MEPs vote in favour of harmful emission standards for motor vehicles

Today, a majority of conservative, right-wing and liberal Members of the European Parliament voted in favour of weak emission standards for motor vehicles (Euro 7 standard). The Euro standards set standards for pollutant emissions such as particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide from cars, buses and trucks. The European Parliament is now entering the trilogue negotiations with the Council and the Commission with a weak negotiations mandate.

Bac Eickhout MEP, Greens/EFA shadow rapporteur on Euro 7, comments:

"Every year, more than seventy thousand Europeans die prematurely from air pollution caused by road traffic. Conservatives and liberals have watered down the proposed new standards: they are playing with the health of millions of Europeans and getting away with it too.

"Meanwhile, there are cars on the road that perform even better than the current standard and technologies to reduce emissions quickly are widely available. While the United States and China tighten their regulations, European manufacturers are given a free pass to sell polluting cars.

“Calculations by independent experts and the European Commission show that stricter emission standards would not increase car prices. With the Euro 7 standards, the EU is missing the opportunity to be the future leader in green technology. Instead of getting its act together and focussing on high-tech, a majority in the European Parliament is sticking to yesterday's technology."

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According to the Commission, over seventy thousand people in the EU die prematurely every year from air pollution caused by road traffic. The current Euro 6 standards are severely outdated after almost a decade.