European Parliament on Diesel

Demand for thorough investigation and cautious action

During its plenary meeting in Strasburg on 6 October 2015, Members of the European Parliament have asked the European Commission to open an enquiry related to the VW emissions case. Elzbieta Bienkowska, Commissioner for Industry, stated that the European Commission would not open a case before the Member States would have finished their own investigations.

MEPs also stressed out that, despite the emotion caused by the VW case, “ambitions are good, but first and foremost we need to have a pragmatic approach”, legislators having to tread very carefully and not draw drastic conclusions like, for instance, sounding the death knell of the diesel engines.

“We also have to bear in mind that Europe has a real technological advantage in clean diesel engines and that many citizens with modest incomes depend on the fuel economy in diesel-powered cars. We cannot burry the whole European automotive industry in reaction to this”, warned French EPP MEP Françoise Grossetête.

Source: European Parliament