ENVI: Fighting to defend Europe’s Green Deal 

EUobserver takes a deep dive into the workings and new chairs of every single European Parliament committee for the new 2024-2029 session, in a series of articles first published in our print magazine of October 2024

With the EU already falling behind on its 2030 climate targets, the goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050 seems increasingly difficult. 

While most of the EU’s Green Deal has been approved and seems unlikely to be overturned, certain parts, including agricultural policy and the 2035 ban on combustion engines, are under pressure as some member states have started the political fight to overturn or weaken key laws. "The most crucial task at hand is the implementation of the Green Deal," said Antonio Decaro, chair of the ENVI committee, referring to the EU’s overarching climate legislation. “We are determined to navigate this path, [but] unfortunately, some states are attempting to delay deadlines."

“In these first weeks of work, we are already seeing requests from member states to postpone [the 2035 ban on combustion engines],” he warned, plus pressure for exemptions from the EU’s nature restoration law. 

Climate change “requires enormous sacrifices,” he said. “But as I said on the first day I took office, echoing the words of writer Ernest Hemingway, ‘the world is a fine place and worth fighting for’.”

Securing majorities for green laws may be more challenging in the next mandate, as the recent elections have shifted the European Parliament to the right, with both the Greens and the liberal Renew group losing ground. 

The big winner, the European People’s Party, has already signalled its willingness to reconsider some hard-fought green policies, including the ban on combustion engines. And the EU’s biggest political family also campaigned successfully to delay the EU’s anti-deforestation law, describing it as a "bureaucratic monster" that should be postponed, even though it came into force in June 2023.

This sets the stage for big political fights in the coming years.  When it comes to Green Deal policies, the focus during this next mandate has shifted away from environmental and financial regulation, towards industrial policy and boosting Europe’s competitiveness vis-a-vis global giants such as China and the United States.

Von der Leyen has already announced her plan for a Clean Industrial Deal aimed at increasing investment in infrastructure, particularly energy-intensive sectors. 

While industry isn’t a core objective of the ENVI committee, the financial and social repercussions of such policies will likely become contentious and some parliamentary groups, including the Greens and S&D, have called for an EU-wide investment and social plans 

“We need a safeguard plan for workers and small businesses — a social protection plan that boosts joint investments, particularly in the sectors most impacted by the transition,” said Decaro.  "The livelihoods of millions of workers are at stake."

“I know that the climate goal is ambitious, but Europe itself is born on an ambitious bet. Today is the time to return to being a leader in the fight to save our planet,” he also said.  

The coordinators are: Peter Liese (EPP, Germany), Tiemo Wölken (S&D, Germany), Silvia Sardone (PfE, Italy), Alexandr Vondra (ECR, Czech Republic), Pascal Canfin (Renew, France), Marie Toussaint (Greens/EFA, France), Malin Björk (The Left, Sweden), and Helmut Scholz (ESN, Germany).