On Thursday, 23 April, a group of 65 civil society organisations called on the European Commission, MEPs and Member States to establish an ambitious strategy to contribute to fairer and more sustainable value chains in the textile and clothing sector.
In a statement published in anticipation of the EU’s forthcoming textiles strategy, the organisations propose a set of legislative and non-legislative actions that the EU could implement in order to develop a strong circular economy in the textiles and clothing industry “that respects human rights, creates decent jobs and adheres to high standards of environmental governance throughout its value chain, in the EU and beyond”.
These proposals concern ‘due diligence’, waste management, unfair trade practices, international trade, support for producer countries and alternative business models.
In a joint letter to all Members of the European Parliament (https://bit.ly/2XTZidk ), MEPs Delara Burkhardt (S&D, Germany), Heidi Hautala (Greens/EFA, Finland) and Helmut Scholz (GUE/NGL, Germany) called on their colleagues to support the strategy proposed by the 65 organisations.
The EU textiles strategy, planned for 2021, is part of the new action plan on the circular economy presented by the Commission on 11 March (https://bit.ly/2yE19rU - see EUROPE 12444/1).
To consult the 65-organisation statement: https://bit.ly/2Kw5srW (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)