HVIA Advocates For Heavy Vehicle Industry In Canberra

CEO Todd Hacking and Chief Advocacy Officer Adele Lausberg met with key decision makers in Canberra last week to advocate on key issues of importance to the heavy vehicle industry

Heavy Vehicle Industry Australia (HVIA) had a productive advocacy trip to Canberra last week, meeting with Ministers, their staff, peak bodies, and other relevant stakeholders to advance arguments for the heavy vehicle industry.

Chief Executive Officer Todd Hacking and Chief Advocacy Officer Adele Lausberg (pictured above) met with the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King, which provided the opportunity to discuss the recent Safer Freight Vehicles changes.

They also discussed the national approach to decarbonisation of the freight transport sector and upcoming roadmap to net zero. Specifically, HVIA focused on the role of trucks and trailers and the related ecosystem, and the Federal Government’s opportunity to provide leadership within the state Infrastructure and Transport Minister’s Meetings.

The transition to net zero was also discussed with the Minister for Climate Change and Energy’s office, and with the Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Transport’s office. The Assistant Minister’s office flagged their openness to remain engaged with industry on upcoming regulatory consultations.

HVIA later ventured into the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts and met with the recently established Net Zero Unit, which is responsible for drafting the heavy vehicle roadmap to net zero.

HVIA communicated the needs of industry to the First Assistant Secretary, Ian Porter. The roadmap is expected to be released in the first half of 2024, and the LITE Project Driving Committee will assist in preparing HVIA’s response.

Members will no doubt be aware of the difficulties in sourcing workers, and particularly in sourcing skilled workers, and a meeting was held with the Minister for Skills and Training’s office on this topic. The skills required to transition to net zero were also raised in this meeting, and the Minister’s office understands the current (and anticipated) gaps in the training system.

Another important stakeholder in the broader heavy vehicle network is local government. To that end, HVIA met with the new CEO of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), Amy Crawford, and Director of Transport and Infrastructure Policy, Sanjiv Sathiah.

HVIA will continue to advance our advocacy with these and other relevant stakeholders. If you have any further questions about HVIA’s meetings in Canberra, please contact Adele Lausberg, a.lausberg@hvia.asn.au.