In a letter sent on 1 September to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the Vice-President in charge of the ‘European Green Deal’, Maroš Šefčovič, the European coalition of environmental NGOs and networks Green 10 expressed its concern about the appointment of the Commissioner-designate for Climate Action, the Dutchman Wopke Hoekstra (see EUROPE 13238/2).
Saying they were “very concerned”, the members of Green 10 highlighted Mr Hoekstra’s lack of expertise in EU diplomacy and climate policy.
The NGOs, which point out that Mr Hoekstra worked in the private sector for the multinational oil and gas company Shell, also criticise his past performance as Dutch Finance Minister, citing the €3.4 billion in support given to the airline KLM during the health crisis and “abandoning government objectives to reduce nitrogen emissions to bring them in line with EU obligations”.
In view of this, the signatories are calling on Ms von der Leyen to ensure that “in these times of growing climate catastrophe”, the Commissioner-designate fully assumes the responsibilities of his office and “uses his considerable skills to truly advance the agenda”. Finally, they call on the Commission to support Maroš Šefčovič in his efforts to promote the ‘European Green Deal’.
To read the letter, go to https://aeur.eu/f/8f7 (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)