EU / Prime Ministers of six countries, including Poland, appeal to the head of the EC for a revision of car policy
The prime ministers of six European Union countries, including Poland, appealed in a letter to the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen for a revision of the EU’s car policy, warning that the current regulations weaken the competitiveness of the European automotive sector.
The letter was signed by: the Prime Minister of Poland Donald Tusk, the Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban, the Prime Minister of Slovakia Robert Fico, the Prime Minister of Italy Giorgia Meloni, the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Petr Fiala and the Prime Minister of Bulgaria Rosen Żelazkow.
In the letter, which PAP has seen, it was emphasized that the discussions during the last EU summit on competitiveness, as well as the debate on the position of the Council of the EU (member states) on the revision of EU climate law, revealed “the need to move once and for all away from ideological dogmatism, which has brought entire sectors of production to the brink of collapse, with little or almost no effect in terms of global emissions.”
The heads of government pointed to the need for full application of the principle of technological neutrality, noting that “there is no single miracle solution for decarbonization.”
In their view, imposing a single technology limits research, innovation and competition, and the effects of these actions particularly affect the European automotive industry, which, as stated, “is suffering dramatically from the current EU regulations.”
The prime ministers called for the upcoming revision of the regulation on CO2 emission standards for new passenger cars and light commercial vehicles to maintain, also after 2035, the role of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, fuel cell technologies, electric vehicles with so-called range extenders, and other future solutions.
In their opinion, the revision should take into account the role of low-emission and renewable fuels in the decarbonization of road transport, also classifying biofuels as “carbon dioxide emission-neutral fuels.”
The letter also proposed a revision of the regulation on CO2 standards for heavy-duty vehicles, in order to make it easier for manufacturers “to achieve the targets and avoid the risk of penalties.”
The prime ministers also took a critical stance on the Clean Industrial Deal proposal in the area of road transport.
As they emphasized in the letter, the EC should focus on promoting good practices, tax incentives and support programs, applying a technologically neutral approach in the transition to low- and zero-emission mobility.
“We are at a turning point both for the European automotive industry and the automotive components industry, as well as for European climate action. We can and must effectively strive to achieve our climate goal without at the same time destroying our competitiveness, because on an industrial desert there is nothing green” – the prime ministers wrote in conclusion of the letter. (06.12.2025)
