Auto manufacturers are furiously hitting back at the campaign against diesel, in which diesel drivers were blamed for dangerous levels of air pollution

Diesel engines have been used in all sorts of businesses in every part of the world for a long, long time. It can be argued that the first generation of diesel models was not so friendly to the environment for their carbon emissions, nitrogen oxides and particulates. They were blamed for air pollution that killed 29,000 precious human lives a year alone in the UK.

For decades, diesel drivers enjoyed tax incentives but now some of those drivers are facing penalties for damaging air quality when they are paying less tax. London Mayor Boris Johnson is the one who started this campaign and strongly believes that the diesel cars should be banned.

He has also proposed an additional £10 for diesel cars under the daily congestion charge. And for diesel parking permits, the residents of Islington will soon be paying an additional £96.

To persuade motorist to keep on buying diesel vehicles the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders also known as SMMT has launched a massive campaign. Furthermore, the chief executive of SMMT Mike Hawes urged people not to fall for these kinds of campaigns as car makers make clean diesel engines. The latest technology is much cleaner than the old ones so it will be wrong to penalise the whole of this segment.

Back in 1994, only one in 10 cars was powered by a diesel engine but now more than one in three cars use diesel engines to power them. The petrol engines produce high levels of carbon dioxide so the government took an initiative and reduced tax rates to promote diesel engine sales.