Europes 2035 petrol and diesel ban faces new legal action report

Members of the European Union are continuing to fight back against the ban on new petrol and diesel cars by 2035, as the Polish Government threatens legal action.

The European Union’s proposed ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2035 is set to face another hurdle, with at least one continental country reportedly preparing to take lawmakers to court over the drastic regulations.

In February this year, European Parliament members approved a proposal which would effectively bring an end to the sale of new petrol and diesel cars – also referred to as internal-combustion engine (or ICE) vehicles – from 2035.

Car-makers which sell passenger vehicles in Europe will be required to cut their new-car tailpipe emissions by 55 per cent before 2030 (compared to 2021 levels), while a 100 per cent reduction will be enforced from 2035.

News agency Reuters reports the Polish Government is preparing to appeal the proposed ban of new petrol and diesel-powered cars in the European Court of Justice – claiming the plans haven’t taken the social consequences of the regulations into account.

The petrol-powered Fiat 500 is made in Poland

The announcement, made by Poland’s climate minister Anna Moskwa, follows consistent push-back on the proposed emissions reduction regulations by the country, which formed an alliance with six other European nations to push back on the ban in March.

“We don’t agree with this and other documents from the Fit for 55 package and we’re bringing this to the European Court of Justice. I hope other countries will join,” Ms Moskwa told Polish radio station Radio Zet, according to Reuters.

“We will file the motion in the coming days.”

According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity, Poland is the world’s 24th-largest automotive exporter, while vehicle production is the country’s seventh-highest export industry.

In Australia, new cars built in Poland include the petrol-powered Fiat 500 and Abarth 595/695 twins, as well as Volkswagen’s Caddy, Crafter and Transporter – though only the single and double-cab chassis variants of the latter.

Volkswagen’s Caddy (pictured), Crafter and single/double-cab chassis Transporter are built in Poland

The process to enact the proposed laws was delayed in March after the German government entered talks with the EU over the allowance of synthetic fuels, which would mean new cars powered by petrol or diesel engines could continue to be manufactured and sold after 2035.

While Poland – along with the Czech Republic, Italy, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia – has supported Germany’s proposed concession to allow synthetic fuels to keep combustion engines alive, both Fiat and Volkswagen have previously announced their plans to stop selling petrol and diesel cars in Europe years before the 2035 cut-off.

In June 2021, Fiat declared it would go electric-only by 2030.

In October 2022, Volkswagen announced it would axe petrol and diesel engines in Europe by 2033.

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