“Under no circumstances will we lower environmental standards”, promised Maroš Šefčovič, European Commission Vice-President responsible for inter-institutional relations, on Thursday 29 April, upon presenting the new communication, adopted the same day, to improve the EU’s legislative process.
The European Commission is proposing to introduce a ‘one in, one out’ approach, in order to minimise the burdens placed on people and businesses by paying particular attention to the implications and costs of applying legislation, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises. “This principle ensures that any newly introduced burdens are offset by removing equivalent burdens in the same policy area”, the Commission explained.
Speaking to the press, Maroš Šefčovič refuted NGO criticism that the ‘one in, one out’ approach undermines the ambitions of EU environmental and climate protection standards.
He promised that the ‘one in, one out’ principle would not be applied mechanically and that the Commission will never “lower the environmental ambition” of the legislative proposals presented.
He also indicated that the Commission would instead seek to offset the burdens placed on people and businesses in some legislative proposals with savings introduced by other proposals in the same policy area, or even in another policy area, if necessary.
The Commission will pilot the ‘one in, one out’ approach in the second half of 2021 and will start implementing it under the framework of the Commission Work Programme 2022, which is already under preparation.
The Communication has also given assurances that “the implementation of the ‘one in, one out’ approach will by no means lead to a lowering of the EU’s high economic, social and environmental standards and objectives, nor prevent the adoption of new initiatives with clear added value effectively pursuing policy priorities”.
The Commission also states that administrative costs will be offset and that adjustment costs will be presented in a transparent and systematic way in impact assessments, to the extent that this is feasible and proportionate.
The Commission also proposes: - removing obstacles and red tape that slows down investments and the building of 21st century infrastructure; - simplifying public consultations by introducing a single ‘Call for Evidence’ on the improved ‘Have Your Say’ portal; - mainstreaming the United nations Sustainable Development Goals to ensure that all proposals contribute to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; - improving the way in which Better Regulation supports sustainability and digital transformation; - integrating ‘strategic foresight’ into policymaking to ensure that policies are fit for the future.
Link to the communication: https://bit.ly/3t0I0ad (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)