Ottawa, Volkswagen, both want diesel vehicle investigation documents sealed
OTTAWA — The federal government has refused to provide records showing the scope of its investigation into the Volkswagen emissions-duping scandal in Canada and the Germany automaker is now seeking a legal order to keep those records confidential.
In September 2015, Volkswagen admitted it had installed software on 11 million diesel-engine vehicles designed to dupe emissions testing equipment into thinking the cars were emitting less greenhouse gases than they actually were. About 105,000 of those cars were sold in Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada has been investigating the company here for more than two years now.
Environmental Defence and Canadian Physicians for the Environment are frustrated by the slow progress of the Canadian probe and filed a lawsuit over the summer to try and force the government to complete those investigations.
As part of the lawsuit, the groups requested all material from the current investigation be handed over. The government refused.