Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how his Department monitors the level of emissions caused by transport refrigeration units; and what steps his Department is taking to reduce such emissions to achieve the target of net zero by 2050.

Emissions from transport refrigeration units are governed by Regulation (EU) 2016/1628, which controls gaseous and particulate pollutants from engines of Non-Road Mobile Machinery (NRMM). This Regulation implements legislative requirements that an engine for NRMM must be approved against before it can be marketed within the UK.

The Department will be working closely with DEFRA and BEIS to ensure the emissions of NRMM, such as transport refrigeration units, reduce in line with the Government’s net zero commitments.

To improve air quality, the UK Government announced its intention to remove the entitlement to use red diesel from April 2022, except for non-commercial heating, agriculture, fish farming and rail. This will ensure that the tax system incentivises users of polluting diesel fuel to change practices or pay for their harmful emissions. The Government has recently consulted on this and is currently analysing responses.