Public Says Car Makers Must Go Green

The results of an opinion poll out today show an overwhelming 87 per cent of people in the UK think measures to force car manufacturers to make smarter cars that use 25 per cent less fuel should be introduced urgently.

Two-thirds of respondents thought that requiring car manufacturers to reduce the fuel consumption of their vehicles by a quarter would boost the UK economy - because people would spend less money on fuel and so have more to spend on other things.

And the poll shows there is a clear public appetite for green motoring - over half of those questioned saying that apart from cost, fuel consumption was the most important factor in choosing a new or second hand car - ahead of safety and comfort.

The TNS poll, commissioned by Friends of the Earth Europe questioned a total of 4885 people in the UK, Germany, Spain, France and Italy. The results come days before key MEP votes in the European Parliament which will be critical in determining future emissions standards for new cars.

Reducing the fuel consumption of cars sold in the EU by 25 per cent would cut average carbon dioxide emissions from new cars to approximately 120g CO2/km, the 2012 target that we have been pushing for at the Alliance.

These survey results mirror what people have told us on the streets: they are horrified by how much they have to spend on petrol and agree that they would be willing to pay more for a more fuel efficient car.

Consumers urgently need our MEPs and UK ministers to have some guts and push for stringent carbon dioxide targets.

The polling included male and females from all age groups and a range of backgrounds. 984 people were questioned in the UK. The results showed that:

• 66 per cent of UK respondents thought that requiring car manufacturers to reduce the fuel consumption of their vehicles by a quarter would boost the UK economy - because people would spend less money on fuel and so have more to spend on other things.
• 58 per cent of UK respondents said that apart from cost, fuel consumption was the most important factor in choosing a new or second hand car - ahead of safety (34 per cent) and comfort (18 per cent).

According to Friends of the Earth's Senior Transport Campaigner Tony Bosworth, "The message has come across loud and clear: people want car makers to produce cleaner, smarter cars that use less fuel, reduce climate change emissions and slash fuel bills.

"Politicians must act on public demand by standing up to the self-interested lobbying of the car industry and delivering the tough standards that people clearly want".

MEPs need to hear from the public right nw, as there are 2 crucial votes in the EU in the next 2 weeks. Go to our new action website www.forlesspollutingcars.com and send an email to the crucial UK MEPs.

Alliance Wins Legal Challenge: Car Billboard Ads to Show Climate Impact

Car adverts on billboards and in magazines will now be emblazoned with the car’s climate impacts, after the Government yesterday agreed to change its advertising guidelines in response to the threat of legal proceedings by the Alliance Against Urban 4x4s.

The fuel consumption and CO2 emissions of vehicle will now have to be prominently displayed, arming consumers with the information they need to choose a greener vehicle – and one that needs to be filled up with fuel less often.

The Department for Transport admitted that it had been wrongly interpreting an EU Directive on car advertising, which says that fuel economy and carbon dioxide emissions information must be prominently provided in all promotional literature. The Government has until now exempted ‘primarily graphical’ adverts from the law with the effect that most billboard adverts did not include information about the car’s carbon dioxide emissions.

The announcement came in response to a legal letter to the Department for Transport from Friends of the Earth’s Rights & Justice Centre acting for the Alliance Against Urban 4x4s. We wrote to the DfT in March to point out that the UK wasn’t abiding with EU law and warned the Government that they would issue Judicial Review proceedings if the guidance was not changed.

From now on, it won’t be enough to woo consumers with a sleek and sexy image of a car in billboard ads – car advertisers will need to give real and readable facts about the car’s fuel economy and environmental impact. With rising fuel costs and a growing awareness about climate change, this information is crucially important for people to make greener and cheaper choices of vehicle.

In order to cut emissions from cars, we need both strong regulation on advertising and also strong regulation that forces car manufacturers to make more efficient cars. Today’s change in the advertising rules will help encourage car-makers to build more efficient vehicles, something they have so far been very slow to do.

Phil Michaels, Head of Legal at Friends of the Earth said:
“Until now allowed the UK was getting away with flouting EU legislation on car advertising – but our legal action has closed the loophole.

“Consumers have a right to meaningful information about how much carbon dioxide a car emits and how much fuel it guzzles, so they can choose to buy a car that will be greener and cheaper to run. We will be watching carefully to make sure that the law is now properly enforced.”

See the cars and CO2 campaign website here: http://www.advertiseCO2.co.uk