Ref. Ares(2018)4054594 - 01/08/2018
Ref. Ares(2020)2498329 - 12/05/2020
Green 10 manifesto
In May 2019, citizens across the EU will go to the polls to elect a new European Parliament,
and help determine the new leadership of the European Commission. This carries the
potential for a revitalised, more just and more democratic European Union. This would
deliver on the inclusive and transformative path to sustainable development that was charted
in the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Climate Agreement.
A Europe that puts the well-being of people and our planet first will also help address the
challenges of migration, security and competitiveness. However, an EU migration and
security strategy that ignores the risks posed by climate change will fail. Similarly, economic
competitiveness will be short-lived if Europe does not scale up the low-carbon and clean
technologies of the future, become more resource-efficient, and respect the boundaries of
our planet.
The Green 10, representing tens of millions of citizens across Europe, calls on political
groups, candidates for the European elections and EU leaders to promote:
1.
A European Union that makes environmental protection and climate action top
priorities. The world has a period of 10 to 15 years to limit the impact of climate
change, reverse biodiversity loss and decouple economic activities from
environmental and social harm. The coming decade of transformation requires focus
and leadership. The new European Parliament must mandate a Commission
President to be in charge of implementing the Sustainable Development Goals,
which should serve as the overarching framework for the EU’s development up to
2030. That President must work in tandem with Vice-Presidents for Climate Action
and Natural Resources to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals and the
Paris Climate Agreement.
2.
A European Union that upholds the rule of law and strengthens civil society.
One of the EU’s greatest historic achievements has been the peaceful spread of
democracy and the rule of law across much of the continent. Civil society
organisations, together with a free press and an independent judiciary, play a vital
role in scrutinising government action and holding those in power accountable. Their
participation in European decision-making should be safeguarded. The new
European Commission and Parliament must support citizens and civil society
organisations, and use their legal and budgetary powers to ensure all EU
governments respect the rule of law.
3.
Better governance, not deregulation. Another one of the EU’s greatest
achievements has been its continued drive to agree common rules to protect the
environment, public health, workers’ rights and consumer rights. These rules are a
model for the rest of the world. The next generation of EU leaders should end the
deregulation drive, and refocus on regulating in the public interest. EU rules must be
based on the best available science, genuine consultation with stakeholders, and
timely delivery of essential regulations that are properly implemented and enforced.
4.
An accountable and exemplary European Commission. Europe’s new executive
must be willing and able to stand up to special interests and national governments
particularly when it comes to enforcing the rules. The new Commission should
depoliticise the enforcement of EU rules and again become the independent and
effective watchdog that polices compliance with EU legislation. To earn public
confidence and secure the legitimacy and credibility of the European project, the EU
institutions themselves, and the Commissioners in particular, must uphold the highest
standards of transparency, integrity and public accountability.
10 wins for people and the planet
1.
A global leader in the fight against climate change. Under the Paris Agreement
on climate change, the EU agreed to aim to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C. To
do so, it must significantly increase its 2030 targets for greenhouse gas emission
reductions, renewable energy and energy savings. The EU must ensure a full
decarbonisation of its economy by the middle of the century. This means ending the
use of coal, oil and gas, while steering away from harmful alternatives, such as
unsustainable bioenergy, nuclear energy and geoengineering methods to reduce
carbon emissions. And it must go hand in hand with completely divesting public
funding from carbon pollution and investing in a sustainable economy.
2.
Healthy ecosystems. The EU has committed to halt biodiversity loss and end
overfishing and deforestation by 2020. While limited progress has been made, plant
and animal species continue to vanish at an alarming rate, mainly due to industrial
farming and infrastructure development, as well as climate change. The EU must get
serious about enforcing its nature, marine and invasive alien species laws, and
implement, rather than revise, its framework water law. It must allocate enough
resources from the EU budget to protect nature, transition from fisheries
management to ocean conservation, radically reform its farming policy, reverse
global deforestation, and support nature restoration.
3.
