Complaint from Brussels: The European Commission criticizes the lax handling of the German government with the diesel scandal and accuses Germany of the absence of “deterrent sanctions”.
Thursday, 17.05.2018
12:53 clock
The EU Commission has Germany and other countries again because of the hesitant reaction to the diesel scandal Volkswagen admonished. This was reported by the authorities in Brussels. She throws the Federal government massive failures. A charge: She has not punished Volkswagen for the manipulation of pollutant levels in diesel cars.
In addition, the government has not sufficiently monitored that the car manufacturers comply with the regulations. At the end of 2016, the Federal Government had already protected itself against the allegations when the proceedings were initiated.
In the process, the Commission is now taking the next step – not only against Germany but also against Italy. Luxembourg and Great Britain, Formally, it refers to the EU regulations on the type-approval of vehicles that have been disregarded.
The EU Commission demands more information from Germany. She needs more information on the national investigation and legal action.
Moreover, since ambiguities such as the Porsche Cayenne, VW Touareg and various Audi models have occurred, Germany and Luxembourg would also have to provide information about what further steps were planned. The Commission also expects information on the “countervailing measures” and penalties planned by both countries.
EU law calls for sanction systems
Under EU law, EU states should have “effective, proportionate and dissuasive sanction systems to prevent automakers from violating applicable law.” For the four states, the Commission does not see this.
Complaints before the ECJ against EU states are not uncommon. Help admonitions in an infringement case nothing, they are the usual next step to resolve the lawsuit. If Germany is subject, the European Commission could impose high penalty payments in another case.
However, the procedure is already growing the political pressure, something against the too high pollutant levels in German cities and against too dirty ones diesel to do. Traffic experts see only two possible solutions at short notice: the retrofitting of diesel vehicles or driving bans. The Supreme Administrative Court would have Driving bans in cities generally allowed in February, as long as they are proportionate.