MEDIA RELEASE
Family First today announced that if elected at the upcoming South Australian, Victorian and NSW elections it will move to have Chinese-made vehicles banned from Australian roads, citing grave national security risks.
South Australian candidate Deepa Mathew, Victorian candidates Bernie Finn and Jane Foreman, and NSW candidate Lyle Shelton said it was reckless for Australia to allow more than 265,000 Chinese cars onto our roads while the United States has acted decisively to keep its citizens safe.
“The Biden Administration banned Chinese cars on security grounds earlier this year,” Mr Shelton said. “If America can take this threat seriously, so can Australia. Our government is asleep at the wheel.”
Motoring writer Stephen Corby, once a sceptic, admitted in The Australian that he had laughed off warnings about Chinese EVs—until confronted with credible reports. “It turns out that just because you’re paranoid, it doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you,” he wrote.
Those reports included revelations that Chinese-made vehicles are effectively rolling surveillance devices. Former Turnbull government cyber adviser Alastair MacGibbon warned a recent Sydney summit that Chinese EVs could be remotely disabled, or even made to explode.
“This is not science fiction,” said Family First’s Deepa Mathew. “Chinese law requires its companies, including carmakers, to co-operate with Beijing’s intelligence agencies. Australians are driving around in potential weapons of war.”
Victorian candidates Bernie Finn and Jane Foreman said the stakes were too high to ignore. “We already know Chinese-made equipment has embedded kill switches in power grids and solar farms. Why would anyone think their cars are immune? This is grey-zone warfare and Australia is leaving the door wide open.”
Family First is demanding the federal and state governments act now to ban the importation, sale, and registration of Chinese vehicles, with a plan to phase existing ones off the road.
“Every kilometre driven in a Chinese car is a kilometre of risk,” Mr Shelton said. “Family First will not stand by while our sovereignty is surrendered one cheap EV at a time.”