In September, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, presented an ambitious plan for the next five years, which aims to achieve sustainable prosperity in the European Union. A key element of this plan is the European Green Deal, which is being integrated into all EU policies. The agenda also includes tackling disinformation to ensure that the EU can guide its policies based on science.

The plan includes objectives such as increasing competitiveness with regard to sustainability, transitioning to a circular economy and promoting sustainable transport. It also includes efforts to switch to renewable energy sources and reduce dependence on fossil fuels. An important part is also the strategic use of taxation to support clean technologies and sustainable trade relations.

The European Parliament's confirmation of individual Commissioners and the definition of their responsibilities will be key to the success of these plans. The Commission will have to face political pressure and find a balance between scientific advice and political reality. Transatlantic cooperation, in particular with the United States, could be an important factor in achieving these goals.

The following examples illustrate how the Commission is trying to translate its ambitions into action:

• Single market:  The Commission recognises that a functioning "single market is key to competitiveness" but also a tool to meet its climate and environmental objectives. It aims to step up efforts to "develop a single market for sustainable products" and use tools such as public procurement to achieve its goals.

• Circular economy:  There is a strong focus on developing a circular economy with the aim of “increasing [the EU’s] competitiveness and building a healthier planet”. This involves keeping products and valuable materials in circulation through processes such as repair, reuse, refurbishment, remanufacturing and recycling. The envisaged efforts include creating “market demand for secondary raw materials and a single market for waste”, thereby improving access to “critical raw materials”.

• Sustainable transport:  To make European transport more competitive, sustainable and accessible, the Commission lists several action points, including “rapidly deploying charging infrastructure” to electrify road transport, as well as cleaning up companies’ fleets and using digitalisation to modernise the transport system.

• Healthy environment and natural capital:  They are recognised as an "intrinsic part" of climate, security, competitiveness and food security measures. The envisaged incentives for nature conservation measures, efforts to increase private financing for nature and work on nature credits are expected to be aligned with the recently adopted Nature Restoration Act.

• Agriculture and food systems:  The more comprehensive approach to improving the European food system as a whole and the call to "strengthen the competitiveness, resilience and sustainability of the agricultural sector" within the "limits of our planet" demonstrate the Commission's willingness to address existing inconsistencies in EU agricultural policy.

• Clean energy transition:  The Commission will continue to focus on energy efficiency, as well as the deployment of renewable energy sources and energy storage. It plans to tackle inefficiencies in the building sector, which can address both energy poverty and the climate crisis. It mentions small modular nuclear reactors and the use of carbon capture – as well as storage – as specific areas for development. It seeks to “ move the [EU] away from fossil fuels ” including phasing out “ the use of fossil fuel subsidies ”.

• Strategic use of taxation : While the plans mention using taxation to “incentivise the deployment of clean technologies”, the call for “strategic use of tax measures” also opens the door to taxing harmful, polluting practices in line with the EU’s polluter-pays principle.

• Shop:  Enforcement of trade agreements will include a particular focus on climate, environmental and labour rules. Measures will be strengthened to "prevent non-EU compliant products" from entering the EU market.

• Sustainable financing : The Commission will continue to promote, scale up and implement sustainable finance, seeking to ensure the EU's global leadership in this area.

Von der Leyen sent a signal that the EU is ready and committed to leading the green transition and creating a global market for sustainable solutions, which represents a significant opportunity for transatlantic cooperation. (Co2AI)