The decision to completely ban the sale of new vehicles powered by internal combustion engines by 2035 has triggered general outrage. People in Italy, Poland, Austria and Germany and some other countries are worried that the move could lead to the loss of tens of thousands of jobs and the destruction of a major industry.

An agreement has been reached in the European Union, banning the sale of new cars powered by conventional internal combustion engines as of 2035. The legislation is part of the bloc’s efforts to reduce transport emissions to as close to zero as possible within the EU. In the framework of the EU’s package of measures against climate change, emissions are to be reduced by 55 per cent by 2030, compared to the levels measured during the 1990s, while climate neutrality would be achieved by 2050.

Although the decision will be reviewed once again in 2026, it has already stirred up a lot of sentiment in some EU countries. Italy’s new infrastructure minister and Lega party chief Matteo Salvini has announced that he will campaign against the EU decision.

„The ban on petrol, diesel and gas-powered cars in Europe from 2035 is a huge mistake and at the same time a gift to China, which will result in the closing of factories in Italy and in Europe,”

the head of the ministry declared on social media, adding that his party, the right-wing Lega, „will do everything to stop this madness”. He believes that the consequence of the ban would be that „workers and artisans would be left without work and wages, and this decision would mean a lifelong dependence on China”.

Auto a benzina, diesel e metano fuorilegge in Europa dal 2035?
Un errore, un regalo alla Cina: fabbriche e negozi chiusi in Italia e in Europa, operai e artigiani senza lavoro e stipendio, e dipendenza a vita dalla Cina.
La Lega in Europa fará di tutto per fermare questa follia. pic.twitter.com/Zt6AM1s2Rs

— Matteo Salvini (@matteosalvinimi) October 28, 2022

Besides the Lega party chief, PM Giorgia Meloni’s new government also has strong reservations, fearing that the move could have negative repercussions for Italy’s car industry and jobs. However, actors of Italy’s business sector have also criticised the plan. According to a forecast by the Confindustria business association, „thousands of jobs in Italy are at risk, and an entire industrial sector is in danger of disappearing”.

The opposition Alternative for Germany (AfD) party also issued a similar statement regarding the decision, saying „the EU wants to put an end to one of the most successful and longest-established German technologies”.

„Driving a car will thus eventually become a luxury for high-income earners who can afford an expensive electric car. And all this at a time when energy saving has become a social dogma in Germany. This is how we further deepen the social rift, and how we sacrifice entire sources of livelihood on the altar of the eco-socialist ideology. Those responsible for the fatal policy can still travel in their fancy cars, while traders will need to use cargo bikes, and commuters will be standing on overcrowded, privately owned trains,”

writes the right-wing party, who also believes that any excess hype regarding electromobility is blocking the development of ever cleaner internal combustion engines. „Instead of spending billions of euros to keep alive an unviable technology artificially, we should leave all the options open, so that in the future everyone can afford to drive a car,” the announcement reads.

Dr. Sylvia Limmer, a member of AfD’s European parliamentary delegation, outlined another problem: the banning of modern combustion technology

„will not only cause serious damage to Germany’s car industry and to the country as an industrial hub, while destroying hundreds of thousands of jobs, but it will also lead to the exiting of the entire car industry from the EU, because the ‘rest of the world’ has not been infected by this green virus”.

The Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) has also sharply criticised the EU’s decision. According to Christian Hafenecker, this move does not bode well.

„Banning internal combustion engines by 2035 is equivalent to the technological stone age,”

the transport policy expert warned. We are not only moving towards a technological desert, he said, adding that this strict path means the exploitation of countries that are generally poor, but rich in raw materials. „Child labour in the mining of cobalt and lithium is almost an ‘international standard’ even today,” he declared.

Anna Zalewska, an MEP of Poland’s governing party, also reacted to the decision. In her opinion, „we cannot give up the competitiveness of the free market and let the lobbyists who manufacture electric cars decide what citizens should buy.” She goes on to say that it is crazy that

„although there is a war, an energy crisis and an economic crisis, we are increasing our need for devices that have to be charged, so we will ultimately increase our energy demand.”

It’s obvious that neither the war, nor the energy crisis has spurred the Brussels elite to think, in fact they are just continuing to validate their own interests, she added.