Germany’s car makers have agreed to update diesel cars already on the roads to slash the amount of pollution they pump out after a showdown with the government.

Industry giants Volkswagen, BMW and Daimler said they would update the software in 5.3m cars to reduce the emissions of poisonous nitrogen oxide by almost a third.

They also agreed to pay for incentives encouraging drivers of diesel vehicles that were ten years old or older to trade them in for more modern and less polluting cars.

An emergency summit in Berlin thrashed out the deal between government and industry as the country’s powerful automotive sector tries to save diesel vehicles and avoid a ban on them from been driven in Germany cities.