Bavarian Premier Markus Söder has again called for an EU-wide ban on the emission of CO2 from cars from 2035 to be withdrawn in the runup to elections to the European Parliament in June.
"The ban on combustion engines for 2035 is wrong and so must be revoked," Söder told the Sunday edition of the mass-circulation Bild newspaper in remarks released ahead of publication.
"Our vehicle makers are global leaders in making combustion engines. It is for that reason absurd to shut down a working technology and to leave it to other countries in the future," Söder said.
He also criticized a decision to cease paying subsidies to buyers of electric vehicles. "Instead of banning and cutting expenditure, we should be permitting and promoting. The federal government should reintroduce the buyer's subsidy for electric cars," Söder said.
Söder has made a policy U-turn on the issue. In 2007, he called for a ban on combustion engines from 2020, saying: "Green engines create new jobs."
A recent poll has shown 61% of German opposed to the 2035 ban with just 24% in favour.
EU member states and the European Parliament passed the measure banning CO2 emissions from new cars from 2035 a year ago.
