The EU will ban the sale of new gas cars in 2050

It’s not just New York and California that are adopting major measures to stifle and eventually stop sales of new gas-powered cars – just today the European Union announced their own version on Thursday. This step is just the first piece of the bloc’s ongoing climate legislation, called “Suitable for 55” package.which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55 percent over the next decade.

The first step in the new agreement is to cut emissions from new cars by 55 percent from 2021 to 2030 levels, with vans to be cut by 50 percent during that time. This is higher than existing target set by the EU in 2018 of 37.5 percent reductions by 2030

The EU also aims to require car companies to cut emissions from their cars by 100 percent by 2035, effectively banning gas and diesel engines. This would make it impossible to sell new cars powered by fossil fuels in all 27 EU countries.

[Related: Car owners: here’s when experts say you should switch to an EV.]

The proposal met with resistance when it was first introduced in July 2021. Reuters reported at the time, the European Automobile Industry Association ACEA argued that banning one type of technology was “not a rational way forward”.

Some industry voices expressed support for Thursday’s decision. “This extremely far-reaching decision is unprecedented,” BMW CEO Oliver Zips told CNBC. “This means that the European Union will now be the first and only region in the world to go fully electric… Make no mistake, the European car industry is up against the challenge of delivering these zero-emission cars and vans.”

However, not all car executives are on board. “I think there is an opportunity – and a need – for a more pragmatic approach to managing the transition,” said Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis. CNBC earlier in October.

[Related: Thousands of EV chargers will soon line America’s highways.]

On the other side of the spectrum, some campaigners argue that this shutdown is not fast enough and that setting targets for 2028 would make more sense.

“EU takes the scenic route and this time it ends in disaster,” Greenpeace EU campaigner Lorelei Limousin told the AP. She also described the deal as “a perfect example of how politicians can enjoy a nice headline that masks the reality of their repeated failures to act on climate”.

Some details are still to be decided, such as allowing moving vehicles carbon neutral fuels to be sold in Europe after 2035. In 2026, the Commission must also consider thoroughly any progress made on the goal.