Back from holiday, Merkel shifts gear on diesel
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany must eventually follow other European countries in banning new diesel cars, Chancellor Angela Merkel said, conceding for the first time that diesel's days are numbered in the wake of the emissions scandals.
Her concession, in an interview with Super Illu magazine, followed mounting pressure over the summer on Germany's auto makers who concealed from regulators the true emissions level of diesel vehicles.
"I don't want to name an exact year," she said, but Britain and France's plans to phase out internal combustion-driven cars by 2040 "were the right approach".
The fate of the auto sector, Germany's biggest exporter and provider of some 800,000 jobs, has become a hot issue in the Sept. 24 election, when Merkel is seeking a fourth term. Politicians are accusing auto executives of failing to find an adequate response to the emissions scandal.
Agreement was reached at a summit of politicians and carmakers this month to overhaul engine software on 5.3 million diesel cars to cut pollution and repair the industry's reputation, battered by Volkswagen's admission two years ago that it had cheated U.S. emission tests.
More: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-emissions-merkel-idUSKCN1AU1HJ