Members of the European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) finally voted on Thursday 10 September in favour of a 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (compared to 1990 levels) as the European Union’s new climate target for 2030, at the end of a long-awaited voting session on compromise amendments to the ‘climate law’.
As expected (see EUROPE 12556/13), the vote was extremely close (40 votes in favour, 37 against and 4 abstentions), but the alliance formed by the S&D, Renew Europe, Greens/EFA and GUE/NGL groups finally won the day.
Reactions of the political groups
“This is a significant improvement of the Commission’s proposal and makes the European Climate Law fit for purpose”, said Jytte Guteland (S&D, Sweden), Parliament’s rapporteur on the ‘climate law’, although she argued for 65%.
The same goes for the Chairman of the ENVI Committee, Pascal Canfin (Renew Europe, France), who said, “This objective will raise the ambition of the whole of Europe”.
Welcoming this result, Michael Bloss (Greens/EFA, Germany), whose compromise amendment with the GUE/NGL for a 65% reduction was rejected (31 votes in favour, 45 against and 4 abstentions), expressed his incomprehension about the “resistance of the conservatives [EPP and ECR]”.
According to him, they “are on the wrong side of history and ignore the reality of climate change”.
Believing that the 60% target is “unreasonably high”, Peter Liese (Germany), EPP group coordinator, recalled that he supports a target of -55%, provided that the European Commission’s impact assessment is “convincing”.
The Commission will defend ‘at least 55%’
This study, to be made public next Wednesday, aims to analyse the feasibility of increasing the 2030 climate target from 40% to 50% or 55%, by determining the potential socio-economic impacts.
Although the content of the study is not yet known, it is almost certain that Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will declare her support for ‘at least 55%’ as a new objective on 16 September in her State of the Union address.
Other major amendments adopted
While the vote on the 2030 objective was very close, other compromise amendments strongly modifying the Commission’s initial proposal (see EUROPE 12439/2) were approved with large majorities, as they were supported by the EPP.
The ENVI Committee therefore calls on the Commission, in particular, to ensure that any new measures presented by the institution are consistent with the objective of climate neutrality.
It also wants to oblige the EU and all Member States to phase out all direct and indirect subsidies to fossil fuels by 31 December 2025 at the latest.
MEPs also voted for civil society to be able to use the ‘climate law’ to sue their governments in national courts if they fail to meet their climate commitments.
Finally, the ENVI Committee proposes that: – the 2050 climate neutrality target be applied to each Member State individually (and not only to the EU as a whole) ; – a climate target for 2040 be set through the adoption of a legislative initiative; – a Union budget for greenhouse gases be established; – an independent European Climate Council be created (see EUROPE 12553/7, 12556/13).
A pyrrhic victory?
Tomorrow (Friday) the ENVI Committee will hold the final vote (on the amended report by Ms Guteland). Barring any last-minute twists and turns, it is expected to be adopted, paving the way for the next step: a vote by all MEPs at the October plenary session.
However, obtaining a majority in favour of a 60% reduction in the plenary session could prove more complicated. For Mr Liese, it is certain that Parliament “will go for a lower figure”, therefore qualifying today’s vote as a “pyrrhic victory for the left”.
See voting details : https://bit.ly/2RaR2RF (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)