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French President Emmanuel Macron unleashed a storm of comments last week when he called for “a European regulatory pause” on environmental rules.

Yet, as the European Union reaches the end of a five-year political cycle focused on the adoption of new legislation under its European Green Deal agenda, it is only common sense that the next phase should focus on implementation and delivery.

Over the past four years, Europe has passed more environmental regulations than any other country or region in the world, the French president remarked, citing the EU’s 2030 and 2050 climate targets aimed at cutting greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by mid-century.

“We are ahead, in regulatory terms, of the Americans, the Chinese or any other power in the world,” Macron said. “Now, we have to implement,” he added, saying European businesses “need stability” to plan for the years ahead.

French opposition lawmakers and the radical left reacted furiously to Macron’s speech, saying the president was essentially “putting the final nail in the coffin of the Green Deal”.

Key environmental laws such as the upcoming revision of the REACH regulation on chemical safety or the EU’s proposed nature restoration law “are now in danger”, said Marie Toussaint, a French Green lawmaker in the European Parliament.

While environmentalists are justifiably concerned about the future of REACH or the EU’s nature restoration law – which are both coming under attack by EU governments and conservative lawmakers – they are, however, missing the broader point about long-term trends in European policymaking.

During its five-year mandate, the current European Commission led by Ursula von der Leyen tabled 46 legislative proposals under its Green Deal agenda.

Of these, 29 have already been successfully concluded, including the EU’s landmark Climate Law, which enshrined the bloc’s objective of reducing emissions to net zero by 2050 and cutting them by 55% before the end of this decade.

Other flagship pieces of legislation were agreed more recently, setting new ambitious targets on renewables and energy efficiency for 2030 or mandating new passenger cars to be zero-emission as of 2035.

Of course, meeting these objectives will not be a walk in the park.

Carmakers, for instance, have just over ten years to switch their entire production to 100% clean vehicles. And the energy sector will have to double its renewable output in less than seven years – from 22% today to 42.5% of the bloc’s energy mix by 2030.

Clearly, it is now time for Europeans to roll up their sleeves and make sure those decisions are translated from paper to reality.

This is where Macron’s speech is worth a second look. In essence, the French president said Europe should now focus on putting in place the financing mechanisms necessary to support the green transition rather than keep adding to the EU’s green legislative rulebook.

“Let us be clear: We cannot achieve technological sovereignty, the transition for the climate and biodiversity – for our industrialists and to support households – if we do not invest massively at the European level,” Macron said.

“This is where the priority should be,” he added, saying: “I will support the Sovereignty Fund proposed by the Commission in the months to come.”

In stressing the importance of financing, Macron also put the finger on a structural weakness of the European Union. While Europe is at the forefront when it comes to policymaking, it lacks the financial firepower of the United States when it comes to supporting the green transition.

To be sure, Macron’s comments have already found an echo among the EU’s conservatives. Supporters of a break on environmental legislation include EU employers’ group BusinessEurope and right-wing lawmakers in the European Parliament, who are pushing for a “regulatory moratorium” on green laws.

But green advocates shouldn’t worry too much. As the EU finalises the adoption of its European Green Deal package of legislation, the spotlight will soon turn to EU countries to deliver and implement it.

At the national level, this will translate into a myriad of new rules and regulations, which will need to be reflected in the National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs) that EU countries are required to submit to the European Commission on a yearly basis.

So while a regulatory winter might settle down on Brussels, a new spring will start blooming elsewhere as the EU aims to reach its 2030 environmental objectives.

Meanwhile, at the EU level, dozens more implementing rules will need to be adopted after all legislation is passed under the Green Deal.

The battery regulation alone, for instance, foresees the adoption of 32 implementing acts to set technical standards on everything from battery production to recycling.

In total, more than 100 pieces of secondary legislation are expected to be delivered in the coming years under the Green Deal, the European Commission told EURACTIV.

After the legislative fireworks of the current Commission, this may sound less exhilarating than the current policy cycle, which set key environmental objectives for Europe in the decades ahead.

However, this implementation phase will be no less crucial to the success – or failure – of the European Green Deal.

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PARIS. France to speed up nuclear power deployment. A bill to speed up the construction of new nuclear reactors was approved by MPs on Tuesday, with the government hailing it as an environmental step forward. Read more.

