MEPs to question former industry commissioner on car emissions measurements

The investigation into the Volkswagen emissions testing scandal continues on Tuesday 30 August when the Parliament's inquiry committee questions former commissioner Günter Verheugen, who was responsible for enterprise and industry from 2004 to 2010. Parliament is currently working on new legislation to improve the reliability of car testing. Check out our infographic to find out more on how car emissions are tested.

Verheugen was the commissioner responsible for Industry from 2004 to 2010, while the Volkswagen case lasted from 2009 to 2015.  He initially declined to appear before the committee on 14 July, but then agreed to take part in the meeting on 30 August.

During the meeting Parliament's inquiry committee investigating emission measurements in the automotive sector will also question representatives from French automotive supplier Faurecia, a market leader in emission control technologies for light and commercial vehicles.

About the committee

The inquiry committee has completed the first phase of the hearings with representatives from various academic institutes, trade associations and non-governmental organisations. Committee members also questioned Stavros Dimas, who was environment commissioner from 2004 to 2010, as well as representatives from various car manufacturers, including Mitsubishi, Renault and Volkswagen.

The committee has also produced  an interim report on the work done so far as well as on what it intends to do in the second part of its one-year turn.

Coming up

The committee meets again on Monday 5 September when members will speak to Janez Potočnik, who was environment commissioner from 2010 to 2014, and Antonio Tajani, who was commissioner for industry and entrepreneurship from 2010 to 2014.

In addition MEPs vote on the committee's interim report, written by Spanish EPP member Pablo Zalba and Dutch ALDE member Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy, on Tuesday 13 September

Background

The emissions fixing scandal erupted in the US in September 2015 and is believed to involve millions of cars from several automakers. As a result of those revelations, the European Parliament set up an inquiry committee on 2 March to investigate if there was an issue with emission measurements in the car industry.

Parliament and the Council are considering to update existing emission rules to ensure tests better reflect real driving conditions.

Find out more

• (open in a new tab) Watch the meeting live on Tuesday 30 August from 15.00 to 18.30 CET
• (open in a new tab) Committee page
• (open in a new tab) Dieselgate: inquiry committee to question industry and Commission representatives
• (open in a new tab) Briefing: measuring on-road air pollution from cars
• (open in a new tab) Press release: European Commission tightens rules for safer and cleaner cars
• (open in a new tab) Video: Facebook interview with Kathleen Van Brempt