On Friday 14 June, the regulation on nature restoration (see EUROPE 13359/1) went to the B stage at a meeting of Member State ambassadors (Coreper). The text will therefore be debated in public at the start of the Environment Council on Monday 17 June, after the agenda has been adopted.
The Belgian Presidency is aiming for adoption of the text and hopes to hold a vote following the discussions on Monday 17 June. As this option is not compulsory, the Belgian Minister for the Environment, who will chair the session, “will take this decision on the basis of the outcome of the debate”, says a source.
Against the text: Italy, the Netherlands, Finland and Sweden. Austria, Belgium and Poland abstained. Adoption by qualified majority requires 65% of the European population to vote in favour. In the figures, the swing is close, with 64.05% achieved. A single country could lead to adoption. But, for different reasons, the remaining Member States are unlikely to change their minds.
Abstentionist Austria is blocked by its federal system, while Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler supports the text. “If all nine regions get together and form a position, the government is bound by this decision. This was the reason why the Environment minister abstained on the text”, a source close to the matter told Agence Europe on Friday 14 June. But two regions, Carinthia and Vienna, could still support the regulation, subject to certain conditions. This change of heart could allow Leonore Gewessler to support the text. Constitutional debates are taking place in Austria on this point.
The positions of Hungary, Sweden and Finland are more fixed. The first two Member States are concerned about subsidiarity. Sweden believes that the European Union should not regulate this area, because it is linked to land ownership and forestry. The text is too far removed from its position.
Finland is unlikely to change its mind either. The Finnish Minister for Climate and the Environment, Kai Mykkänen, stated that, according to the Commission’s impact assessment, the costs are the highest for Finland in relation to the size of its economy within the EU.
The Netherlands reiterated its opposition in a statement on Tuesday 11 June (see EUROPE 13430/6), and Belgium is also entangled in a federal system.
In recent weeks, there have even been moves towards abstention or even opposition in Slovakia. There are doubts as to whether Portugal and Lithuania will continue to support the project. The Member States in favour of the text are still hoping that the debate at the Environment Council on Monday 17 June will tip the balance in favour of one of the Member States and thus obtain the 65% required for a qualified majority.
Controversial since the first legislative stages, from its adoption in Parliament to the necessary final vote in the Council of the European Union, the regulation on nature restoration could remain blocked at this stage and see discussions postponed until the rotating Hungarian Presidency, which begins in July. (Original version in French by Florent Servia)