Dear Climate Action,

Under the right of access to documents in the EU treaties, as developed in Regulation 1049/2001, I am requesting a document or documents related to Article 6.2(a) of Regulation 2021/1119 (the European Climate Law).

Article 6.2(a) of the European Climate Law reads as follows: “2. By 30 September 2023, and every five years thereafter, the Commission shall review: (a) the consistency of Union measures with the climate-neutrality objective set out in Article 2(1)”.

Recital 25 of the law provides context to this requirement, saying: “The transition to climate neutrality requires changes across the entire policy spectrum and a collective effort of all sectors of the economy and society, as highlighted in the European Green Deal”. The same recital also refers to the European Council Conclusions of 12 December 2019, which read: “All relevant EU legislation and policies need to be consistent with, and contribute to, the fulfilment of the climate neutrality objective”. The same conclusions go on to invite the Commission to: “examine whether this requires an adjustment of the existing rules, including on state aid and public procurement”.

To the best of our knowledge, no policy consistency assessment in the terms of Article 6.2(a) has yet been made publicly available by the European Commission.

The Commission did publish, in October 2023, the Climate Action Progress Report 2023, which says the following: “With the ‘Fit for 55’ package adopted by co-legislators, Union policies are now aligned with the updated 2030 target set in the European Climate Law, but there is scope to further improve the consistency of EU policies with climate objectives”. However this report doesn’t discuss the consistency of policies outside of the Fit for 55 package, and so doesn’t cover “the entire policy spectrum” or “all sectors of the economy”. Nor does it provide any information on which policies or measures are inconsistent - or only partly consistent - with climate objectives.

Finally, we are not aware of the Commission having taken any “necessary measures” since the 30 September 2023 deadline, as per Article 6.3 of the European Climate Law, to remedy any inconsistencies identified through the required assessment.

On this basis, may I ask you to provide me with any and all documents containing an assessment of the consistency of Union measures with the climate-neutrality objective, as per Article 6.2 of the Regulation 2021/1119, and following the invitation in the European Council Conclusions of 12 December 2019?

In addition to this request for document, I’d like to request some information regarding this policy consistency assessment:
- What is the methodology that you used to check the consistency of Union measures with the climate-neutrality objective set out in Regulation 2021/1119?
- What is the definition of “consistency” that you used to this end, and how did you apply it?
- If no assessment of Union measures was made, or one was made and not published, what reasons can you provide to explain that decision?
- The Climate Action Progress Report 2023, published by the European Commission, states that “there is scope to further improve the consistency of EU policies with climate objectives”. What reason(s) can you provide to explain the fact that, since this report, no EU policies and measures have been revised on grounds of inconsistency with the EU’s climate neutrality objective, as per Article 6.3 of the Regulation 2021/1119?

Yours faithfully,
Michael Sicaud-Clyet
WWF European Policy Office