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The US Senate is now discussing the Build Back Better Act, which includes a much-needed reform of the federal EV incentive. Tesla fans are furious about the $4,500 additional incentive for electric cars made by unions.

They see it as one more attack by the Biden administration on Tesla, but they should reframe the issue to highlight the fundamental problem with the new policy.

Over the last year, Tesla fans have complained that the Biden administration has been unfairly treating Tesla.

It started when Tesla wasn’t invited to an EV announcement at the White House earlier this year.

But the true perceived slight was the new reform to the federal EV tax credit.

Tesla fans and the EV community in general have been calling for a reform for a long time since the incentive was poorly designed in the first place.

The limit of 200,000 US deliveries per manufacturer put companies who invested early in volume production of electric cars at a disadvantage.

Tesla and GM were the first to hit the limit, and now EV buyers don’t have access to the incentive when they buy their electric vehicles.

The main goal of reforming the program was to remove the limit, and that’s what they did in the Build Back Better Act.

The section about the federal EV incentive replaces the limit of deliveries per manufacturer with an industry-wide timeline of 10 years to take advantage of the incentive.

This is especially good for Tesla and GM electric vehicle buyers who regain access to the $7,500 tax credit. However, lawmakers made a few, more controversial changes in the version that has now passed the House.

The main change is that they are adding a $4,500 incentive for electric vehicles built at factories where workers are unionized, on top of the $7,500.

Here’s the exact language in the bill:

The amount credit allowed for a qualified vehicle is increased by $4,500 if the final assembly of the vehicle is at a facility in the United States which operates under a union-negotiated collective bargaining agreement.

Tesla fans have perceived this as another “attack” on the automaker by the administration since Tesla is currently the only automaker producing EVs in volume in the US at a non-unionized factory.

The bill is now being discussed in the Senate, and the additional incentive to unions is expected to be a controversial point that might change by the time the bill becomes law.

Reframing the problem

Tesla fans have been pushing back hard against the union clause in the bill, which they see as unfair.

I think they are right, but I think they should move away from focusing on it being a slight against Tesla by the Biden administration, and instead, focus on what makes it fundamentally wrong. The main problem is that the clause doesn’t really do what it aims to do.

In a speech about the reform, President Joe Biden said that the goal was to “grow auto jobs with good pay and benefits.”

By introducing the $4,500 extra incentive for EVs coming out of union factories, Biden assumes that it will incentivize the market to buy vehicles from automakers who have factories staffed with workers with “good pay and benefits.”

But that’s not the requirement in the legislation. Being unionized is the requirement, and that doesn’t necessarily accomplish that.

Here’s a simple hypothetical situation that shows how the incentive is flawed.

Let’s say you have automaker A making electric vehicles out of a unionized factory. The buyers of those electric vehicles have access to the $4,500 additional incentive as per the current version of the bill.

Now you have automaker B making electric vehicles out of a factory where workers are not unionized, but they have comparable pay and benefits to employees working in automaker A’s unionized factory.

Under the current version of the bill, automaker B achieves the actual goal of having auto jobs with good pay and benefits, but buyers of the vehicles made by those workers are being penalized simply because the workers didn’t achieve those conditions through a union.

Now let’s say that the workers at automaker B’s factory are presented with an opportunity to unionize, and because of their situation, they decide to vote against it since they are satisfied with their situation and they don’t want to pay union dues.

In this very plausible situation, which many of Tesla proponents argue is the automaker’s situation, the clause is actually failing to incentivize good-paying auto jobs and actually penalizes them.

What’s the solution?

Now, this is not an anti-union argument. Unions, if well-organized and led by honest people wanting to do good, can have a positive impact.

However, the way this legislation is worded fails to achieve what the Biden administration claims that they want to achieve.

That should be the focus of the opposition of the union clause, and not it being an attack on Tesla or anyone else.

Personally, I think the clause could be removed altogether since $7,500 is a big-enough incentive to accelerate EV adoption, especially if it becomes a point-of-sale incentive in 2023 as it is currently supposed to become.

