On Wednesday 15th January, the European Parliament passed a motion on a ‘Green Deal’, which brings the net-zero carbon emissions target forward to 2050 across the EU.

This is a landmark agreement, laying out how to reduce emissions across the EU, with particular attention to a just transition in coal-dependent places like Hungary, Poland or parts of Germany. The Sustainable Europe Investment Fund will contribute €1 trillion over the next 10 years through a mixture of public and private projects, with in-country contributions making up the rest of the investment necessary to finance the transition. With 2050 as the target for net carbon neutrality, the 2030 target is also raised to a 55% reduction in emissions since 1990 levels.

The Green Deal received support from across all political groupings, with the Greens’ demands to divest entirely from fossil fuels and to remove nuclear energy from the strategy also receiving cross-grouping support.

Ellie said: “I am really delighted that the European Parliament passed a motion on the Green Deal with a large cross-party majority. This shows that politicians across Europe are beginning to listen to the voices of citizens who are calling loudly for further and faster action to tackle the climate crisis.

”We are really pleased that the resolution included total divestment from fossil fuels and greater biodiversity protection, thanks to campaigning efforts by the Greens in particular. Of course, there is much more to b done and we will keep calling for more ambitious action, but we should also celebrate the fact that the Commission and the Parliament are both moving in the right direction thank to green votes and Green pressure!”

The central demands made by the resolution passed today include: reforming European agricultural policy so it has strong links to a biodiversity strategy; linking payments from the Just Transition fund to ending coal production; tying the EU budget, European Investment Bank funding and public investment to the targets set out in the Paris climate targets and setting binding EU climate targets by 2030 ahead of the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow in November.