Peter Liese: 60% of a small majority mainly tactically motivated / Council will bring us back to the net 55% proposal of the European Commission / enormous efforts not only from industry but also for each individual necessary  

The European Parliament voted with a narrow majority to increase the climate target for the European Union to 60%. With this vote, the MEPs are even more ambitious than the European Commission, which suggested a target of net 55%. The environmental spokesperson of the biggest parliamentary group (EPP, Christian Democrats) Dr Peter Liese expects that the Council will help to bring the target back to the original Commission proposal.

“I regret that the majority in the Parliament did not support the European Commission’s proposal but voted for the 60% without the possibility to include sinks like sustainably managed forest in the calculation. Nobody clearly explained how the 60% could be achieved and proponents like the Chair of the environmental committee in the European Parliament, Pascal Canfin, openly admitted that it is mainly for tactical reasons. I think that the issue is too important for tactics and we should vote for what we think is realistic. The 55% proposal is the most ambitious plan for any major economy. It will require enormous changes not only from industry but also from each individual citizen. We have to change how we travel, how we heat our houses, and personally, I am convinced we also need to change the way we eat. Going to 60% would definitely be a too high burden”, says Liese. The final vote on the climate law will take place Wednesday afternoon.

“The EPP group will not vote against the climate law. We support the principle and we want climate neutrality in 2050. Ambitious targets are necessary to prevent that our children and grandchildren live in a world where they can no longer control climate change. However, because of the unrealistic and tactically motivated 60% target, we will abstain. We are confident that the Council will bring us back to the original Commission proposal of net 55%”, concludes Liese.