Bill Shorten thinks electric vehicles can be charged in 8-10 minutes

The Labor leader doesn’t even know how long it takes for EVs to charge.

Bill Shorten charges an electric car at the launch of Labor's Climate Change Action Plan in Canberra. Picture: Kym Smith

Bill Shorten says Australia can shift to 50 per cent renewable energy by 2030 and that electricity supplies will be reliable while prices are lower. He says we will lead the world and generate thousands of green jobs.

Shorten also says that Australia can reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 and that we can do this without crippling industry, harming agriculture, disrupting transport or destroying the economy.

The Labor leader says we can do this in part by placing more controls on farmers and their vegetation clearance, forcing companies to cap emissions and by switching to electric cars, with government interventions and grants installing recharging stations and ensuring half of all new cars sold in a decade are EVs.

Shorten also says that if we do this we can start to say goodbye to “angry” summers and natural disasters (even though global carbon emissions are currently rising by twice as much as Australia’s total annual emissions).

The alternative prime minister says Australia can lead the world in green energy and climate policies, that we will enjoy economic benefits rather than disadvantages, and that as a result the weather will improve.

This is fascinating stuff, rather bold, optimistic and, you might add, incredible.

But then Shorten also said on radio that electric vehicles can be recharged in about 8 to 10 minutes.

“How long does it take to charge it up?” Jackie O asked the alternative prime minister in an interview on the Kyle and Jackie O radio show this morning.

“Oh, it can take, umm ... it depends on what your original charge is, but it can take, err, 8 to 10 minutes depend on your charge, it can take longer ... ” Mr Shorten replied unconvincingly.

“Is that all?” Jackie O pressed.

“Well it depends how flat your battery is,” Mr Shorten said. You can listen to the audio here.

Oh dear. No wonder he thinks this stuff is so easy. In reality, it takes more like 8 to 10 hours to recharge your EV at home or, if you have access to a special fast charger, about an hour.

Most people, pundits and polls are predicting a Labor election win. If they are right, Australia will be leading the world on climate and energy policy all right; in much the same way that Burke and Wills led the way on inland development.