PRAGUE. Czech lithium could contribute to European energy security, says PM. We are on the verge of a lithium revolution, said Prime Minister Petr Fiala, who envisions the possibility of Czechia embarking on lithium mining within its territory, potentially becoming a significant contributor to Europe’s overall energy security. Read more.

STOCKHOLM. Swedish far-right outraged over government’s wind power expansion plans. The Swedish government gave the green light to two offshore wind farms off the western coast of Sweden, much to the dismay of the eurosceptic Sweden Democrats, whose spokesperson called the government ‘naive’ over the decision. Read more.

PARIS. Interest in French-led nuclear alliance gathers momentum. French Energy Transition Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher is to meet with representatives of 15 European states interested in the so-called “nuclear alliance” – an increase compared to the 11 that had shown interest just two months ago. Read more.

ROME. Italy looks at nuclear energy to supplement energy mix. Investing in nuclear is necessary for Italy to pursue its energy objectives and would ensure the principle of European energy sovereignty is respected, said Lega MP Luca Toccalini (ID), as the coalition agreement expresses an intention to invest in nuclear. Read more.

BUCHAREST. First Energy Exploration Centre in Europe to run SMR simulator, launched in Bucharest. The first Energy Exploration Centre (E2 Centre) to run the NuScale small modular reactor (SMR) simulator in Europe was inaugurated Friday at Politehnica University of Bucharest. Read more.

MADRID. Spain to adopt urgent water supply measures amidst ‘historic’ drought. The government is set to approve urgent measures to ease the severe economic impact of the historic drought in the country, Spain’s Ecological Transition Minister Teresa Ribera confirmed ahead of an extraordinary government meeting on Thursday. Read more.

VIENNA. Austrian government cracks down on energy companies to combat inflation surge. The Austrian government introduced on Wednesday a series of new measures, including the absorption of profits and tighter reporting obligations for energy companies, amid increasing inflation. Read more.

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• EU Commission chief: Growth model based on fossil fuels ‘simply obsolete’ – János Allenbach-Ammann
• EU lawmaker: If Green Deal crumbles, it is on the centre-right’s head – Natasha Foote
• Emirates, global renewables agency want to triple green energy by 2030 – Kira Taylor
• Lawmakers criticise green taxonomy investment rules for aviation, maritime – Sean Goulding Carroll
• France presents ‘first step’ €2bn fund for critical metals – Paul Messad
• France publishes renewables progress report for 2022 – Paul Messad
• Transparency, sustainability still lacking in EU-Mercosur deal, say experts – Paul Messad
• EU countries blocking agreement on ecodesign law amid dispute over unsold textiles – Kira Taylor

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• Tackling the climate crisis: Implementation time in Europe – Johannes Pollak, Michael Kaeding and Paul Schmidt
• Europe must protect its natural heritage in the North – Greta Thunberg and various authors
• How to rebuild Ukraine? A few remarks before the G7 Summit – Marcin Korolec
• Beyond GDP: Towards a wellbeing economy – Sandrine Dixson-Declève and Aileen McLeod
• Electricity market reform: what’s not in the proposal – Christopher Jones and Klaus-Dieter Borchardt
• To de-risk from China, the EU should offer the Global South more – Mats Engström
• The people behind the buildings: Why we must get it right in the EPBD – Anna Bajomi, Caroline Simpson and Brook Riley
• Is the proposed EU ‘deforestation’ regulation really a win for the environment? – Pieter Cleppe

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MAY

• 17 MAY. Commission to propose measures to reduce the release of microplastics in the environment.
• 22 MAY. Competitiveness council: Ministers aim to reach a general approach on ecodesign regulation

JUNE

• JUNE. European Parliament plenary vote on EU Nature Restoration Law.
• 1 JUNE. Gas package trilogue.
• 3-11 JUNE. EU Green Week.
• 6 JUNE. First EPBD trilogue.
• 19 JUNE. Energy Council.
• 20-22 June 2023. EU Sustainable Energy Week
• 20 JUNE. Environment Council.
• 21 JUNE. Greening transport package.
• 29-30 JUNE. European Council.
• 30 JUNE. Deadline for European Member States to update their revised National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs).

SECOND HALF OF 2023

• Q4. Revision of REACH regulation.
• OCTOBER. European Parliament plenary vote on Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation.
• 26-27 OCTOBER. European Council.
• 30 NOVEMBER-12 DECEMBER. UN Climate Change Conference (COP 28), Dubai.
• 14-15 DECEMBER. European Council.

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