European carmakers are to be given two extra years to meet this year’s pollution target, the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has said, in a further rollback of her green deal climate policies. Manufacturers who sell a surfeit of models with higher emissions in 2025 will be allowed to compensate by selling more cleaner-emitting vehicles in the two years that follow, stretching the window of compliance for the 2025 fleet emissions target to 2027. The president said the change would give OEMs more breathing space but targets would remain unchanged.

EV sales in the UK surged last month as buyers rush to avoid a GBP 3,000 tax hit. Trade body the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said sales of BEVs increased almost 42% to 21,244 in February. Further rises are predicted this month as buyers’ preference for the twice-yearly new registration plates (March and September) take effect, along with heading off any increase in vehicle excise duty from April 1. Additionally, from this date a GBP 10 fee will apply for the first year, increasing to GBP 195 a year for the next five years. Furthermore, new EVs costing GBP 40,000 or more will also pay a GBP 425 a year “luxury car tax” from the second to sixth year of their life. Overall, this means more than GBP 3,100 worth of road tax for the first six years of the car’s life. As the average cost of an electric vehicle hovers around the GBP 48,000 mark in today’s UK market, most buyers will be affected.

The centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union (CSU) won the largest share of the vote in the February 23 federal election in Germany, and will lead the next government. Friedrich Merz will become chancellor, and the CDU/CSU will have enough seats for a majority government with the centre-left Social Democratic Party (SPD). Expectations for the new government are greater stability as Mr Merz would favour a more active role in European politics than the outgoing chancellor, Olaf Scholz, according to reports.

Mr Merz will now begin exploratory talks with the SPD, with some discussion of how to share out ministerial posts and hopes to have a government by Easter (April 20) and is likely to start staking out foreign policy positions before then, given the gravity of recent developments with the US. However, to date, there has been no mention of Merz’s policies on the ailing automotive industry.

The German automotive supplier BKD (Boryszew Kunststofftechnik Deutschland GmbH) has officially declared bankruptcy, resulting in the immediate layoff of 500 employees. The announcement was unexpected as the company was in the midst of salary negotiations with its workers.

The company is a major producer of plastic components for car interiors and was reported to have been struggling financially due to declining demand from its biggest customer, the Volkswagen Group. The fall in orders from Volkswagen significantly impacted BKD’s financial stability, ultimately leading to the halt of production for injection-molded plastic car parts.