Financial Times claims crucial details omitted in the French emissions report
One of the world's leading newspapers has claimed that the final independent commission report carried out on behalf of the French government omits sensitive details.
This morning, the French government has come under fire in an article published by the Financial Times (FT) claiming it omitted information from the final report of the independent commission set up by Minister Segolene Royal.
The article claims that the the French government's report into CO2 testing of cars in the wake of last summer's 'dieselgate' - where Volkswagen cars were found to be fitted with defeat devices to help them pass emission tests - has emitted some key evidence on the commission's findings.
The FT claims that three of the 17 members of the commission had noticed that the report omitted concerns over a Renault car, a company that the French government has a 20% ownership in.
According to the FT, the members raised concerns that a Renault Captur went into overdrive when being prepared for testing. While there was no evidence to confirm that a cheat device had been used, the report had recommended further investigation. This was omitted from the final report. According to the FT, the French government commented that they are sensitive to the brand image of companies that it has invested in.
Moreover, the final report found that around one-third of all the vehicles tested (86 in total) emitted nitrogen oxides well above European limits, with the worse offends being the Ford Kuga, Fiat 500X, Nissan Qashqai, Renault Espace and Talisman, Opel (Vauxhall) Astra Mokka and Volvo V40.
What is for sure is that 'dieselgate' isn't going away anytime soon, and while reports such as the FT's hold organisations and governments to account, it's time to see action to test cars in real-world conditions and to have more stringent targets to reduce harmful emissions.
For the Financial Times article - click here
For a copy of the final report of the independent commission set up by the Minister Segolene Royal - click here
