Publicat pe 24/10/2014

Reacting on the European Council’s decisions on the 2030 framework for climate and energy, EUROCHAMBRES warned against fuelling a renewed economic downturn.

“An ambitious climate policy is desirable. However, using the analogy of a racing cyclist, the EU should lead the pack and dictate the tempo but must not overstretch and break away,” stated Arnaldo Abruzzini, Secretary General of EUROCHAMBRES.

On 16 October, two thirds of the 750 European entrepreneurs that formed the European Parliament of Enterprises called on the EU to engage other major economies into an equally ambitious response to global warming.

“Where is the EU’s plan B if next year’s climate summit in Paris will not lead to the much-needed global climate agreement and, consequently, an international level playing field? We need to prevent EU businesses from further shifting their investments, jobs and emissions to third countries. Thus, the EU must elaborate a strategy to keep Europe an attractive location for energy-intensive manufacturers,” added Mr Abruzzini.

Reindustrialisation – just an empty word?

Having repeatedly invited the new Commission to urgently bring forth concrete proposals for boosting the reindustrialisation of Europe, Chambers expressed their disappointment about the lack of reference to the 20% reindustrialisation target.

“In order to safeguard our competitiveness, the EU’s reindustrialisation must become a target on equal terms with climate and energy targets. We regret therefore that it is not mentioned in the conclusions,” Mr Abruzzini said.

Moreover, EUROCHAMBRES calls for a comprehensive and robust carbon leakage regime for the post-2020 period to be swiftly defined. In order to improve the investment climate, it is crucial to provide clarity on the EU’s plans to safeguard the global competitiveness of European businesses.