UK Government begins 650k emissions re-testing programme

An emissions re-testing scheme is to be undertaken by the government, at an estimated cost of £650,000.

Under Secretary of State for Transport, Andrew Jones announced that, in order to keep the scheme independent, the government will not look for contributions from manufacturers. The money will come out of the Department for Transport’s budget, rather than using fresh money from the treasury.

The sample of cars for retesting will be based on the current British market, so will include the newest and best-selling cars; the Nissan Qashqai, BMW 3 Series and Ford Fiesta are likely to be selected. The government is also working together with the German government to cover more cars, and plans to collaborate with more countries to extend this.

Diesel and petrol models will be tested, and a cost of between £8000 and £10,000 per car has been quoted by the Vehicle Certification Agency. The testing will measure emissions of NOX and CO2, as well as investigating whether ‘defeat devices’ have been used.

A government spokesperson said: "The Volkswagen story has shown how current emissions testing has its limitations. The UK has pushed for change in emissions testing, to bring ‘Real Driving Emissions Testing’ for real-world emissions figures."

Real-world testing will make up part of the procedure, alongside laboratory testing. As a result of the Volkswagen emissions scandal, a more real-world oriented emissions testing system will be introduced in 2017 in Europe.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin promises a progress update by the end of 2016.