But if you absolutely want an extra incentive for good-paying auto jobs with good benefits, you can make a clause that achieves just that.

You simply have to replace the language about the electric vehicles “being assembled at a factory operating under a union-negotiated collective bargaining agreement” with “being assembled at a factory where workers receive pay and benefits at or above the industry average.”

It would be up to the companies and workers to see if they can achieve that by themselves or with the help of a union.


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Pete Townshend’s Quadrophenia talked about modern masculinity before Gen Z was born 

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Pete Townshend's Quadrophenia talked about modern masculinity before Gen Z was born 

Despite The Who’s Quadrophenia being set over 60 years ago, Pete Townshend’s themes of identity, mental health, and modern masculinity are just as relevant today.

The album is having a renaissance as Pete Townshend’s Quadrophenia A Mod ballet is being brought to life via dance at Sadler’s Wells East, and Sky News has an exclusive first look.

As Townshend puts it, the album he wrote is “perfect” for the stage.

Pete Townshend
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Pete Townshend

“My wife Rachel did the orchestration for me, and as soon as I heard it I said to her it would make a fabulous ballet and we never really let that go,” he tells Sky News.

“Heavy percussion, concussive sequences. They’re explosive moments. They’re also romantic movement moments.”

If you identify with the demographics of Millennial, Gen Y or Gen Z, you might not be familiar with The Who and Mod culture.

But in post-war Britain the Mods were a cultural phenomenon characterised by fashion, music, and of course, scooters. The young rebels were seen as a counter-culture to the establishment and The Who, with Roger Daltry’s lead vocals and Pete Townshend’s writing, were the soundtrack.

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Quadrophenia the album is widely regarded as an essay on the British adolescent experience at the time, focusing on the life of fictional protagonist Jimmy – a young Mod struggling with his sanity, self-doubt, and alienation. 

Townshend sets the rock opera in 1965 but thinks its themes of identity, mental health, and modern masculinity are just as relevant today.

He says: “The phobias and the restrictions and the unwritten laws about how young men should behave. The ground that they broke, that we broke because I was a part of it.

“Men were letting go of [the] wartime-related, uniform-related stance that if I wear this kind of outfit it makes me look like a man.”

Paris Fitzpatrick and Pete Townshend. Pic: Johan Persson
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Paris Fitzpatrick and Pete Townshend. Pic: Johan Persson

This struggle of modern masculinity and identity appears to be echoing today as manosphere influencers like Andrew Tate, incel culture, and Netflix’s Adolescence make headlines.

For dancer Paris Fitzpatrick, who takes on the lead role of Jimmy, the story resonates.

Paris Fitzpatrick, who takes on the lead role of Jimmy in the ballet
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Paris Fitzpatrick, who takes on the lead role of Jimmy in the ballet

“I think there’s a connection massively and I think there may even be a little more revival in some way,” he tells Sky News.

“I love that myself. I love non-conforming to gender norms and typical masculinity; I think it’s great to challenge things.”

Despite the album being written before he was born, the dancer says he was familiar with the genre already.

“I actually did an art GCSE project about Mods and rockers and Quadrophenia,” he says.

“I think we’ll be able to bring it to new audiences and hopefully, maybe people will be inspired to to learn more about their music and the whole cultural movement of the early 60s.”

Read more from Sky News:
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In 1979, the album was adapted into a film directed by Franc Roddam starring Ray Winstone and Sting but Townshend admits because the film missed key points he is “not a big fan”.

“What it turned out to be in the movie was a story about culture, about social scenario and less about really the specifics of mental illness and how that affects young people,” he adds, also complimenting Roddam’s writing for the film.

Perhaps a testament to Pete Townshend’s creativity, Quadrophenia started as an album, was successfully adapted to film and now it will hit the stage as a contemporary ballet.

It appears that over six decades later Mod culture is still cool and their issues still relatable.

Quadrophenia, a Mod Ballet will tour to Plymouth Theatre Royal from 28 May to 1 June 2025, Edinburgh Festival Theatre from 10 to 14 June 2025 and the Mayflower, Southampton from 18 to 21 June 2025 before having its official opening at Sadler’s Wells Theatre, London on 24 June running to 13 July 2025 and then visiting The Lowry, Salford from 15 to 19 July 2025.

