Joint Statement - European Green Party - Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament
Brussels
9 December 2021
The EU taxonomy is supposed to become the EU’s gold standard for sustainable investment guiding private investment towards environmental sustainability. It is a crucial piece of EU legislation which should facilitate the reorientation of investments towards truly environmental sustainable economic activities.
After pressure from some member states, the European Commission is expected to present a delegated act which will determine whether fossil gas and nuclear activities will be considered as sustainable investment under the new EU Taxonomy.
The European Green Party and the Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament are calling on the European Commission to keep fossil gas and nuclear activities outside of the EU Taxonomy.
The world has committed to move away from fossil fuels at COP26. Including fossil gas investments as sustainable would contradict efforts to phase out fossil subsidies. It is incompatible with scientific projections to decarbonise the power system in time to reach climate neutrality.
The decisions on whether or not to include specific activities under the taxonomy have to respect the Taxonomy Regulation which was democratically agreed by the European Parliament and the Council. Even though nuclear energy emits relatively little CO2 per kwh, it does not pass the law’s requirement to avoid significant harm to other environmental objectives. Moreover, the principles defined in the law do not give any legal base to include nuclear energy in the Taxonomy.
The Commission would severely harm existing market standards for sustainable finance which explicitly exclude fossil gas and nuclear energy. This is in contradiction of the original purpose of the EU taxonomy to combat ‘greenwashing’ and to provide clarity on what can scientifically be considered as an environmentally sustainable investment.
The Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament and the Greens across Europe are mobilising and call on the European Commission to stick to the democratically agreed Taxonomy Regulation and scientific advice not to include fossil gas and nuclear activities in the EU taxonomy. The EU’s green transition and global leadership in sustainable finance are at stake.
Signatories:
- Evelyne Huytebroeck and Thomas Waitz, co-chairs of the European Green Party
- Ska Keller and Philippe Lamberts, co-presidents of the Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament
END
Valentin Dupouey
Head of the Communication Unit / Press Officer
E valentin.dupouey@europeangreens.eu
T +32 (0) 485 93 99 26
