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The centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) has come out all guns blazing on the EU Nature Restoration Law ahead of a make-or-break vote on Wednesday (12 July) that is high stakes for the European Green Deal and for the EPP itself.
Supporters of the law say it’s necessary to reach Europe’s green goals, while the EPP warns it will hit food production and the lives of farmers, foresters, and fishers.
But the vote could also be make-or-break for the EPP, which risks suffering a humiliating defeat in its campaign to kill the law or succeeding in blocking a proposal that originated from a European Commission led by Ursula von der Leyen, a politician coming from the EPP’s own ranks.
Either way, it won’t look good for the EPP.
Amongst shots fired at EU climate chief Frans Timmermans – a socialist – the EPP is downplaying the fact that the proposal comes from one of their own, von der Leyen, who supports the law.
“I think it’s very obvious that Timmermans drafted this law,” said Peter Liese, a leading German EPP lawmaker in Parliament. And it’s also Timmermans who threatened to withdraw a related proposal on gene editing dear to the EPP, Liese told journalists ahead of the vote.
“Ursula von der Leyen didn’t, so there is a big difference,” Liese said in a bid to deflect media attention onto Timmermans.
Timmermans himself admits he is doing the “heavy lifting” for the European Commission on the law but was also quick to stress von der Leyen’s support for it.
“The EPP have chosen to attack me personally all the time, probably partly because they want to avoid this becoming a confrontation with President von der Leyen, which from a party political position I can understand. But I have no doubts about where she stands,” he said during a press trip last week.
Von der Leyen has also voiced support for the law, although she has been markedly quieter. Asked about her position, the Commission’s chief spokesperson Eric Mamer told EURACTIV: “The president is of course also in constant contact with members of the Parliament, from all parties.”
But the Commission president now finds herself in a tricky position.
Actively supporting the law would look like infighting, given the EPP’s opposition to it. And, beyond the law itself, von der Leyen also needs the full support of her political family if she is to stand any chance of being re-appointed for a second term at the Commission after the European elections next year.
An apparent split between the Parliament’s EPP group leader Manfred Weber and von der Leyen has also haunted the Nature Restoration Law, with the Commission chief politically tied to her proposal and Weber now associated with the Parliament’s opposition to it.
French lawmaker Pascal Canfin, from the centrist Renew Europe faction in Parliament, has highlighted these contradictions within the EPP family.
Speaking to journalists, he accused Weber of using the Nature Restoration Law as a test run for a potential right-wing alliance with the nationalist European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) ahead of next year’s EU elections.
That looks like open defiance against the Commission chief. When von der Leyen stepped forward as a candidate to lead the Commission four years ago, she sought support from a wide range of political groups to win a confirmation vote in the European Parliament and build a stable majority.
To do that, she needed the support of three parties – the Socialists and Democrats (S&D), Renew Europe, and her own European People’s Party, with the Greens acting as a fourth unofficial coalition member.
The European Green Deal was the glue that helped von der Leyen stick together the left and right wings of the European Parliament. But the EPP was never the biggest fan and is now relying on other right-wing and nationalist parties in Parliament to defeat one of the Green Deal’s pillars.
The Nature Restoration Law “has been chosen by Weber as the example of the alternative majority,” Canfin told journalists on Friday (7 July), suggesting Weber is weighing up his options for a right-wing coalition. “We know that it is clearly a text where Manfred Weber is trying to test his political alternative to the von der Leyen majority,” he explained.
Canfin is not the only one saying this. According to Green co-chair Terry Reintke, the Nature Restoration Law “has unfortunately become a symbol of political games within the EPP on which strategy they want to go for in 2024”.
She accused the EPP of going through a “deep identity crisis”.
Asked about these criticisms, an EPP spokesperson told EURACTIV the group would not be distracted by “the political games of the left”.
“By trying to make it personal or by pushing us in an imaginary extremist camp, they disregard the content of the law and its possible consequences,” the spokesperson continued, saying the EPP’s opposition to the Nature Restoration Law is guided by science as well as social and economic realities.
Even beyond the alleged split, the EPP’s walkout on negotiations has created bad blood. According to EPP lawmakers in Parliament, the proposal was so flawed it needs to be sent back to the Commission.
But while the draft has also seen opposition from some farmers, it has gained support from business, industry groups, scientists, campaigners and, most importantly, EU countries, including some with EPP-affiliated governments.
There were issues with the original proposal, but EU countries and other parties in Parliament have taken steps to fix them, leading MEPs to question why the EPP decided to walk away from the negotiating table.
The EPP’s attacks on the Nature Restoration Law also mark a discernable change for a group that, until now, has been generally constructive in negotiations over EU climate legislation – and is still negotiating on some key energy files.
Similarly, the EPP’s Twitter campaign against the law has drawn confusion and parodies at best, and at worst, accusations that it’s simply wrong.
For instance, on Monday, the wind industry rebuffed the EPP’s claim that the law would impact Dutch renewables projects, saying: “We have spoken to some experts and we don’t see why this would be the case.”
Whatever the result of Wednesday’s vote, the run-up to it has become part of the EPP’s legacy, for better or for worse. The question is who comes out on top on Wednesday, von der Leyen or Weber, and whether the EPP will survive what looks increasingly like an internal feud.
