Concretely, the extension order refers to Euro 6 diesel and Euro 3 petrol vehicles. These types of vehicles can be driven in Brussels until 2028. Euro 5 diesel and Euro 2 petrol cars – affected by the two-year postponement – do not appear in the text voted in the Brussels parliament last October. According to Bral, this concerns around 36,000 cars registered in Brussels and just over 8,000 utility vehicles.
“Legally, this means that all these vehicles are in violation,” continues Tim Cassiers. Will owners of Euro 5 diesel and Euro 2 petrol receive notices? According to Bral: no. The regional administration (Bruxelles Environnement) would have no interest in creating more confusion in the minds of motorists.
However, the text needs to be corrected. For this, a majority is again required in the Brussels parliament. This is also what Brussels Minister of the Environment Alain Maron (Ecolo) is asking for. “At the time, we pointed out the legal risks of such an operation. The LEZ milestones which appear in the decree in question, as well as all the supporting measures, are the result of a long process of consultation and analysis. The sudden modification, before the municipal elections, via the ordinance, without prior consultation, without advice from the LEZ task force, without advice from the administration and without opinion from the Council of State on the legal validity of the system had been noted as a very risky approach. This visibly induces what was feared: haste and lack of consultation lead to profound legal insecurity, to the detriment of citizens.”comments the minister. Who asks “the authors of the order to file as quickly as possible a remedial text with assured legal solidity, to clarify the legal situation and get out of the imbroglio.”
2027-2035: find the next stages of the Low Emissions Zone
