The European Commission is given the power to tighten the climate policy of countries. The committee is allowed to give a kick to countries that do not do their best to meet the agreed goals. That is stated in the climate law, which will be presented later today by European Commissioner Frans Timmermans.
Timmermans wants the possibility to intervene in the meantime. He is afraid that otherwise the goal of having a climate-neutral Europe by 2050 will not be achieved, according to the text.
Almost all European government leaders spoke in December The EU must reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 to 55 percent by 2030 and be climate neutral by 2050, but the final decision requires that all EU Member States agree. Poland was still bothered at the time, because the country wonders whether the goals are feasible for them. The final decision will be made this summer.
Coercion
Timmermans’ plans lead to fierce resistance in the European Parliament. At the CDA, which has also read the leaked version of the new climate law, they call it transfer of power. Esther de Lange describes it as “a power transfer”.
According to the text from the bill, the measure is needed to make adjustments if things go wrong. Jan Huitema of the VVD does not think that is smart. “With this you put people in your armor. You have to ensure that you have the support of citizens and companies. Seduce and not force.”
By transferring more power to the European Commission, not only does the role of government leaders diminish, they actually lose their right of veto. This also applies to the European Parliament. Bas Eickhout from GroenLinks is very disappointed with the discussion. He also read it in the legal texts. “This is of course a false start to the entire ‘Green Deal’. I want to talk about more ambition in climate measures, but instead the discussion is now about the procedure.”
What now
The climate law still needs to be approved by both the European Council, which includes the heads of government of the EU member states, and the European Parliament. All the politicians who spoke to the NIS, that is said, will not happen without a struggle. If this plan goes ahead, then the European Parliament can only say yes or no if the European Commission starts using the power to intervene. “That does not work. You are not going to get there with coercion,” says Huitema of VVD.
The expectation is that a fierce debate on the bill will be held in Strasbourg next week, with the possibility of even rejecting the climate law.
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