Ian Duncan will sit on a special European Parliament Inquiry into the Volkswagen emissions scandal.
This follows the discovery that VW cars being sold in America had a "defeat device" in diesel engines that could detect when they were being tested. The emissions recorded were significantly lower than in real life driving conditions, and Volkswagen has admitted that it cheated during American testing.
The ´Committee of Inquiry on Emissions Measurements´ will examine whether the European Commission, or member states such as Germany, failed to oversee an explicit ban on ´defeat devices´.
They will also examine:
Commenting, Ian said:
"The optimism that emerged from the Paris Climate Change talks in December will be short-lived if we do not get to the bottom of one of the biggest scandals in modern times.
"The Committee has an important job to do if the public are to have any confidence that manufacturers such as Volkswagen will not be able to cheat emissions tests again.
"Whether negligent or complicit, both the European Commission and National
Governments must explain what went wrong. Only then can we put the measures in place to make sure this can never happens again."
The Committee of Inquiry on Emissions Measurements will being work immediately, delivering recommendations by the end of the year.
Ends
Notes to editors
1. Details of the Committee of Inquiry on Emissions Measurements - http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/20151216IPR08007/Dieselgate-Parliament-sets-up-inquiry-committee [1]
2. Ian Duncan is the Conservative MEP for Scotland and ´rapporteur´ on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), the EU´s flagship policy to tackle climate change.
Contact Andrew Johnston
Chief of Staff, Ian Duncan MEP
andrew.johnston@europarl.europa.eu [2]
Brussels +32 2 284 47249
Mobile +44 7880 778899 [3]
Links:
[1] http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/20151216IPR08007/Dieselgate-Parliament-sets-up-inquiry-committee
[2] mailto:andrew.johnston@europarl.europa.eu
[3] tel:%2B44%207880%20778899