Do Euro emissions matter now that Brexit has happened?
In short, yes, Euro emissions do still matter after Brexit. This is because the UK government hasn’t indicated it will extricate drivers and businesses from the principles enshrined in the Euro emissions standards.
The government is reviewing all EU legislation and likely to scrap and repeal a lot of it, but it is highly unlikely to take any backward steps in legislation around protecting the environment. Indeed, all its steps so far have been to push for stricter legislation and then hope other countries follow the UK’s lead.
Key post-Brexit changes aren’t in the content of the policies regarding emissions but in their implementation. This is outlined in the government’s CO2 emissions for new cars and vans report, which was published on 31 December 2020.
The report opens with the following statements:
“CO₂ [Carbon Dioxide] emissions from cars and vans newly registered in the UK were previously governed by European Union (EU) regulations.
“Data was gathered each year on fleets across Europe, and manufacturers who failed to meet their CO₂ targets were fined.
“DfT [Department for Transport] has now taken over the application and enforcement of CO₂ standards for GB-registered cars and vans, as of 1 January 2021”.
Unless there’s further notice from the government, Euro emissions are still the standard UK regulation for petrol and diesel cars, vans and heavy-duty vehicles. This means they’ll continue to remain something that impacts drivers and fleet managers.
