Labour urged to confront 'Dieselgate 2' as 110 car models face emissions probe

The Ealing Central and Acton MP warned MPs "this could be Dieselgate 2," as she called for urgent clarity on the scale of the Government's investigation into so-called "defeat devices".

The Government confirmed that hundreds of individual vehicle models are currently under active investigation by the Department for Transport.

The targeted assessment programme began in early 2025 and focused on Euro 5 and Euro 6 diesel cars and vans built between 2010 and 2018.

Responding for the Government, the Transport Minister Simon Lightwood MP said, "110 models are currently subject to active investigation." He added that the programme formally began this year and described it as complex and detailed work.

The original Dieselgate scandal erupted more than a decade ago when Volkswagen admitted using software to manipulate emissions tests.

Vehicles were programmed to detect when they were being tested in a laboratory, temporarily lowering emissions to meet legal standards, only to produce higher pollution levels in real-world driving.

At the time, Volkswagen had reportedly marketed its diesel cars as a cleaner alternative to petrol. However, the US Environmental Protection Agency later found senior executives guilty of conspiring to defraud customers.

She told MPs that consumers risk being "duped again" into believing they are buying cleaner vehicles than they actually are.

The MP also highlighted the public health impact of diesel emissions, saying nitrogen oxide pollution contributes to "respiratory illness, cardiovascular disease and childhood asthma".

She referred to the case of a young girl who died aged nine and became the first person in the UK to have air pollution recorded as a cause of death.

Dr Huq cited estimates suggesting excess emissions could be linked to 16,000 premature deaths each year in the UK, as well as 30,000 new cases of childhood asthma.

Meanwhile, campaign group Mums for Lungs has estimated that failing to resolve the diesel emissions issue could cost the UK economy £36 billion over the next 14 years.

Around 7.5 million diesel cars remain on UK roads. While they account for roughly a quarter of all vehicles, they are responsible for about 30 per cent of total nitrogen oxide emissions.

But the Transport Minister insisted regulators are better equipped than they were during the original Dieselgate scandal.

He said the DVSA now uses both laboratory testing and real-world driving assessments to spot suspicious performance patterns.

"Manufacturers are operating under firm deadlines," he told MPs, adding that the DVSA has completed checks on several models and is currently reviewing detailed technical submissions from carmakers.

Where breaches are confirmed, he said, action will follow. "Manufacturers will be compelled to implement corrective measures," he stated, stressing that vehicle owners would not bear any financial cost.

Since 2018, placing vehicles fitted with banned defeat devices on the market has been a criminal offence. The Government is also reviewing whether its existing powers should be strengthened to allow compulsory environmental recalls if necessary.

The Transport Minister added that a new Government page will shortly bring together all emissions compliance updates in one place. However, he cautioned that publishing provisional findings too early could "mislead consumers" and risk undermining ongoing technical assessments.