Blocking deforestation law could make EU look ‘ridiculous’, former commissioner warns

The Greens in the European Parliament have warned that a bid by the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) to water down a new EU law designed to break the link between demand in Europe and deforestation around the world could damage the EU’s credibility at the COP29 talks.

Under pressure from the EPP, the European Commission proposed last month to postpone application of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) to give companies an extra year to prepare. The change has already been approved by governments in the EU Council.

But despite an understanding that the implementation deadline would be the only substantial change, the largest group in the parliament has proposed a raft of amendments ahead of a final vote tomorrow (14 November) that would substantially weaken the law.

“I truly hope that at the end of the day [the EU] won't look ridiculous in front of the partners and international community, backtracking on one of the biggest achievements of the previous Commission,” former environment commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius told reporters today.

The EPP has tabled 15 amendment proposals, which would extend the delay to two years, introduce a new category of ‘no risk’ countries and exempt traders from the bulk of reporting obligations.

The group says in its proposal that the changes it wants are justified by a need to ‘avoid unnecessary administrative burden and the additional costs’, and is apparently counting on support from conservative and nationalist groups to push them through.

Backtracking on the legislation would lead to “uncertainty” over EU’s ability to follow up its headline climate action goals with concrete legislation, Sinkevičius said. “It would also show that we are not a reliable partner," he said.

“A significant job has been done in explaining [the law] to…countries, especially those that are going to be affected, but also working with the rest of the world to ensure that they also take steps in adopting a similar legislation,” he said.

Fellow Green MEP Anna Cavazzini, who chairs the parliament’s internal market committee, pointed to contradictions in the EPP’s position, and the potential for the “chaos” of a protracted stand-off.

Having originally supported the EUDR, the group has successfully pushed for a one-year delay – but if its fresh amendments are endorsed with support from the far-right, the parliament will find itself in opposition to the EU Council, and there will be no time to change the law before it takes effect on 30 December.

“For me, it's one of the clearest laws that exist, because it will prohibit products from areas that have been recently deforested – with a clear deadline,” Cavazzini said. “I have the feeling, this ‘bureaucracy’ discussion is just being used at the moment to kill basically everything.”