WRITTEN QUESTION E-1271/02

by Stavros Xarchakos (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(6 May 2002)

Subject: Problems relating to implementation of Directive on withdrawal of vehicles

According to numerous articles in the Greek press, on 1 July 2002 Community Directive 2000/53/EK(1) will also enter into force in Greece. Under that directive, all new cars sold will have a specific age limit determined by the automobile industry. When these vehicles reach the end of their life cycle, they will be handed in to dealers for compulsory scrapping.

The same articles report that this measure will be mandatory from 2007 and is expected to result in the withdrawal of approximately two million cars over 15 years old, using conventional technology, on the roads in Greece. Greece, in fact, is one of two Member States (the other is Denmark) in which cars over 1800 cc are subject to inordinate special consumer taxes and other levies entailing considerable financial sacrifice by the average Greek wishing to acquire a reliable and safe means of transport for himself and his family. The compulsory withdrawal and scrapping of vehicles will particularly affect those individuals who have paid exorbitant taxes to the Greek State, as it will also affect anyone buying a car in the future who will be compelled to surrender it at the end of its life cycle for scrapping.

Do the provisions of the Directive apply as presented in the Greek press? Has the Commission calculated exactly how many vehicles will have to be scrapped and when? Has provision been made for any financial incentive or concession for owners who hand in their cars for scrapping? Should the implementation of the Directive not go hand in hand with the full harmonisation of taxes in order to eliminate the absurd situation which forces Greek taxpayers ultimately to pay up to 360 % more than other Union citizens for the same car?

(1) OJ L 269, 21.10.2000, p. 34.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(24 June 2002)

It is incorrect that Directive 2000/53/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 18 September 2000 on end-of life vehicles(1), fixes specific age limits for vehicles. It does not contain any specific rules on the withdrawal of vehicles from the market.

Discarded vehicles today result in approximately 8 to 9 million tonnes of waste each year in the Union. Directive 2000/53/EC aims to prevent waste from vehicles and to promote the re-use, recycling and other forms of recovery of end-of-life vehicles and their components. It sets clear quantified targets for reuse, recycling and recovery of vehicles and components and applies the producer responsibility principle by establishing that producers should finance a free take-back scheme for the last holders/owners of end-of life vehicles put on the market after 1 July 2002. For vehicles put on the market before 1 July 2002, the free take back scheme will only apply as from 1 January 2007.

There are no harmonised rules on when a vehicle has reached the end of its life-cycle. The average life cycle of vehicles across Europe varies significantly, with the lowest in Luxembourg (four years) and the highest in Portugal (11 years)(2). It is therefore difficult to estimate the number of vehicles that will be scrapped at this moment. According to the European Environmental Agency, the estimated number of scrapped cars in the Union is projected to grow from about 11,3 million in 1995 to slightly less than 17 million in 2015(3).

Apart from the rule that owners of end-of life vehicles must be able to have their cars taken back free of charge, the Directive does not provide for any financial incentive or concession for owners of end-of life vehicles to scrap their cars.

The main objective of Directive 2000/53/EC on end-of life vehicles is to minimise the negative impact of end-of life vehicles on the environment. As the end-of life vehicles covered by Directive 2000/53/EC are waste within the meaning of Article 1(a) of Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 on waste(4), there is no sense in considering the use of vehicle related taxes as a specific instrument to improve their environmental performance.

The implementation of Directive 2000/53/EC on end-of life vehicles and potential new Community initiatives with regard to vehicle related taxes are not linked. The Commission is exploring a number of options for action at Community and national levels, in the field of

taxation of passenger cars. The outcome of this exercise will be presented soon for discussion to the Council and the Parliament, in the form of a Commission Communication. The main objective of this Communication will be to identify options for future action in the area of taxation of passenger cars, which will ensure the smooth functioning of the Internal Market and advance Community's environment objectives provided for, inter alia, by the Kyoto Protocol.

(1) OJ L 269, 21.10.2000.

(2) Source: European Environmental Agency, Indicator 25: size and average age of vehicle fleet, lastly updated on 24 January 2001; at http://reports.eea.eu.int/ENVISSUENo12/en/page031.html

(3) Source: European Environmental Agency, Waste from road vehicles, version of 20 August 2001,http://themes.eea.eu.int/Sectors_and_activities/transport/indicators/consequences/waste/Waste_from_road_transport_TERM_2001.pdf.

(4) OJ L 194, 25.7.1975.