Stricter Real Driving Emissions (RDE) tests are needed for car manufacturers to truly comply with the emission standards, Labour MEP Miriam Dalli told the European Parliament’s environment committee.

The committee was discussing the regulation that sets the emission limits for cars for regulated pollutants, in particular nitrogen oxides (NOx). Car manufacturers were granted the so-called ‘conformity factors’ allowing them to pollute more on the road than the levels measured under laboratory conditions. 

The General Court of the EU labelled such conformity factors as illegal.

“The introduction of secondary law allowing cars to pollute more than they should is simply unacceptable. To try and legitimise the relaxing of limits is deplorable,” Miriam Dalli, who is leading the negotiations on behalf of the Socialists and Democrats Group (S&D), said.

“This is our chance as European Parliament to do something about Europe’s polluted air. The technology is available and the legislation should reward those car manufacturers making the best use of available technology.”

Calls for stricter control grew stronger following the Dieselgate scandal, where a German car manufacturer was found to have cheated in order to declare lower emissions from its vehicles.

Additionally, despite the toxic emissions diesel produces, the NOx levels set for diesel-powered cars are higher when compared to the levels set for petrol engine cars.

“NOx limits for diesel cars are still higher than for petrol cars and the last thing our environment needs is a rewrite of the original NOx limits,” Miriam Dalli said.

 “The EU should be incentivising manufacturers to follow these standards and not help them to pollute above the set limits. No further excuses that are detrimental to our citizens’ public health should be accepted… or worse still validated.”