One-third of Trudeau Liberals' Electric Vehicle Rebate subsidies goes to Tesla buyers

Insiders are calling for change to the Federal government's electric vehicle subsidy program after it was revealed that at least one-third of all subsidies go to Tesla buyers. Analysts are calling for the program to retool itself in favour of younger and more working-class people rather than the wealthier buyers.

Tesla's Model 3, the only car that qualifies for the subsidy, retails for $44,999 in Canada. This is just under the federal government’s $45,000 upper price limit to be eligible for discounts and rebates. Experts say that the price tag is not affordable to many Canadians who would benefit from the subsidy the most.

"To date, consumers who have purchased the Tesla Model 3 represent approximately 25 percent of the total (program) claims," reads a statement from Transport Canada, provided to the Canadian Press by spokesperson Cybelle Morin. "The Tesla Model 3 is the best-selling electric vehicle in the world."

Canada has set a target of at least 10 percent of light-duty cars being electric by 2025. "It's going to become a real affordability issue in terms of whether the government wants to spend that much money on helping people get to those targets by 2025," President of Global Automakers of Canada David Adams said. The federal government has already had to double the money allocated to the program by adding $287 million after it said the money was being used quicker than expected.

While electric car subsidies like this are preferred by politicians like Prime Minister Trudeau and President Joe Biden, similar subsidies in Ontario and Quebec only decreased emissions by automobiles by 4 percent. Electric cars make up a small minority of vehicles on the road, and internal combustion engines remain more popular and more affordable.

"It's like cellphones," Germain Belzile, a senior associate researcher on energy issues at the Montreal Economic Institute said. "Cellphones have existed for a long time, but very few people used cellphones 35 years ago, for example, and that's because they were very expensive and we didn't need subsidies to eventually increase the usage of cellphones."

Experts like Joanna Kyriazis, a senior policy adviser at Clean Energy Canada, say that the subsidy needs to apply to used cars, where he says 60 percent of car sales occur. Transport Canada also noted in their statement that they are exploring ways to make electric vehicles more affordable for all Canadians.