– Kira Taylor
PARIS. Renault boss: War of the future will be over critical raw materials. Europe is facing a Chinese electric vehicles tsunami following the ban on the sale of petrol and diesel-powered combustion engine cars from 2035, Renault Chairman Jean-Dominique Senard said at an economic conference on Saturday, adding that competition from China exposes EU vulnerabilities in the all-electric market. Read more.
SOFIA. Ukraine in talks with Bulgaria to buy Russian nuclear reactors with EU funds. Ukraine has started serious discussions to purchase Bulgaria’s two Russian-made nuclear reactors with EU money so it can better deal with future power shortages, Bulgarian Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov said after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy paid his first visit to Bulgaria Thursday. Read more.
BERLIN. Germany hits back at French nuclear double standard accusation. German officials defended the country’s renewable energy record after Paris criticised Berlin for importing nuclear energy from France following alleged shortages despite rejecting EU legislation on nuclear energy. Read more.
BRATISLAVA. Slovakia’s solar panels may not all be eligible for EU funds. Fewer solar panels and heat pumps are expected to be funded through EU funds in Slovakia in the future as the environmental ‘do no significant harm’ principle will be among the criteria to apply for state funding from July. Read more.
EU research finds ‘alarming’ levels of chemicals in humans. The largest ever screening of chemicals in humans has revealed the presence of a wide range of toxic substances in people’s blood and urine.
The European Human Biomonitoring Initiative (HBM4EU) is a five-year €74.9 million effort by 116 government agencies, labs and universities to screen human exposure to 18 different types of hazardous chemicals.
The project, which ended in June 2022, led to the publication of 168 peer reviewed papers, but its results were never communicated to the public until environmental groups released the main findings in a report published on Tuesday (11 July).
It found “alarmingly high” levels of human exposure to toxic substances like bisphenols, flame retardants, PFASs, Phthalates, as well as chemical cocktails. The German Environment Agency, which led the programme, concluded: “The results of HBM4EU clearly show that the levels of some substances in the human body of the European population are still so high that adverse health effects cannot be excluded”.
Campaigners also released a previously unpublished Commission impact assessment study suggesting the EU executive dramatically cut back on earlier plans to protect consumers from toxic chemicals.
The report comes as the European Commission prepares a review of the EU’s REACH chemical regulation for publication at the end of 2023. Campaigners have earlier expressed concern that the Commission will refrain from a full-scale revision and opt for a “targeted” reform instead. More detail here. (Frédéric Simon | EURACTIV.com)
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Ireland announces exit from Energy Charter Treaty. On the same day that the European Commission formally tabled a proposal to exit the Energy Charter Treaty, Ireland announced it will withdraw from the controversial energy investment charter.
Irish energy minister Eamon Ryan made the announcement on Friday (7 July) after the UK-based oil company Lansdowne Oil & Gas initiated an ECT claim against Ireland, the first known investment arbitration against the country.
The company is reportedly asking $100 million compensation for the government’s refusal to grant a further lease to drill for oil and gas in the Atlantic – a sum almost equal to Ireland’s annual spending on climate action. In 2019, the Irish government brought in a ban on new offshore drilling licences, a move which did not affect licences for existing drilling projects.
Green campaigners came out in support of the Irish government, saying “Ireland has done the right thing” by refusing further drilling licences for oil and gas. “Our governments must have all the tools to stop climate breakdown,” said Leah Sullivan, an activist with the Comhlamh Trade Justice Group.
In a letter released on Monday (10 July), civil society groups from across Europe warn that only a coordinated withdrawal from the ECT can minimise the risk of fossil fuel investors challenging climate policy. Read the letter here. (Frédéric Simon | EURACTIV.com)
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Green transition will require ‘unprecedented investments’ and skills, says EU report. Additional investments of over €620 billion annually will be needed to meet the objectives of the Green Deal, according to the European Commission’s 2023 strategic foresight report, published on Thursday (6 July).
At the same time, demographic change and the economic transformation will constrain public budgets, the report adds, saying most of the investments will therefore need to come from the private sector.
The twin digital and green transitions will also require strong European education and training systems, it continues, warning that those are not yet adapted to the magnitude and speed of the transformation. Full report here. Press release here and Q&A here. (Frédéric Simon | EURACTIV.com)
JULY
- 11-12 JULY. Informal energy council
- 19 JULY. ITRE committee vote on electricity market design
SECOND SEMESTER
- 7 SEPTEMBER. ITRE committee vote on improving protection against market manipulation in the wholesale energy market
- 7 SEPTEMBER. ITRE committee vote on Critical Raw Materials Act
- 20 SEPTEMBER. ENVI committee vote on Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation
- 2 OCTOBER. Foreseen plenary for vote on Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation and Critical Raw Materials Act
- 12 OCTOBER. ITRE committee vote on Net Zero Industry Act
- 16 OCTOBER. Environment Council
- 26-27 OCTOBER. European Council
- 30 NOVEMBER-12 DECEMBER. UN Climate Change Conference (COP 28), Dubai
- 14-15 DECEMBER. European Council
- 18 DECEMBER. Environment Council
- 19 DECEMBER. Energy Council
- Q4. Revision of REACH regulation
[Edited by Zoran Radosavljevic and Frédéric Simon]