Clean air for all. The new Commission and the European Parliament must swiftly
deal with the number one environmental threat to health in Europe. Air pollution
causes more than 400,000 early deaths every year in the EU. It exacerbates chronic
illnesses and causes huge health, environmental and economic costs. The new
Commission and MEPs must ensure the full enforcement of the EU’s air quality laws,
resist attempts to weaken them by EU governments, introduce new rules to tackle
the main sources of pollution (from the transport, energy, heating, industrial and
agricultural sectors), and update the EU’s air quality standards to align them with the
World Health Organization’s.
4.
A world leader in clean transport. The Dieselgate scandal exposed the failings of
the EU’s efforts to reduce emissions from cars and trucks, but it also offers a unique
opportunity to accelerate the transition to genuinely clean mobility. The next
European Parliament should regulate to eliminate pollutants, noise and CO2
emissions, in particular by delivering a strategy that makes Europe a world leader in
zero-emission and shared transportation powered by clean renewable electricity.
5.
An EU Budget that addresses global and European environmental challenges.
The current EU budget is largely at odds with EU and international objectives on
sustainability, and climate and environmental protection. The Commission’s recently
published proposal for the next EU budget does not provide the transformational shift
needed to make climate change and the environment key priorities after 2020. The
next budget must be in line with international commitments on climate change,
biodiversity and sustainable development, with a clearly defined, mandatory
spending target of 50% for climate change and nature across all budget instruments,
while excluding fossil fuels from all programmes. In addition, funding for the EU’s
LIFE programme should be at least 1% of the total budget.
6.
Detoxing Europe’s future. Many goods contain chemicals such as plastics, flame
retardants or nanomaterials. They threaten wildlife, the environment and public
health – increasing the risk of serious diseases such as cancer, infertility problems
and neurodevelopmental disorders. They also come at a serious financial cost. The
EU must reduce people’s exposure to hazardous chemicals, while accelerating
substitution with safer alternatives. It must regulate to protect the environment and
people’s health from pesticides, endocrine disruptors, and poisoning from lead,
mercury or other toxic chemicals.
7.
Clean circular economy: use fewer resources, and harmonise chemicals,
product and waste laws. Europe’s throwaway culture worsens social inequalities,
threatens public health and depletes resources worldwide.
Poor coordination
between laws on chemicals, products and waste impedes the protection of material
cycles from toxic chemicals. The EU needs coherent policies to prevent waste and
promote the use of durable and repairable toxic-free goods by design. Hazardous
substances should not survive in recycled products. This shift will result in cost
savings, new jobs, healthier people and a safer environment.
8.
A more transparent, democratic and accountable Europe. The EU must
guarantee the right to information, participation and justice for all. It must end its non-
compliance with the Aarhus Convention by improving access to justice. The EU must
ensure greater transparency in EU decision-making and lobbying activities, and
improve restrictions on ‘revolving door’ practices. This would strengthen the
legitimacy of the EU, ensure balanced stakeholder engagement, prevent corporate
capture of decision making processes, and avoid conflicts of interest.
9.
Trade deals that work for people, not big business. Al the EU’s future trading
relationships must prioritise the public interest, instead of seeking to maximise trade
volumes and minimise costs for multinationals. Special arbitration provisions for
foreign investors should be excluded from all current and future trade deals. The
Paris Agreement on climate change, environmental non-regression and ‘do not harm’
clauses should be included in all European free trade agreements, with legally
binding and enforceable sustainable development chapters.
10.
A sustainable Europe that respects planetary boundaries. In order to deliver on
the environmental aspects of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development and ensure that Europe lives within its ecological means, the EU must
deliver an ambitious 8th Environmental Action Programme. The current GDP-focused
approach to the economy has resulted in resource depletion and species extinction,
while increasing inequality, debt and the number of working poor. Europe urgently
needs new economic policies that create well-being for all, within the limits of the
ecosystems that sustain life. It must prevent the costs of environmental pollution from
being passed onto future generations.