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Today, the European Commission unveiled key pieces to set the direction of the European economy in times of crisis. The assessment of the different pieces varies from ‘potentially transformative’ to ‘very concerning’ and, taken together, they fail at picturing a coherent framework. The coming weeks and months will be crucial to refine these and reaffirm the EU’s climate leadership as a unifying force to address geopolitical concerns.
Quotes
Reacting to the European Commission’s announcement today, Elisa Giannelli, E3G Programme Lead said:
“The European Commission sends mixed and incomplete political signals on its forward agenda. The bold vision of the Clean Industrial Deal as the new Europe’s business plan clashes with the disjointed measures in the Omnibus package. Without a legislative proposal or clear timeline for the release of the EU’s 2040 climate target, today’s releases are weaker and miss a crucial chance to reaffirm Europe’s climate leadership as a response in a time of crisis.”
Reacting to the Clean Industrial Deal, Domien Vangenechten, E3G Programme Lead said:
“The Clean Industrial Deal presents a step change in Europe’s approach to industrial transformation. Going well-beyond the old narrow focus on carbon pricing, it rightly sets out action across energy, lead market, circularity and financing. While the ingredients are there, successful industrial policy also requires using them strategically. Political choices need to be made where to prioritise support, clear decision-making processes and better coordination of national industrial policy. How the Commission envisages doing this is a glaring gap in today’s communication.”
Reacting to the Omnibus Package, Jurei Yada, E3G Director said:
“The Commission has chosen to deliver deregulation, disruption and uncertainty with its proposals to simplify core sustainable finance rules. Their statements failed to convince that these measures, which will exclude all but the larget companies from mandatory sustainability reporting, disclosures and due diligence, are aligned with the objective of supporting businesses and investors in achieving a sustainable transition. Hollow words on staying the course will not create the confidence Europe needs to be competitive – on the contrary, the EU has just shown itself to be unpredictable and unreliable when it comes to its own regulations.”
Reacting to the Action Plan for Affordable Energy, Luke O’Callaghan-White, E3G Programme Lead said:
“The Commission has put forward an Action Plan for Affordable Energy which presents constructive measures to deploy clean energy solutions to tackle high energy costs for households and industry, and to address structural reforms to strengthen the Energy Union. The prominent role of efficiency measures and proposals to expedite the deployment of clean energy infrastructure are to be welcomed. However, the Action Plan proposal to explore mechanisms to fund gas infrastructure abroad is erroneous and would do little to reduce prices for consumers.”
Reacting to the international elements of today’s announcements, Anton Jaekel, E3G Researcher said:
“To achieve the EU’s competitiveness and decarbonisation objectives, the Clean Industrial Deal also needs strong and strategically integrated international cooperation. While Clean Trade and Investment Partnerships are an important step towards this, the Commission now needs to be clear on an internationally competitive offer for third countries. How the EU and its Member States build strategic, accessible, and mutually beneficial partnerships is central for achieving strategic autonomy in times of rising geopolitical tension.”
Reacting to the importance of the social dimension in today’s announcements, Michael Forte and Rheanna Johnston said:
“The Commission has shown they recognize the importance of the social dimension: particularly in the proposed measures of the Affordable Energy Action Plan to help lower household energy prices or in the CID’s Quality Jobs Roadmap, while references to social conditionalities for State aid and public procurement are welcome. However, it is critical that the wellbeing of European citizens is the end goal for Europe, not just an instrument for its competitiveness. Restructurings and layoffs are proceeding at pace, while consumers continue to struggle with high bills. The Citizens Energy Package and Quality Jobs Roadmap must be brought forward as soon as possible.”
Available for comment
Elisa Giannelli – E3G Programme Lead (EN, IT, FR) – EU politics, 2040 target
Elisa.Giannelli@e3g.org | + 32 (0) 494 58 48 29
Domien Vangenechten – E3G Programme Lead (EN, NL) – Clean Industrial Deal
domien.vangenechten@e3g.org | + 32 (0) 474 871 827
Jurei Yada – E3G Director (EN, PL, JP, FR) – Omnibus Package
Jurei.Yada@e3g.org | +32 (0) 492 113 868
Luke O’Callaghan-White – E3G Programme Lead (EN) – Energy Affordability Action Plan
luke.ocallaghanwhite@e3g.org | +32 (0) 49 52 94 331
Anton Jaekel – E3G Researcher (EN, DE) – International
Anton.Jaekel@e3g.org | +49 (0) 160 2421044
Notes to editors
- E3G is an independent climate change think tank with a global outlook. We work on the frontier of the climate landscape, tackling the barriers and advancing the solutions to a safe climate. Our goal is to translate climate politics, economics and policies into action. Climate in the European Union – E3G
- For further enquiries email press@e3g.org or phone +44 (0)7783 787 863
