KEY POINTS:
Importing vehicles into New Zealand became much harder after plans were revealed yesterday for even tougher restrictions on new car imports to ensure they comply with current international vehicle emission standards.
Associate Transport Minister Judith Tizard said the Government was proposing imported vehicles must meet the European and Japanese vehicle emission standards within two years of a standard being adopted in those countries.
"Previously, in our announcement prior to Christmas, we'd been suggesting a three to four-year lag period," Ms Tizard said.
"But Cabinet has reconsidered this. We need to ensure that our new imported vehicles can run on our improved fuel standards which are being introduced at the same time."
The public and members of the industry would get their say in the proposed changes in April when a Transport Ministry draft rule would be released, she said.
The draft rule would set out a series of steadily increasing standards that used vehicles would have to meet for entry to New Zealand, and may be ready to be implemented this year.
Used-car importers began an aggressive advertising campaign against the plans in November, depicting Prime Minister Helen Clark and Associate Transport Minister Judith Tizard as cartoon clowns, driving a "crazy" gas-guzzling jalopy.
The Independent Motor Vehicle Dealers Association ran half-page advertisements in the Herald and other newspapers claiming proposed emission standards would raise prices and force people to keep driving "old clunkers" for longer.
- NZPA
