shut down,” Phillip Thompson said.
“For the staff and their families that he supports here, that will be catastrophic.”
Mr Lilley not only holds concern for the caravanning industry, but the benefits the industry provides across Australia.
“The lifeblood of regional communities are the grey nomads and those who travel out to see them,” he said.
“If they can’t get the towing vehicles or if the towing vehicle is too expensive, they just won’t go.”
Mr Lilley is calling for an exemption to keep the caravanning industry to keep small and regional areas alive.
“Rather than shutting an industry down, or my small business down, you’ve got to give exemptions to towing vehicles, because at the moment the technology is not there,” he said.
“There has to be some common sense around it. You can’t shut whole industries down because you’re trying to hit a number.”
Phillip Thompson is inviting the Albanese Labor Government to see firsthand the impact of their proposal.
“Our message today is to pause, rethink, work with the Coalition, but get out of Canberra,” he said.
“Stop living in the bubble, come out to the regions and hear from people that this will affect.”
ENDS
