MOTOR VEHICLES: EMISSIONS AND ACCESS TO
REPAIR INFORMATION (5163/06)
Letter from the Chairman to Stephen Ladyman
MP, Minister of State for Transport, Department for Transport
Thank your for your letter of 8 August 1006,[36]
replying to my letter of 28 June. Sub-Committee B considered your
letter at its meeting on 9 October.
We are grateful to you for your update on negotiations
on the Regulation, and share your continued opposition to the
inclusion of fiscal incentives, although accept that it may not
be possible to secure their exclusion from the text.
As you report, the positions of many of the
Member States in relation to the European Parliament amendments
remain unclear. We look forward to receiving a further update
ahead of the Environment Council on 23 October, including your
assessment of the likelihood of the Regulation being agreed.
We will maintain scrutiny on the proposal at
this stage.
10 October 2006
Letter from the Chairman to Stephen Ladyman
MP
Sub-Committee B considered this document, and
your Supplementary Explanatory Memorandum, at its meeting on 27
November 2006.
We are grateful to you for keeping us informed
on the progress made in the European Parliament's Environment
Committee. We would be further grateful for another update on
the draft Regulation following the European Parliament's plenary
First Reading, which we understand will now take place in December.
Clearly much will depend on whether the amendments proposed by
the Environment Committee are adopted by the Parliament.
We will maintain scrutiny on the document at
this stage.
29 November 2006
Letter from Stephen Ladyman MP to the
Chairman
Thank you for your letter of 29 November 2006
regarding Sub-Committee B's consideration of the above proposal
and my supplementary explanatory memorandum of 30 October 2006.
The Finnish Presidency has been holding trialogue
meetings with the European Parliament's rapporteur and the Commission,
in an attempt to agree a package of amendments to secure a first
reading agreement between the Parliament and Council on this dossier.
At the Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER) meeting
on 5 December a qualified majority of member states indicated
that they could accept the package that has been developed. We
therefore expect that this will be put to a plenary session of
the Parliament for voting on 14 December and that it will be put
to the Environment Council for agreement on 18 December. We will,
of course, report the outcome of the Parliament's First Reading
to you as requested. However, in view of the fact that there will
not be time for Sub-Committee B to consider a report on the outcome
of the plenary before Council's vote, I amd writing to inform
you of the latest developments and the Government's intended voting
position in Council.
The package approved by COREPER contains the
following key amendments to the Commission's proposal:
(i) Euro 5 diesel NOx limits are tightened to
180mg/km for cars (similar % reduction for light goods vehicles);
(ii) a Euro 6 stage is inserted, tightening diesel
NOx limits to 80mg/km for cars (and a similar % reduction for
light goods vehicles); petrol vehicle limits are unchanged from
Euro 5;
(iii) implementation dates are fixed at 1 September
2009 (Euro 5—new types of car), 1 January 2011 (Euro 5—all
types of car), 1 September 2014 (Euro 6—new types of car),
1 September 2015 (Euro 6—all types of car), with an additional
year in each case for Class II and III light goods vehicles;
(iv) at Euro 5 certain heavy passenger cars are
treated as light goods vehicles in terms of emissions limits and
implementation dates. The vehicles covered are "special purpose
vehicles" (motorhomes, ambulances etc), 7+ seat vehicles
over 2,000 kg reference (unladen) mass, and commercial wheelchair
accessible vehicles over 1,760 kg reference mass (eg London taxis).
Off-road vehicles which meet the reference mass and 7+ seat requirements
are included in the scope of the derogation but only until 1 September
2012; and
(v) where member states offer fiscal incentives
for early compliance with Euro 6, these may only start from the
date that Euro 5 becomes mandatory.
Whilst the majority of these amendments are
in line with changes the UK has been seeking, or we could consider
accepting in order to reach an early agreement, the text on fiscal
incentives is unacceptable. The UK has long opposed the adoption
of tax measures under any basis other than Article 93 of the Treaty
establishing the European Community. Whilst we have, from time
to time, voted in favour of texts featuring permissive fiscal
provisions in otherwise acceptable proposals, the current text
restricts national tax policy. As a result, the Government intends
to vote against this dossier on the grounds that it violates national
tax sovereignty and restricts the ability of member states to
encourage the earliest possible uptake of Euro 6 vehicles.
There is theoretically a possibility that the
fiscal incentives issue could be resolved prior to the Council
vote, although I do not think that this is likely. If, however,
this matter were to be resolved the UK Government would wish to
support the proposal in order to protect this negotiated improvement.
I would like to assure you that we would not consider lifting
the scrutiny reserve lightly. However I hope that the Committee
would share our view that, if the opportunity arose to reach a
satisfactory resolution to the fiscal issue, it would be appropriate
for the Government to support it and prevent the adoption of a
less advantageous measure.
7 December 2006
Letter from the Chairman to Stephen Ladyman
MP
Thank you for your letter of 7 December 2006
which Sub-Committee B considered at its meeting on 11 December.
We were grateful to you for updating us on the
progress of negotiations on the draft Regulation. We understand
that it will not now be possible for us to consider a report from
you after the European Parliament's First Reading before agreement
is sought at the Environment Council.
We share your clear and consistent opposition
to the provisions on fiscal incentives. As you report, it is unlikely
that this issue will be resolved to the UK's satisfaction ahead
of Council. For this reason we will maintain scrutiny at this
stage.
As you also write, there is however "theoretically
a possibility" that the issue will be resolved before the
Council vote. If this were to be the case, we would support the
Government's agreement to the proposal and not consider such an
agreement to be an override of scrutiny. We look forward to receiving
a full report from you following the meeting.
12 December 2006
Letter from Stephen Ladyman MP to the
Chairman
Thank you for your letter of 12 December 2006
regarding the above proposal and my letter of 7 December 2006.
An indicated the European Parliament held their
Plenary vote on this dossier on 12 December. They voted in favour
of adopting the First Reading Deal package developed by the Finnish
Presidency and the rapporteur, and agreed by COREPER, as summarised
in my last letter.
The package was not put before the Environment
Council for agreement on 18 December, simply because the Council
Secretariat had not produced a final text for voting. However
such a text was circulated on 21 December and we expect that it
will be put to Council as an A point, for voting without debate.
As I explained in my letter of 7 December, when
this happens, the Government intends to vote against the package
on the grounds that the fiscal incentives text violates national
tax sovereignty.
Based on the positions of Member States in COREPER,
the UK will be isolated in its opposition to the package. As a
result we expect the package will be adopted by a Qualified Majority
Vote. Since the Council and the European Parliament's texts are
identical, this will conclude negotiations and the package will
be adopted as a Regulation.
9 January 2007
Letter from the Chairman to Stephen Ladyman
MP
Thank you for your letter of 9 January 2007,
which Sub-Committee B considered at its meeting on 22 January.
We were grateful to you for your update on the
draft Regulation. We share your regret at the continued inclusion
of the provisions on fiscal incentives, and your belief that these
provisions violate national tax sovereignty. We appreciate that
there is now no way for the Government to defeat these provisions,
but support your voting against the package in Council. As the
text is now finalised, we will lift scrutiny at this stage.
25 January 2007
36 Correspondence with Ministers, 40th Report of Session
2006-07, HL Paper 187, p 121. Back
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