In her first speech on the state of the EU, Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc should significantly increase its emissions-cutting targets. She also unveiled a plan to reboot Europe’s economy amid the coronavirus crisis.
The EU’s most powerful senior official unveiled plans to reboot the bloc’s battered economy with what is being dubbed a “green new deal.”
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said the EU should significantly toughen its emissions-cutting target to at least 55% by 2030.
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“I recognize that this increase from 40 to 55 is too much for some, and not enough for others,” she said in a speech to EU lawmakers in Brussels. “But our impact assessment clearly shows that our economy and industry can manage this.”
MEPs and EU governments would still need to agree to the plan.
Some countries argue such green targets are harder to meet because they rely on high-polluting energy sources such as coal.
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Campaigners say 55% is not enough to hit the EU’s longer-term goal of climate neutrality by 2050.
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Speaking at the European Parliament in Brussels, the former German defense minister said that the coronavirus crisis presented the bloc with “a moment for the EU to lead the way.”
She urged EU governments to work on common health care policies, promising a biomedical research agency and a global summit.
Von der Leyen said the coronavirus pandemic had underlined the need for closer cooperation. “The people of Europe are still suffering,” she said.
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The speech was set to be held at the body’s Strasbourg seat of the European Parliament but was moved to the Belgian capital after the French government designated the eastern city as a coronavirus “red zone.”
Von der Leyen warns UK
Von der Leyen made only a passing reference to Brexit because talks are being led by the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier.
She warned Downing Street that it would fail to seal a trade deal with the EU if it tried to rewrite last year’s withdrawal agreement.
“With every day that passes, the chances of a timely agreement do start to fade,” von der Leyen said.
She stressed that the Brexit divorce treaty, agreed and ratified by both the UK and EU, “cannot be unilaterally changed, disregarded, or disapplied.”
“This is a matter of law, trust, and good faith. Trust is the foundation of any strong partnership,” the EU chief said, recalling that British former-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher said breaking treaties is “bad for Britain, bad for relations with the rest of the world and bad for any future treaty on trade.
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EU chief urges bloc to do more on human rights
The Commission president attacked Poland’s government overs its “LGBT-free zones,” which she branded as “humanity free zones.”
“Breaches of the rule of law cannot be tolerated,” von der Leyen said.
On Monday, MEPs called for Poland’s conservative government to lose EU funding over its attack on LGBT+ people and rule of law record.
Von der Leyen told EU governments to work together on tackling the migration crisis after a fire at a refugee camp in Greece left several people homeless.
“I expect all member states to step up, too,” she told the European Parliament. “Migration is a European challenge and all of Europe must do its part.”
Von der Leyen, 61, is a trained medical doctor and comes from German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union.
She took up her role as the head of the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, last year.
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DW / Balkantimes.press
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