Germany's Merz to demand EU relax petrol engine ban

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

57% : "Our common goal should be innovation-friendly and technology-neutral regulation that reconciles climate protection and industrial competitiveness.
56% : The combustion engine ban was a flagship policy of the EU's ambitious Green Deal climate law, which sets out a trajectory for the bloc to cut emissions to net zero by 2050.
51% : Speaking after a late-night session of coalition talks between his Christian Democratic party and Social Democrats, Merz said on Friday that he now had a mandate to push for a review of the EU regulation.
46% : But the ban has also become one of the bloc's most contested laws, as European industry struggles to compete with lower-cost competition, particularly from China, and bureaucracy resulting from the EU's environmental rules.
46% : At home, Merz was keen to seize on the compromise with the SPD to show his coalition was functioning well amid a series of rows that have blocked reforms of the pension and welfare system.
39% : Germany's three largest carmakers, Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, have supported weakening the EU's 2035 ban, as demand for electric vehicles has failed to develop as fast as anticipated.
38% : In its current form, the EU ban in effect rules out any cars that emit carbon dioxide after 2035, making it impossible to sell new combustion engines.
37% : The current EU ban "ignored market realities and jeopardised employment", it said.

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