(Bloomberg) -- Italy’s transportation minister Matteo Salvini criticized the European Union’s planned ban on new combustion-engine cars from 2035.

Salvini, who is also deputy prime minister in Giorgia Meloni’s cabinet, was speaking after a meeting with EU counterparts in Brussels. Despite being a junior partner in the coalition, Salvini has been trying to set the agenda of Italy’s rightwing government.

“The risk is that of a pseudo-environmental fundamentalism that doesn’t help the environment, but leaves tens of thousands of workers without a job,” he said. “Outlawing petrol and diesel cars by 2035 while calling for a switch to Euro7 standards by 2025 makes no economic, environmental or social sense,” he added. 

Read More: EU Reaches Deal for Ban on New Combustion-Engine Cars as of 2035

The so-called Euro-7 generation of engines would further reduce by about a quarter the amount of nitrous oxides that diesel engines can emit even before the ban kicks in. Automotive executives including Carlos Tavares, chief executive officer of Stellantis NV, have argued the latest steps pose unnecessary burdens on the car industry and will slow the sector’s shift to electrification.

Salvini said a review of the details and timings of some EU policies was discussed by ministers in Brussels.

 

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