Polish prime minister: EU must carry out a full and critical review of the Green Deal

With natural gas and electricity prices rising sharply in recent years, calls for a possible reform of the Green Deal, or the European Green Deal, are growing louder in Europe. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, whose country currently holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union, also commented on the issue last week. Tusk said the bloc should conduct a full and critical review of the system as it stands.

The European Green Deal has long been a major political issue, as it has a significant impact on European industry and consumers. Last week, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he would like to review and potentially amend EU regulations, including those linked to the Green Deal. Among other things, the deal aims to accelerate cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.

“If we go bankrupt, no one in the world will care about the environment anymore,” Tusk told the European Parliament. “One issue before us, for example, is ETS 2… I would also like to ask you to think deeply, critically and courageously about the consequences of introducing the ETS 2 system so quickly,” he added.

Under ETS 2, the emissions trading system is to be extended to road transport and fuels, including natural gas. However, adopting any changes to the ETS is not straightforward: it would require approval from a majority of MEPs in the European Parliament and a qualified majority of EU member states. Several countries, including France, Germany, Austria and Sweden, according to Argus, are openly opposed to changes to the EU’s climate legislation or a possible delay to the launch of ETS 2.

“Our union will survive only if we continue to implement the Green Deal, the only tool that can ensure the survival of our planet,” Spanish MEP Iratxe García Pérez, leader of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), the second-largest group in the European Parliament, said, according to the website.