Commission misses chance to make climate protection the engine of job creation
Industrial strategy:
Today, the European Commission presented its revised Industrial Strategy. Unfortunately, the Commission falls short of the European Parliament's demands for a strategy that puts industrial transformation as the driver of the Green Deal.
Michael Bloss MEP, Greens/EFA shadow rapporteur for the industrial strategy in the lead Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, comments:
"What the Commission has presented today will not be the engine that drives the EU ahead in the global race towards a climate-neutral world. The Commission must not leave innovation for emission-free building materials and clean energy to other parts of the world. The latest batteries, solar plants and climate-neutral chemistry should be prioritised as technologies that can give the EU a competitive edge on the global market. The steel, cement and chemical industries have long since realised that emission-free production is their chance to compete internationally.
"The rest of the world is pressing ahead in the race for cutting-edge and climate-friendly technologies, while the Commission is content to only launch pilot projects. We need the courage to innovate, clear investment targets and concrete instruments for climate protection and the sustainable restructuring of our economy. The new industrial strategy lacks all of this. The Commission must not shirk its responsibility towards climate neutrality. We will work in the upcoming negotiations to save the Green Deal and to ensure that the Fit For 2030 climate package does not end up as an empty shell."
Henrike Hahn MEP, Greens/EFA member of the lead Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, comments:
"Decarbonising our industry is a key building block on the road to climate neutrality and creates jobs. We need to shift from fossil fuel subsidies, free pollution permits and insufficient state aid conditionality, to investing in energy and resource efficiency, the expansion of wind and solar energy and the circular economy, and e-mobility. The Green Deal can make the European Union a leader in energy-efficient and resource-saving industrial processes as well as in cutting-edge technologies such as renewable energies, zero-emission steel and the production of electric cars.
"The transformation of the economy needs quick decisions on investments and planning certainty. Many companies in the European Union are ready to invest in sustainable business models, e-mobility and emission-free building materials. The heads of state and government must quickly find an agreement on the economic stimulus package and give the go-ahead for a crisis-proof and climate-neutral industry."
