Electrification is an essential development arm for the future

The speech of the president of the New Democracy in the presentation of the program

Dear Alexandra,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Ladies and gentlemen,

First of all, I think they deserve a lot of congratulations from the New Democracy program team, led by Alexandra Skoukou, who, in cooperation with the environment and energy sector, presented us today. a truly bold and coherent plan for how to act in the country. our electrification.

Let me begin by saying that today 's presentation in this extremely beautiful space comes from the future. Only the future we have talked about today is a future already present. The future is already present. We have seen many examples presented by Alexandra about how other countries, many of which are poorer than Greece, are facing the problems of electrification. And I must tell you that, as a politician, I am often opposed to the fact that in Greece we insist on discussing the problems of the last century. Do not see the huge technological advances going on right now. Do not see the big challenges, the great opportunities, but also the great danger that our country is at the second or third speed of this very technological revolution that is happening today. This is not something that concerns tomorrow, but something that concerns today.

In 2007, I badumed the presidency of the Environment Committee of the Greek Parliament and I remember that my entry into office coincided with the devastating fires of Ilia. These are our first major fires and the first time that Greek public opinion was aware of the major problems related to climate change. I remember then that the Environment Committee had done a very important job. We provided relevant conclusions on how our country should take initiatives to combat climate change.

We are a decade later and our country has done very little in this area, although significant progress has been made in Europe. Since the Paris agreement, three years ago, the European Union has set very ambitious goals to combat climate change: reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% from here 2030. The European Union aspires to be in the first line of this global effort to respond – in my opinion – to the greatest threat that we and our children face to our own future, to the sustainability of our planet.

I do not need to talk about the dramatic impact that climate change can have. Especially for our homeland, we know very well that the Eastern Mediterranean will be hard hit. This means more severe weather, rising sea levels, with potentially devastating effects. This will happen if, globally, as a planet, we are not confronted with the challenge of climate change.

And of course, the issue of carbon dioxide emissions is related to electrification. That's why electrification is just as important in tackling the problem of climate change and reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

President Obama said, referring to climate change, that our generation was the first generation to suffer the effects of climate change and the last generation able to do something essential to reverse it. It's a reality. Therefore, we should, as much as we can, participate in this global and global effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. By the joint signing of binding targets that we set ourselves as a country, of course, and by our own participation in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from transport.

This brings us to today's presentation: how can we aggressively promote electric mobility? Alexandra Skoukou spoke about it in detail. I will only say that the implementation of such policies, which take a lot of time, requires not only a strategic plan and coordination at the highest level, but also the participation of all the actors involved. The market, the local government and, of course, the citizens themselves. I believe that what we have presented to you today is a structured plan of such magnitude that covers all aspects of how we can set ambitious goals for the penetration of electrification. And of course, not only to set goals, but also to achieve them.

Electrification interests us for 3 main reasons. The first is obvious: I've already talked to him about ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It is something quite obvious, it does not need any further explanation. The second concerns the improvement of the quality of life of the city. When we talk about electric vehicles, we are not just talking about carbon dioxide that we do not understand. We also talk about pollution from particles from the combustion of internal combustion engines, a major problem that concerns the very quality of city life. This includes, of course, the noise generated by traditional cars. The third reason why we are very interested in electrification is that it can be an essential development arm for the future. Create more work than it will destroy.

Alexandra emphasized the importance we attach to market participation in creating an adequate charging infrastructure to be able to charge electric cars. How garages will evolve to meet the needs of electric cars. How to create new software platforms that will enter this supply chain and that will have to do with the construction of electric cars. Especially at a time when the very future of the car in 5 to 10 years will be completely different. Cars become software platforms on wheels. And cars, autonomous cars, is a reality, it is already there. What we do not know is how quickly they will enter the European and Greek markets. But it is certain that the cars will be seen and we will see them soon enough. But motorized cars follow a completely different philosophy and change the ownership model of the car. Let's move on from a model to which our cars belonged, a model that focuses on the use of the car. Maybe with fewer cars that will last a lot more hours. And of course, the number of cars sold in Greece will have serious consequences for the automotive industry itself.

All these trends are simply unknown to the speed with which they will go to Greece. But it is certain that the clock will not go back and that things will not change. Therefore, for these three main reasons, we are interested in the New Democracy, proposing a bold strategy of electrification which, as Alexandra mentioned, would include a system of tax incentives for individuals. businesses, for taxis, but also a coherent plan to create a structured and appropriate infrastructure for charging electric cars. And of course, we must not forget the very rich research potential of our universities, which we must support and encourage to invest more in this critical area so that it benefits from this global strategy.

However, I attach great importance to the last measure presented by Alexandra and concerns how electrification can improve the quality of our tourism product, especially in small islands. I will be very happy to welcome the first mayor – obviously the mayor of a small island – who will tell me that "I only want electric cars on my island in a few years". It will be a bold innovation for the local government, for our islands. This will also place us at the forefront of a more daring approach to how electrification can contribute to the sustainability and ultimate goal we have for zero emissions, to start with the smaller islands.

I conclude by saying that, as a new democracy, in addition to the problems that concern the everyday life of citizens, we are also interested in future problems. Because we have the obligation to educate Greek society and tell them about the great challenges and great opportunities that lie ahead for us. We are always a creative and innovative people. And we do not have the luxury of being tempted by the shocking technological developments that are already changing the way we work. They change the way we live, they change the way our societies are organized. New Democracy will always be a long way ahead with innovative, bold and realistic proposals, and we ask you to – because today I have the pleasure of speaking to a specialized audience that has a opinion on these issues, but I also think that it is an interest to involve them. the overall effort we make – to help us in this business. We have already engaged in an in-depth dialogue with all market players to propose this proposal. I am sure that it can be improved, but I want you to be an aid, not only for the development of the plan, but also for its realization, so that all that can today imagine or resemble the scientific imagination can become reality and our country. Why, we can and we deserve better.