At a conference in Offenburg, Cem Özdemir, the Green Party politician who leads Germany’s Baden-Württemberg state, raised concerns about the impact of the EU’s 2035 rules for new cars. He argued that the transition to electric vehicles should not come at the expense of Europe’s automotive manufacturing base, particularly as Chinese makers expand their sales.
Baden-Württemberg is a major automotive region, with Mercedes-Benz and Porsche among the companies based there, alongside suppliers whose businesses are tied to combustion-engine production. Özdemir’s position, as described in the report, is not opposition to electrification; he is calling for industrial capacity in Europe to be protected during the shift.
The EU’s existing plan requires a 100% reduction in CO₂ emissions from new cars from 2035, measured against 2021 levels, which would rule out new conventional petrol and diesel cars. In December 2025, the European Commission proposed easing that target to 90%, with manufacturers required to offset the remaining emissions through other measures.
France and Germany are now seeking to retain the 90% target while dropping the requirement to compensate for the remaining 10%. That change could give manufacturers more room to sell some combustion, hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars after 2035. The proposal has not yet changed the current rules: the Franco-German position must still pass through the EU legislative process.