Ahead of the plenary vote at the European Parliament today, Ceemet warns of the consequences of setting stricter CO2 targets than in the Commission proposal of November 2017, anything more than a 30% reduction for cars and vans by 2030, with an intermediate 15% reduction target by 2025 would be damaging to jobs in the automotive sector.

 

European automobile manufacturers are committed to a strong CO2 reduction. However, this transition has to be made with the necessary prudence.

 

These targets proposed by the Commission are sound and based on solid evidence. Any attempt to set stricter targets will logically have consequences on the industry's competitiveness and ultimately on hundreds of thousands of quality jobs in, and supported by, car and van manufacturers.[1]

The proposed reductions by the European Parliament's Environment Committee of 45% (2030) and 20% (2025) go far beyond the Commission’s proposal.

 

Proposing these considerably stricter targets is going hand in hand with a responsibility to prove and assess the impact they will have, including on employment. It would be unrealistic to think that jobs, once lost due to these stricter targets, could be retrieved.

 

Ceemet calls on Members of the European Parliament to also consider the industrial and social consequences for Europe when voting.

 

1 Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering IAO, ELAB 2.0, 4 June 2018