Merkel Faces “Dieselgate” Grilling

German Chancellor Angela Merkel faces on Wednesday questioning by lawmakers investigating if her government shielded Volkswagen from regulators, despite knowing the auto giant was carrying out emissions cheating. The parliamentary committee was launched after VW-Europe’s largest carmaker with 12 brands ranging from luxury Porsche to lower-end Skoda-admitted in September 2015 to fitting some 11 million diesel vehicles worldwide with software that temporarily reduces harmful emissions when undergoing regulatory tests, German news website Thelocal.de reported. Tasked with investigating Berlin’s response to emissions excesses going back to 2007, the group of lawmakers has already heard witnesses from across the government and Volkswagen, including the car group’s former chief executive, Martin Winterkorn. The hearings have yet to uncover clear evidence that Merkel or her government acted improperly. Her appearance before the emissions committee is Merkel’s second as a witness this year, coming less than a month after she deflected MPs’ questions about mass spying by Germany’s BND foreign intelligence service on behalf of the US National Security Agency.