EU Member States reject EU Parliament’s attempt to sabotage the EU Deforestation Law

EU Member States today rejected the European Parliament's amendments to the EU’s landmark deforestation regulation. These amendments pose a severe threat to the law’s integrity and were tabled last week by the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) and adopted thanks to its alliance with far-right groups.

Julia Christian, campaigner at forests and rights NGO Fern, said:

“The EPP's politically motivated amendments have dented the EU’s international credibility, spread uncertainty among businesses, and undermined the fight against deforestation. The EPP was willing to sacrifice all this for political gain. 

Their reckless self-interest became clear when the MEP who proposed the amendments, Christine Schneider, revealed that she had no idea whether the amendments were even WTO-compliant.

The Council, fortunately, appears to have seen through it.”

In their press release, the Council “firmly” reiterated their support for the Commission’s proposal to delay the entry into application of the law by 12 months. The PR states that “this is the best way forward to ensure legal certainty for all stakeholders”. The Council also insists on the need for “predictability”.

In the run-up to the vote, business representatives from companies deeply affected by the regulation urged lawmakers to maintain the “law’s core framework” to guarantee “clarity and legal certainty”.

Christian added: “Now the prevaricating must end and the focus shift to implementing the EUDR in way that enables it to succeed. This means building partnerships with producer countries to work on tackling deforestation together, while supporting small-scale farmers so that they aren’t squeezed out of supply chains.

It’s time for the drama to end and legal certainty to be restored.

EU citizens, trading partners, countless businesses and environmental and human rights groups around the world are demanding nothing less.”

Representatives of the Parliament and the Council now need to reach a final consensus. Their first meeting in which they will work to do is tomorrow (November 21).  

Categories: Press Releases, EU Regulation on deforestation-free products