Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am sorry I was not here earlier, but I received the presentation. I welcome the witnesses. I have to declare an interest - I drive an Audi diesel car. Would the witnesses not agree that the confidence of the consumer base has been shaken as a result of this?

Over the past decade, the issue of carbon emissions was centre stage and the public perception was that the motor industry in general was resisting improving and reducing carbon emissions, particularly when EU legislation was proposed. At the same time, the motor industry and Volkswagen promoted the view that it was attempting to make diesel more acceptable. As we all know, diesel is a dirty fuel, but it made diesel more acceptable and improved it performance-wise. It has certainly improved since the first diesel vehicle I purchased. At the same time, it claimed that carbon emissions were being reduced. At that time, Volkswagen had a technician or group of technicians beavering away in Wolfsburg trying to defy the emissions issue. Quite frankly, Volkswagen should be ashamed of itself for doing that. Will heads roll? The witnesses addressed the question of the ongoing investigation earlier. How long does it take to investigate something in a company as large as Volkswagen? Who was responsible for this? Was it one individual or a research team operating within the structure? I am not familiar with the company's structure, but was it a team?

I presume that it was as I doubt that this was just one software engineer unless he or she had a eureka moment and found a way to get around the emissions regulations. Someone somewhere along the chain had to approve this. As such, the entire company is under question, not just those people.

I suggest that the sooner Volkswagen gets this out into the open, the better for the company. It seems strange that it is taking so long for Volkswagen to identify the culprit or culprits and determine how it happened. It was very clever. The software was so sophisticated that it did not activate until it sensed that the car was being tested while, under normal driving conditions, it made no difference.

What Volkswagen has done is disgraceful. Will this have an adverse financial effect on the company? Is it possible that Volkswagen could go under? Although Volkswagen has presented €6.5 billion to address the problem, every day there are indications that it is much larger than was recognised on day one. Are there discussions within the company of a loss? Mr. Himmer indicated that there had not been much of a loss in sales, but public confidence has been shattered.

To Mr. Himmer's colleagues from SIMI, should I now be changing from diesel and considering petrol? We do not seem to be able to trust the motor industry to make the improvements it has been claiming. Sentiment seems to be against diesel now because it is a dirty fuel. Is this having an impact? What is SIMI's views on consumer resistance developing towards diesel? I am beginning to revise my opinion on whether to switch even though I have been driving diesel cars for 15 years. I used to drive liquefied petroleum gas cars.

Will Volkswagen grasp the important issue of carbon emissions? Given its sophisticated structures and the expertise it has at its disposal, can we hope to expect news from Volkswagen that not only has it addressed this problem but also that it has further eliminated carbon emissions from its cars? Is this part of the company's mission statement? I am not trying to be hostile. I am only trying to reflect a consumer view. This is the opportunity to do that. I like Audi cars and am on my third, but Volkswagen has undermined public confidence. The people involved must be identified publicly, fired and maybe subjected to criminal charges, although that last is not an issue for Mr. Himmer or me. I urge Volkswagen to resolve this matter as quickly as possible and not to prevaricate.