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A new EU consultation launches this month looking at cigarette-style warnings for car ads, but wouldn't the money be better spent on investing in eco technology instead?
If the EU's latest eco wheeze, backed by Liberal Democrat MEP Chris Davies, gets the go-ahead all car companies could soon have to devote a minimum of 20% of their advertising, marketing or promotional space to their products' environmental performance.
Remember those old purple Silk Cut cigarette ads where a big black strip ran across the bottom of the billboard with slogans along the lines of 'Smokers eat their young'. Well, instead of 'smokers' the ad guys might soon have to insert '4x4 drivers', 'Ferrari owners' or 'large petrol auto family saloons' before they can get to the creative stuff and sell the dream.
The reason for this is that the European Commission isn't very happy with the 12% of overall CO2 emissions caused by passenger cars across Europe.
It also doesn't think people are well informed enough and so wants to beef up the eco information available to consumers to enable them to choose greener products. A big 'A' for best and 'G' for worst rating is one simple method being discussed.
However, as the EC wants to expand its remit beyond printed material to TV, radio and the internet that will lead no doubt to those oh-so-catchy radio ads akin to those for mortgage lenders and banks, which have to rattle on at the end of the broadcast in a very fast voice about 'rates going down as well as up and your house being at risk of repossession etc'.
I have another plan that is much more likely to put off drivers than eco guilt trip sloganeering. How about 'This car will cost you £90 to fill up and you'll have to do it all again in under 300 miles' or 'About 75% of this car's fill-up price is going to a government wasting your money. Is your journey really necessary?' Obviously these are just early working titles but I really think they could make a CO2 impact. If they work too well of course the Treasury will have to make up the difference elsewhere.
The consultation on the revision of the cars/CO2 labelling directive 1999/94/EC was published on 2 June and interested stakeholders have until 28 July to respond. A draft proposal is expected in the autumn. But one question: wouldn't all that EU consultation time and money be better spent helping more fledging eco tech start-ups instead?
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