EU states block proposed green finance rules

The new rules would have clarified what financial products could be labelled as ‘green’.

EU flags flutter ahead of the arrival of Britain’s permanent Representative to the EU Tim Barrow and British PM Boris Johnson''s Europe Adviser David Frost at the Euro Commission headquarters
European Union member states, including France, the United Kingdom, Poland and Hungary, halted a deal struck last week by EU legislators and the Finnish presidency that would have established a new global standard on green bonds and other financial products [File: Yves Herman/Reuters]

In a major setback for the European Union‘s climate ambitions, EU member states have blocked a set of new rules governing which financial products can be labelled as “green” and “sustainable”, EU officials said on Wednesday.

The decision halted a deal struck just last week by politicians and the Finnish presidency of the EU, which negotiators had hailed as a landmark compromise that could establish a global standard on green bonds and other financial products aimed at climate-conscious investors.

The United Kingdom, France, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Slovenia opposed the deal at a meeting of EU diplomats in Brussels, fearing it would prevent investments in nuclear and coal projects from being labelled as green.

Such investments were not explicitly excluded from the EU’s new classifications, known as taxonomy, but under the rules it would be very difficult to label them as green, potentially reducing future funding for those industries.

France relies on nuclear energy, while European countries are still largely dependent on coal and support nuclear.

EU legislators wanted nuclear and fossil fuel funding clearly excluded from the definition of green investments but had accepted the compromise.

“The parliament will not renegotiate,” said Bas Eickhout, the leading deputy on the issue, urging France to put aside its concerns and allow the deal to be approved by the required majority of EU member states.

Green deal?

The setback came on the same day the European Commission unveiled the outline of its “Green Deal”, a package of measures, still to be detailed, meant to make the bloc greener and drastically cut carbon emissions.

The taxonomy is considered a key pillar of that strategy as it could increase funding for renewable energies and other green projects while tackling so-called “greenwashing”, whereby firms boost their green credentials without merit.

Under EU rules, politicians and governments have to find a compromise over proposed legislation when their views differ. Talks were conducted on behalf of EU states by Finland, which holds the six-month EU presidency until the end of this year.

Usually, states support compromises struck by their representatives, but the blocking of the green finance law highlights the deep divisions in the bloc over the matter.

States saw the compromise text as going beyond the mandate given to Finland to lead the negotiations, the official said. A new mandate will now have to be agreed on, probably next week.

If politicians agree, talks with the European Parliament should resume in the coming days with the aim of finding a deal before the end of the year, the official added.

“We are still working on an accord, and we think there is every possibility for a deal by early next week. It just needs a wording update,” a French diplomat said.

Source: Reuters