In light of the unfolding COVID-19 crisis, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) wrote a letter to the Secretary General of the European Commission regarding public consultations affecting the automotive sector.
All manufacturers of cars, vans, trucks and buses in the EU have shut down their operations for at least two to six weeks and several hundred thousand employees are on temporary short-working conditions, or are not allowed to work at all.
Indeed, as the letter explains, R&D and many technical and supporting departments of manufacturers, like those dealing with homologation and regulations, are shut down or have reduced their workforce. This significantly limits the ability of ACEA to consult its member companies and to consolidate their expert views on critical EU files that are currently under discussion.
Even if ACEA’s members intended to participate individually, they cannot do so at this time. Either way, the result is that key stakeholders are not in a position to react and – in line with better regulation principles – have their opinions properly heard, as would normally be the case.