Cancelling EV mandate a sign of bigger problems for taxpayers

Prime Minister Mark Carney was right to kill his government’s mandate that 20% of all new car sales in Canada had to be zero emissions vehicles starting next year – current sales are less than half that – but that’s just the tip of the iceberg of the problem.

The bigger problem is that, according to the Parliamentary Budget Office, Canada’s federal and provincial governments – mainly Ontario and Quebec – have earmarked up to $52.5 billion to subsidize 13 major Electric Vehicle supply chain projects, 14% more than the $46.1 billion the EV industry in Canada is spending on itself.

While most of these subsidies have yet to be paid, these governments have a huge financial stake of taxpayers’ money in the eventual success of the EV industry, with some projects already delayed because of lower