Ties to carmakers become liability in German elections
They have frequently acted as lobbyists for the greater good of the industry than anything else
German carmakers and politicians engaged in a similar battle in Brussels, fighting for years to bat away tougher emissions rules. In 2013, Germany used its clout as the European Union’s largest economy to intervene when the bloc’s executive arm wanted to tighten limits on carbon dioxide emissions.
Matthias Wissmann, head of the German Association of the Automotive Industry and a former transportation minister, wrote a letter to Merkel, warning that the new standards would hurt sales of German luxury cars. In that letter, he addressed Merkel as “du,” the informal German word for “you” normally used only between close friends.
Merkel then personally called Prime Minister Enda Kenny of Ireland, who held the rotating presidency of the European Council, and persuaded him to delay a decision. The standards were eventually watered down.
California visit
German leaders campaigned for carmakers farther afield, too. On a trip to California in 2010, Merkel complained about the state’s strict limits on nitrogen oxides during a meeting with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
“She said, ‘Your nitrogen oxide limits are too strict, and that is hurting our German diesels,’” Mary Nichols, the chairwoman of the California Air Resources Board and an attendee at the meeting, said in testimony to the German parliament in March. “She was there, it seemed, as spokeswoman for the auto industry.”
The bond between politicians and automakers persisted even after the Volkswagen scandal erupted.
StephanWeil,primeministerofLower Saxony, home of Volkswagen, conceded in August that he had allowed company lobbyists to vet a 2015 speech about the emissions deception. The state of Lower Saxony owns a 20 per cent stake in Volkswagen, and Weil sits on the carmaker’s supervisory board.
Weil, a member of the Social Democrats, denied making significant changes to the speech after it was shown to Volkswagen. Thomas Steg, head of government relations for the carmaker, said Volkswagen looked only for factual errors.
The case, first reported by the newspaper Bild am Sonntag, helped spur a turnaround in public perceptions of diesel, once a point of national pride.
The diesel engine, like the automobile, was a German invention, and the country’s carmakers leveraged their know-how to achieve dominance in the European luxury car market. The auto industry, including suppliers, currently employs about 2 per cent of the German workforce, according to Commerzbank.
Against that backdrop, deep political ties were forged.
German carmakers have often recruited government insiders to represent their interests. Steg of Volkswagen was once a spokesman for Merkel. Eckart von Klaeden, responsible for Daimler’s relations with governments worldwide, served under her as a junior minister.
All of the country’s main parties, even the environmentalist Greens, have long histories of amiable relations with the auto industry. Joschka Fischer, a former foreign minister who for many years was standard-bearer for the Greens, now works as a consultant to BMW, though the carmaker says he does not do any lobbying.
While money plays a much smaller role in election campaigns in Germany than in the United States, the auto companies nevertheless make their presence known. Daimler contributed €100,000 ($120,000) each to Merkel’s party and to the Social Democrats, according to documents filed at the parliament. The carmakers also help to finance party events and loan cars for free to elected officials, activities that they are not required to disclose.
BMW said in a statement that it had tightened its rules on interactions with politicians, ensuring, for example, that parties report the use of vehicles as a financial contribution. Daimler did not respond to a request for comment.
Steg, the Volkswagen lobbyist and former aide to Merkel, said a close relationship between carmakers and politicians was of common interest. Others argue that lobbying helps auto executives understand the workings of government, and public officials understand the car business.
“The government has its own positions,” said Wissmann, the head of the auto industry association. “It has not simply followed the positions of the auto industry blindly.”
Since the end of the Seconf World War, Steg said, “politicians have always had a huge interest in the wellbeing of the industry and the creation of jobs.”
As the scandal’s focus expanded, German officials have found themselves on the defensive.
The government’s own study last year showed that virtually all makers of diesel cars had flouted emissions limits, but Merkel’s ministers did not impose penalties. Germany now faces a lawsuit by the European Commission over failures to enforce the bloc’s clean air rules.
The German government has also rejected calls to require carmakers to install better emissions equipment in older diesel vehicles. Britain and France have promised to ban internal combustion engines starting in 2040, but Germany has not done the same.
“They take the line of industry,” said Julia Poliscanova, manager of clean vehicles and air quality at Transport and Environment, an advocacy group in Brussels, “instead of citizens and public health.”