Ready, set, go: no more polluting cars and vans by 2035

Belgium (Brussels, Morning Newspaper) The European Union (EU) has reached an agreement: by 2035 only zero-emission cars will be sold in our continent.

The new regulation, called ‘CO2-standards for cars and vans’, will gradually reduce CO2 emissions from cars and vans until they are completely decarbonised in 2035, in line with EU climate goals. The CO2 cars legislation agreement is the first act of the Fit for 55 packages.

We now have an approved regulation that will positively impact the EU and keep us on the right path to reaching climate neutrality, trying to stop the trajectory of the climate emergency that we are experiencing, while leaving no one behind.

There is an urgent need to act in the transport sector, which currently contributes to around 25% of the EU’s total emissions, with 70% coming from the roads, which justifies why all new cars must be zero emissions by 2035. The decision requires investment in charging infrastructure and raw materials for the transition and, not least, in workers in the sector, in their adaptation, training and reconversion to jobs in an industry that wants to be sustainable. The regulation gives clarity to the industry and guides its direction, as is already happening all over the world. It is a small step in the myriad of measures that we have to take.

Considering that the useful life of a car is from 10 to 15 years, it will guarantee the renewal of the current fleet for less polluting cars, which will make it possible for us to reach climate neutrality in 2050 –​ a goal to which the EU has committed in the European Climate Law.

This agreement was not easy: it resulted after months and months of intense negotiations in the main European institutions, being at risk many times. From the Parliament side, where I was involved as a shadow rapporteur from the S&D group, we faced the opposition of the right-wing, showing all their conservatism and ideological duality.

They showed total contempt for the Environment, for current generations, who already suffer from cancers caused by air pollution, in addition to all the disastrous impacts of climate change; and for future generations, who will have to receive the legacy we left on this planet. The proof is the votes against the regulation and the uninformed narrative.

It is important to demystify some of the points addressed. The historic step we took only regulates new cars, imposing certain intermediate targets that will guide the industry, until 2035, with the ultimate goal that the current fleet is replaced by clean cars. The proposal represents a breakthrough in technological terms. We want to promote more innovation, more technologically sustainable solutions that represent an improvement in the lives of our citizens, above all through the reduction of air pollution. 

Thinking about today and now is a narrow vision and today’s myopia will be tomorrow’s blindness.

The objective of the ‘CO2-standards for cars and vans’ regulation is that in 12 years, with less polluting cars, we will breathe cleaner air; and in 27 years we will slow down the warming of the planet. 

Ready, set, go: no more polluting cars and vans by 2035 equals a small step towards breathing cleaner air, slowing down the warming of the planet, and protecting everyone who lives on it!