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Russell Brand charged with rape and sexual assault

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Russell Brand charged with rape and sexual assault

Russell Brand has been charged with rape and two counts of sexual assault between 1999 and 2005.

The Metropolitan Police say the 50-year-old comedian, actor and author has also been charged with one count of oral rape and one count of indecent assault.

The charges relate to four women.

He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday 2 May.

Police have said Brand is accused of raping a woman in the Bournemouth area in 1999 and indecently assaulting a woman in the Westminster area of London in 2001.

He is also accused of orally raping and sexually assaulting a woman in Westminster in 2004.

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Ashna Hurynag discusses Russell Brand’s charges

The fourth charge alleges that a woman was sexually assaulted in Westminster between 2004 and 2005.

Police began investigating Brand, from Oxfordshire, in September 2023 after receiving a number of allegations.

Read more from Sky News:
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The comedian has denied the accusations and said he has “never engaged in non-consensual activity”.

He added in a video on X: “Of course, I am now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.”

Metropolitan Police Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is leading the investigation, said: “The women who have made reports continue to receive support from specially trained officers.

“The Met’s investigation remains open and detectives ask anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone who has any information, to come forward and speak with police.”

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Tom Cruise leads moment of silence in tribute to ‘dear friend’ Val Kilmer

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Tom Cruise leads moment of silence in tribute to 'dear friend' Val Kilmer

Tom Cruise has paid tribute to Val Kilmer, wishing his Top Gun co-star “well on the next journey”.

Cruise, speaking at the CinemaCon film event in Las Vegas on Thursday, asked for a moment’s silence to reflect on the “wonderful” times shared with the star, whom he called a “dear friend”.

Kilmer, who died of pneumonia on Tuesday aged 65, rocketed to fame starring alongside Cruise in the 1986 blockbuster Top Gun, playing Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky, a rival fighter pilot to Cruise’s character Maverick.

Tom Cruise, star of the upcoming film "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning," leads a moment of silence for late actor Val Kilmer during the Paramount Pictures presentation at CinemaCon at Caesars Palace on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
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Tom Cruise said ‘I wish you well on the next journey’. Pic: AP

Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP
Image:
Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP

His last part was a cameo role in the 2022 blockbuster sequel Top Gun: Maverick.

Cruise, on stage at Caesars Palace on Thursday, said: “I’d like to honour a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer. I can’t tell you how much I admire his work, how grateful and honoured I was when he joined Top Gun and came back later for Top Gun: Maverick.

“I think it would be really nice if we could have a moment together because he loved movies and he gave a lot to all of us. Just kind of think about all the wonderful times that we had with him.

“I wish you well on the next journey.”

The moment of silence followed a string of tributes from Hollywood figures including Cher, Francis Ford Coppola, Antonio Banderas and Michelle Monaghan.

Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes told the New York Times on Wednesday that the actor had died from pneumonia.

Tom Cruise takes part in the Paramount Pictures presentation at CinemaCon at Caesars Palace on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
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Tom Cruise at Caesars Palace on Thursday. Pic: AP

Diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, Kilmer discussed his illness and recovery in his 2020 memoir Your Huckleberry and Amazon Prime documentary Val.

He underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatments for the disease and also had a tracheostomy which damaged his vocal cords and permanently gave him a raspy speaking voice.

Kilmer played Batman in the 1995 film Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for his portrayal of rock singer Jim Morrison in the 1991 movie The Doors.

Read more from Sky News:
Tributes to ‘genius’ Kilmer
Richest billionaires named
Springsteen’s seven new albums

He also starred in True Romance and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, as well as playing criminal Chris Shiherlis in Michael Mann’s 1995 movie Heat and Doc Holliday in the 1993 film Tombstone.

In 1988 he married British actress Joanne Whalley, whom he met while working on fantasy adventure Willow.

The couple had two children before divorcing in 1996.

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