EU seeks more powers over national car regulations after VW scandal
By Alissa de Carbonnel BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union sought sweeping powers over national car regulations on Wednesday, aiming to prevent a repeat of Volkswagen's emissions test cheating scandal and sparking a tough debate as governments and industry resist change. Under the proposed new rules, Brussels would be able to order spot checks on vehicles, order recalls and impose penalties on carmakers of up to 30,000 euros ($32,600) per vehicle for failure to comply with environmental laws – if no fine was being imposed by the member state. The new plans would also authorize individual EU member states to recall cars approved by any of the bloc&039;s other nations for violations, encouraging peer review of national authorities.
