The Commission for the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety of the European Parliament has rejected on Tuesday the controversial proposal for a law for the Restoration of Nature. After the votes on dozens of amendments to the original proposal of the European Commission (the first on June 15 and the rest this morning) the MEPs have not given their support to the initiative, which aims to restore 80% of the habitats Europeans in disrepair and restoring nature to all ecosystems, from forests and farmland to marine, freshwater and urban ecosystems. The decision is not irreversible, but it is a very clear sign of the lack of consensus, which makes it difficult to get ahead.
The result of the expected vote was 44 votes in favour, 44 against and 0 abstentions, below the required majority. On June 15, the European People’s Party, backed by the conservatives and part of the liberals, launched an amendment to the entire text, but exactly the same thing happened today, a tie at 44. And what was necessary to take the initiative It is a simple majority, that total amendment was rejected, as was the proposal today with all the particular amendments included.
The result is a huge stick for the European Commission, for the left and the socialists (the Spanish César Luena was the speaker) and for environmental organizations. And a victory for the popular groups and their allies, who had been trying to stop the process for months, considering that the damage to farmers, ranchers and fishermen was excessive at a very delicate political moment, after pandemics, wars, droughts and with a package of measures in recent years that are forcing a green transition that they describe as too aggressive and harmful. There are important elections in Poland and Slovakia this year and the rural vote is decisive. In Germany, the extreme right is gaining ground on the CDU/CSU (which is behind this shift in Brussels and Strasbourg) and in the Netherlands, for example, an agrarian party opposed to environmental measures has been the big winner in the Senate elections. .
Today’s is not the last battle, but after this rejection, like those that have already been verified in the Agriculture and Fisheries commissions, it is clear that the required support is nowhere to be found. With today’s result, the Environment Commission will propose to the Plenary Session of the European Parliament, foreseeably next month if there are no surprises on the agenda, to completely reject the Commission’s proposal. But the Plenary is the one that has the last word. The committees more or less reflect the balance of power, and they can recommend whatever they want, but it all depends on what is done then. It is a completely new party unless Ursula von der Leyen accepts defeat and withdraws the proposal to modify it, which would already mean resigning entirely in this legislature and the fall of one of the pillars of her strategy.
“Three strikes, you’re out!” The popular have celebrated using a baseball metaphor. “MEPs on the Environment Committee have just rejected a poorly designed law, as they did on agriculture and fisheries in May. We hope that Mr. Timmermans has now understood the message. Remove this law immediately!”, they have written.