Global Driving

In February the government proposed new vehicle efficiency standards (NVES) that set limits for average emissions per kilometre for all new cars sold. The proposal would affect most of Australia’s top-selling cars, such as utes, large SUVs and four-wheel drives, as distinct from smaller passenger vehicles, which only had to meet a higher emissions limit. Opposition Leader Peter Dutton dubbed the NVES ‘a new ute tax and new family car tax’.