German election fallout, Newsletter
Key diary dates
Wednesday 26 February – Commission to publish Action Plan for Affordable Energy and Clean Industrial Deal.
Wednesday 26 February – Commission to publish 'omnibus' package to lighten reporting requirements for businesses.
Thursday 27 February – College of Commissioners to visit India to launch negotiations for a strategic partnership.
In spotlight
This week's publication by the Commission of its 'omnibus' proposal – set to contain measures designed to clip back at onerous reporting obligations for business – will likely chime with Germany's new political landscape.
European People's Party lead environment MEP - German lawmaker Peter Liese – last week dismissed calls from the Socialists & Democrats (S&D) on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to reconsider plans to reopen legislation requiring firms to ensure there is no environmental damage or abuse of human rights along their supply chains.
Liese last week briefed reporters that he trusted that the omnibus 'will be a courageous proposal'.
Despite the drive to free businesses of environmental obligations, Liese was adamant the EPP remained committed to EU climate goals, including a 55% emissions cut by 2030 compared to 1990, and net zero by the middle of the century.
Speaking before heading to Germany to campaign for Friedrich Merz before the CDU general election win yesterday, Liese said Germany's next chancellor shared his commitment to climate action.
He also said that Merz could be trusted not to work with the Eurosceptic Alternative for Germany party.
'I campaigned for him in his first campaign for the European Parliament in 1989, and really, you can trust that he will not work with the [far-right party] AfD,' Liese said.
Aside from the omnibus proposal however the AfD's ability to stymie any coalition government created by Merz will be closely watched in Brussels.
Merz wants to exclude German defence expenditure from the country's fiscal debt to push a significant bolstering of military hardware – a priority in view of Trump's detachment of the US from support for Ukraine and Europe.
The fiscal measure Merz wants can be pushed through the Bundestag on a simple majority vote, but in order to make it a more permanent measure requires a constitutional fix requiring the support of two-thirds of the German parliament. Might the AfD attempt to stymie that once the new Bundestag comes into play after the end of March?
The head of the AfD delegation in the European Parliament, René Aust, told Euronews in an exclusive interview on the eve of the election last week that the party would support any legislation it considers 'good for the people', regardless of who proposes it, and that 'we don't care if it comes from the Greens or from the left".
Yesterday's election left the AfD with 152 seats in the Bundestag, while the leftist Die Linke party won 64 seats. Combined, both parties just top one-third of the chamber - enough to block Merz's attempt to kick start European defence strategy with a bazooka should they so wish.
Policy newsmakers
Omnibus confidence
The two largest political groups in the European Parliament have been outspoken about their expectations for the Omnibus package on sustainability, which is set to be presented by the European Commission on Wednesday (26 February). On Friday, Iratxe García Pérez, leader of S&D, sent an open letter urging Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to reconsider plans to reopen legislation requiring firms to ensure there is no environmental damage or abuse of human rights along their supply chains. However, European People's Party lawmakers remain confident that the package will be presented in line with the party's position. "I trust in the common sense of the Commission that this letter will not be successful, that we will have the Omnibus covering all four legislations, and that it will be a courageous proposal,' said Peter Liese, the EPP's environment leader, while briefing reporters in Brussels.
Policy Poll
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
4 hours ago
- France 24
France's Macron to visit Greenland
Macron's office said he had been invited to visit on June 15 by the territory's prime minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen and Danish leader Mette Frederiksen. The three will hold talks focused on North Atlantic and Arctic security, climate change, the energy transition and the supply of critical minerals, the French presidency said. The visit will contribute to fostering "European sovereignty" and was aiming at "strengthening cooperation" with Greenland, it added. Frederiksen called the visit "a concrete testimony of European unity" in a statement. "It has been uplifting to see the strong international support for Greenland and the Kingdom in the difficult foreign policy situation in recent months," she said. Danish and Greenlandic leaders have insisted that the autonomous territory, where a majority are in favour of independence in the long term, must decide its own future, and have repeatedly said Washington "will never get Greenland".
