State of the EU speech: Von der Leyen wants to toughen the EU climate target



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EU Commission President von der Leyen has called for 55 percent of CO2 emissions to be saved by 2030. He proposed this tightening in his State of the EU address. She called this goal “ambitious but achievable.”

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen calls for the European Union’s greenhouse gases to be at least 55 percent below the 1990 level by 2030. The drastic tightening of the EU’s climate target it was suggested by von der Leyen in his speech on the state of the European Union in Brussels.

So far, the official target has been less than 40 percent. The setting to “at least 55 percent” should help comply with the Paris climate protection agreement and stop dangerous overheating of the earth. The new target should be clarified with the EU Parliament and EU states in the coming weeks.

Investments of billions

Von der Leyen said he knew that this increase in the savings target was too much for some and not enough for others. However, the impact assessment of the EU Commission clearly showed that companies and industry could cope with the tightening. In his opinion, the goal is ambitious, achievable and good for Europe. The new goal would mean drastic additional efforts in climate protection. According to the EU Commission, a reduction of around 25 percent was achieved in the 29 years from 1990 to 2019. There are less than ten years left for the new goal.

A commission “climate target plan” was released last week, giving detailed reasons for the planned tightening. Investment in energy production and use should increase by 350 billion euros annually compared to the last ten years, according to the newspaper. Coal consumption will be reduced by 70 percent compared to 2015, and the share of renewables in total energy consumption will increase by up to 40 percent.

Strong criticism of Poland

In their speech, the Presidents of the Commission announced their intention to appoint an EU envoy for the fight against racism. The issue should “stay at the top of our agenda,” von der Leyen said. Brussels will take action against any kind of discrimination, “whether based on race, religion, gender or sexuality,” von der Leyen said.

In this context, it strongly rejected discrimination against sexual and other minorities in the European Union. Regarding the actions of Polish communities against gays and lesbians, von der Leyen said: “The so-called LGBTQI-free zones are zones where respect for other human beings has been lost. There is no place for this in our Union. “. Rather, it will work to strengthen gay rights.

Von der Leyen insists on multilateral systems

The EU leader looked with concern at the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). The EU must lead the way in reforms there, he said. The reactivation of the multilateral system has never been so urgent. The global system has fallen into progressive paralysis. “The great powers withdraw from the institutions or take them hostage for their own interests,” criticized von der Leyen.



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