Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin says the federal government will revive a popular consumer rebate program to make electric vehicles (EVs) more affordable to the general public.
The program, named Incentives for Zero-Emission Vehicles (iZEV), was launched in 2019. However, the EV rebate ran out of funding earlier this year, leading the federal government to pause it.
Speaking to the Canadian Press (via CBC News), Dabrusin said that it is unclear whether the program will retain the iZEV name or be different. Dabrusin also touched on the EV mandate, which requires all light-duty passenger vehicles sold off-the-lot in Canada to be zero-emission by 2035. According to the minister, this mandate won’t be changing anytime soon.
Conservatives spent Tuesday calling for the mandate to be dropped, noting concerns about the Canadian auto sector, which has already been threatened by U.S. tariffs. They also debated an opposition motion to compel the government to immediately end the “ban on gas-powered vehicles.”
Dabrusin responded, “It’s been in place since 2023. I don’t see why the Conservatives believe we need to change it in the face of what we’re facing with the U.S. tariffs on the auto industry.”
Canadian auto manufacturers have increased calls for the mandates to be dropped, citing decreasing electric vehicle sales in 2025 with the rebate ending. According to Statistics Canada, the first quarter of 2025 saw EV sales represent only 8.11 per cent of all new vehicle sales in Canada, a drop by almost half compared to the 16.5 per cent rate it was to end Q4 of 2024.
Further, auto makers are laying off Canadian workers and shuttering plants because of the tariffs. General Motors laid off 750 workers at the recently reintroduced Oshawa assembly plant, citing the U.S. tariffs. The company also laid off workers in Ingersoll, Ont., and halted production at an EV plant, though the company blamed low demand for the shutdown, rather than tariffs. Meanwhile, Honda postponed a $15 billion EV project in Ontario for two years.
Source: CBC News
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