Euronews
4 hours ago
- Euronews
European Commission goes on the offensive against NGO accusations
The European commission on Saturday denied German media reports that it had signed 'secret contracts' with environmental NGOs to promote the bloc's climate policy. 'Contrary to media allegations, there are no secret contracts between the European Commission and NGOs,' a commission spokesperson told Euronews. 'The Commission exercises a high degree of transparency when it comes to providing funding to NGOs. The commission's denial comes after German newspaper Welt Am Sonntag claimed that the EU's Executive arm had allegedly secretly paid environmental NGOs up to €700,000 to promote the bloc's climate policy. The paper said it got hold of 'secret contracts' from 2022, which involved well-known NGOs like 'ClientEarth,' and 'Friends of the Earth.' In the Welt Am Sonntag claims, the former allegedly 'received €350,000 'and was supposed to 'entangle German coal-fired power plants in court cases in order to increase the operators' financial and legal risk,' the paper said. The paper also reported that EC officials commissioned the latter to fight against the Mercosur free trade agreement between Europe and South America – 'even though colleagues in their own house were pushing it forward at the same time,' the paper reported. In its statement to Euronews on Saturday, the European Commission underlined that 'NGOs play a crucial role in shaping, monitoring, and enforcing legislation. NGOs also remain fully autonomous and free to establish their own views on all policy matters.' The German report comes at a time when the issue of NGO funding has become an extremely divisive political issue in Brussels. The conservative European People's Party (EPP) has claimed that the Commission instructed NGOs to lobby members of the parliament to further specific policies within the Green Deal, a central political agenda of president Ursula von der Leyen's first term between 2019 and 2024. MEP Monika Hohlmeier (Germany/EPP), told Euronews back in January that her concerns were raised when she examined some 30 funding contracts from 2022 and 2023, as part of the parliament's annual scrutiny of EU budget spending. In January, Budget Commissioner Piotr Serafin conceded that some financing from the EU's €5.4 billion environmental programme LIFE may have been inappropriate. 'I have to admit that it was inappropriate for some services in the Commission to enter into agreements that oblige NGOs to lobby members of the European Parliament specifically,' he said. But he also defended the role of NGOs in EU policy making. In April, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) also concluded following a lengthy probe that the Commission's funding of NGOs was 'opaque' and exposed the executive to 'reputational risk.' But the court did not find any breach of EU values from NGOs. To overcome ambiguities, the European Commission issued clear guidance last year to streamline how it provides funding to NGOs. On Saturday, the commission spokesperson told Euronews that EU funding to NGOs was provided 'based on grant agreements, which are complemented by work programmes whose preparation falls under the responsibility of NGOs.' 'As per the guidance, the Commission has instructed its services not to sign off on work programmes if those contain overly specific activities directed at EU institutions or their representatives,' the EC statement added. The institution will take 'further measures,' the spokesperson said, to strengthen transparency and include appropriate safeguards. 'We have been working closely with the European Parliament and the European Court of Auditors to improve this transparency even further. Information on recipients of EU funding, including the names of recipients and amounts, is publicly available on the Commission´s Financial Transparency System website,' the statement said. Argentine President Javier Milei has met with Pope Leo XIV in the Vatican on Saturday, where they discussed the importance of urgent efforts towards achieving peace. The Pope and Milei also spoke about bilateral relations, as well as "matters of common interest, such as social-economic progress, the fight against poverty, and the commitment to social cohesion," a statement by the Holy See Press Office noted. After his meeting with the pope, the Argentine President met with the Vatican Secretary of State cardinal Pietro Parolin, accompanied by the Under-Secretary for Relations with States, Reverend Msgr. Mirosław Wachowski. Milei arrived in Rome on Friday, the first stop of his 10-day European tour, where he attended the signing of a natural gas export deal, local media reported. The event was also attended by Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who hosted the Argentine president for a private dinner afterwards. Shortly after his meeting with Pope Leo XIV, Milei departed for Spain, to attend the Madrid Economic Forum. After Spain, the Argentine president will also visit France, and will end his trip in Israel, where he will receive an award in recognition of his support of Israel in a ceremony at the Knesset on 11 June.
Euronews
6 hours ago
- Euronews
Pope Leo XIV welcomes Argentine President Javier Milei at Vatican
Argentine President Javier Milei has met with Pope Leo XIV in the Vatican on Saturday, where they discussed the importance of urgent efforts towards achieving peace. The Pope and Milei also spoke about bilateral relations, as well as "matters of common interest, such as social-economic progress, the fight against poverty, and the commitment to social cohesion," a statement by the Holy See Press Office noted. After his meeting with the pope, the Argentine President met with the Vatican Secretary of State cardinal Pietro Parolin, accompanied by the Under-Secretary for Relations with States, Reverend Msgr. Mirosław Wachowski. Milei arrived in Rome on Friday, the first stop of his 10-day European tour, where he attended the signing of a natural gas export deal, local media reported. The event was also attended by Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who hosted the Argentine president for a private dinner afterwards. Shortly after his meeting with Pope Leo XIV, Milei departed for Spain, to attend the Madrid Economic Forum. After Spain, the Argentine president will also visit France, and will end his trip in Israel, where he will receive an award in recognition of his support of Israel in a ceremony at the Knesset on 11 June. While the Spanish socialist government wants to increase defence spending in line with the demands of US President Donald Trump and European allies, a thousand demonstrators from Podemos, Izquierda Unida and Sumar protested this Saturday in the Spanish capital against increasing the military budget. The demonstration has taken on special relevance after the firm warning of Izquierda Unida (IU) that they are questioning their place in the coalition government. Its parliamentary spokesman, Enrique Santiago, has been categorical in stating that it is practically impossible for his party to continue in an executive that assumes this course. He also urged Pedro Sánchez to stand firm in the face of pressure from NATO, despite the reproaches he may receive, recalling that IU, of which minister Sira Rego is a member, firmly rejects the increase in defence spending. Sumar's presence at Saturday's protest was undoubtedly the most striking. The internal debate within the electoral coalition has once again intensified in the run-up to the NATO summit in The Hague at the end of June, where allied countries are expected to make a new commitment to allocate up to 5% of GDP to defence, up from the current 2%. Labour minister and leader of the left-wing coalition, Yolanda Díaz, has long distanced herself from Sánchez's position, though without breaking the unity of the government. Podemos has also publicly denounced the increase in defence spending approved by the government, saying it is a "betrayal" of progressive principles and a direct alignment with the strategic interests of the United States and NATO. MEP Irene Montero warned on Saturday that, by prioritising rearmament, the central government is laying the foundations for future cuts in social policies, especially affecting public education and programmes such as the Co-Responsibles Plan, aimed at improving family reconciliation. According to a survey by the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas (CIS), published in March, 75% of Spaniards are actually in favour of increasing military spending, especially after Donald Trump's re-election.
