According to draft conclusions prepared by the German Presidency and submitted for written comments by Member States by 9 September, the Council of the European Union will invite the European Commission to embark without delay on the actions in the Second Action Plan for Circular Economy presented in March, and to present the legislative proposals in the Action Plan immediately (see EUROPE 12444/1).
According to a final version of the conclusions that EUROPE has seen and which is an update of the version from 20 August, the Council of the EU will ask the Commission to dedicate the resources required to guarantee implementation of the Action Plan.
The draft text, entitled Making the Recovery Circular and Green, welcomes the new Action Plan as a pillar of the European Green Deal that is essential for economic recovery and sustainable growth as it will keep resource consumption within the planet's limits.
The text underlines the importance of rebuilding society and the economy in a sustainable manner following the Covid-19 pandemic.
The text also stresses the importance of the EU Recovery Instrument and the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) in creating jobs and repairing the initial damage caused by the pandemic, while putting the EU on the path towards a sustainable and resilient recovery, supporting effective implementation of the European Green Deal’s policy objectives and ensuring that EU spending is consistent with the ‘do no harm’ principle and objectives in the Paris Agreement on climate.
The text recognises the central role the transition to a circular economy will have in boosting competitiveness, jobs and welfare, increasing resource efficiency and stimulating new business and entrepreneurial models that can derive more value and functionality from products, prevent waste and create a well-functioning single market for top quality secondary raw materials.
The text says that this could lead to shorter and more diversified supply chains and reduced dependence on non-renewable primary resources. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)