Dieselgate 2: Why ‘murky’ emissions are still poisoning our air

It was over a decade ago that the automotive industry, and indeed the world, was rocked by Dieselgate, the Volkswagen emissions scandal. The public were horrified to learn about how the trusted German car giant Volkswagen, the one that gave us the “Herbie” kids film franchise, had knowingly faked vehicle emissions tests via cheat devices.

VW’s range of diesel compact cars had been marketed as a green alternative to petrol, but it was found that it had been knowingly cooking the books to the point that the US Environmental Protection Agency found VW’s top people guilty of conspiracy to defraud customers.

Here in the UK, the fallout was a watershed moment for environmental regulation. Confidence was shattered, share prices nosedived, and reputational damage was catastrophic. Vehicles were recalled, astronomical fines were paid, and heads rolled at the managerial level. The once-encouraged diesel became discredited, and its fate in London was finally sealed by the implementation of the ultra-low emission zone.

We were assured that lessons would be learned, yet despite the outlawing of defeat devices, the problem seems to be significantly wider than originally thought. Today, what many are calling “Dieselgate 2: The Sequel” is proceeding slowly through the courts, and the scale is staggering.

Multiple models and manufacturers stand accused of the same deception: spewing out dangerous and excessive emissions due to cheat technology. Companies have been knowingly deceiving drivers, a betrayal of trust that feels a bit like match-fixing to those of us of a certain age: the Bruce Grobbelaar scandal comes to mind.

Consumers have been conned once again into believing that they were driving greener, cleaner diesel cars, yet the results have been rigged. This appears to have been done with intent across the country, and the original VW scandal may have been just the tip of a very murky iceberg.

This is not a fringe issue reserved for men in white coats in a laboratory; it is an active public health crisis affecting every constituency in the nation. Air pollution remains one of our most pressing environmental challenges, with noxious nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions causing respiratory illness, cardiovascular disease, and childhood asthma.

In London, the devastating human impact was tragically illustrated by the desperately sad case of Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, who died at just nine years old. Hers was the first ever case in which the cause of death on the certificate was officially recorded as “pollution.” The family lived near the South Circular, and the fight for justice led by her mother, Rosamund, has been a tireless campaign for “Ella’s Law.” Organisations like Mums for Lungs and Parent Power are sounding the alarm because clean air is an essential right, not a luxury. We would not force a child to drink dirty water, yet we expect them to breathe toxic air.

The irony of this situation is rooted in historical decisions. If we look back to the 2001 Budget, encouraged a massive shift toward diesel. Consequently, the market share of diesels in this country was as high as 50% in 2014.

Since the scandal broke, that figure has plummeted to just 5%, yet the legacy of those decisions remains on our streets. The prospect of Dieselgate 2 suggests that defeat devices have been dishonestly fitted to vehicles that are still emitting pollutants at levels way beyond what is legal. If true, this leaves huge holes in government enforcement and regulatory credibility, essentially poisoning the population while manufacturers claim compliance.

Currently, there are approximately 7.5 million diesel cars: a quarter of all UK cars: still on our roads. According to figures from Mums for Lungs, these vehicles are responsible for 30% of total NOx emissions. When you add vans, buses, and HGVs into the equation, the need for urgent action becomes undeniable.

In autumn 2024, the Department for Transport (DfT) confirmed it is investigating the possible use of defeat device trickery by several manufacturers. However, this government inquiry is currently viewed by many as sketchy and shrouded in secrecy. With illegally high emissions and childhood asthma in the balance, every moment the results are delayed puts more lungs at risk. Furthermore, the economic cost of inaction is vast; it is estimated that the UK economy could lose £36 billion over the next 14 years due to the lingering effects of Dieselgate.

The sheer number of potential claimants in this second wave of the scandal, potentially 1.8 million cars, dwarfs the settlement that followed the initial VW crisis, which compensated only 91,000 consumers. This leads to critical questions for the DfT regarding the status and their investigation. We must know what enforcement powers the Department is prepared to deploy. Will vehicles that do not meet environmental standards be recalled?

If manufacturers are found to have breached the rules, the financial burden of remedial action must fall squarely on them, not on the consumers who bought these vehicles in good faith.

We now have a second chance to get this right. The DfT must prioritise the interests of the public and the consumer over the interests of massive automotive corporations. A decade after the public was first duped, we cannot be left wondering if wrongdoing will go unpunished.