Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department is taking steps with the Department for Transport to improve emissions monitoring and enforcement mechanisms to prevent future breaches of vehicle emissions law.

Since 2016, the Department has greatly increased oversight of emissions tests and established the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA’s) Market Surveillance Unit (MSU) to test vehicle emissions and investigate suspicious practice in the real world as well as in laboratory situations. MSU conducts an annual emissions-testing programme and, where non-compliance is identified, the DVSA works closely with manufacturers to ensure vehicles meet legal requirements.

Legislation introduced in 2018 made it an offence for manufacturers to place vehicles on the market containing prohibited defeat devices. The Department is currently assessing Euro 5 and Euro 6 diesel vehicles to identify any non-compliance and ensure corrective action is taken promptly. Enforcement action will be taken in line with DVSA’s published enforcement policy. The Department is also considering how to strengthen ways in which it can take action in situations where modifications to vehicle emissions systems result in breaches of vehicle emissions law.