Tony Blair
introduced the ‘dash for diesel’ in the late 1990s to meet climate
change targets. Under the 1997 Kyoto Protocol wealthy countries had to
slash emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), the main greenhouse gas, by 8
per cent over 15 years.
Like
other leaders, Blair was swayed by the motor industry’s argument that
switching from petrol to diesel would lead to huge drops in greenhouse
gas emissions.It’s
true that diesels emit less CO2 – mostly they are more efficient and go
further on one litre of fuel. However, in the 1990s the industry argued
the average diesel emitted 13 to 17 per cent less CO2, a figure that
turned out to be hugely optimistic. How was the UK persuaded to switch to dirty diesel?
The
2001 Budget overhauled vehicle excise duty and introduced a new banding
system, still in place today. The more CO2 cars emitted, the more
owners had to pay. The system favoured diesel cars which, according to
the manufacturer’s test results, tended to have lower CO2 emissions.
Labour also brought in tax breaks for diesel company cars to encourage
businesses to switch."
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