Press Summaries

  • The EESC:

    • supports expanding decentralised energy generation, which can reduce the need for grid expansion and strengthen public acceptance of the energy transition; and calls for stronger EU coordination in grid governance while maintaining Member States’ responsibility for planning and oversight when the costs of grid expansion, congestion management and stability are primarily national, and underlines the importance of accelerating the digitalisation of electricity networks and ensuring network development plans align with National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs);
    • Climate ambitions in the automotive sector should be fully aligned with competitiveness drivers vis-a-vis global competitors and with preparedness strategies and plans.
  • The EESC:

    • underlines that regulatory simplification should not come at the expense of established road safety standards or the protection of drivers and vulnerable road users, including cyclists and pedestrians; 
  • The EESC:

    • urges the Commission to adopt far more ambitious measures to address the structural housing crisis, including better framework conditions, a right to adequate and affordable housing in EU primary law, a fundamental reform of the energy market design, sufficient funding and a stronger focus on young people, families and sustainability. 
  • The EESC:

    • calls on the co-legislators to support the objectives and measures set out in the European Commission’s proposals, particularly on central supervision by ESMA; 
  • The EESC recommends to:

    • ensure that any simplification of sustainable finance legislation, including disclosure requirements, does not weaken the contribution of the financial system and its credit and investment products to achieving the objectives of the European Green Deal within the legally bound timelines, and does not weaken measures against greenwashing; 
  • The EESC:

    • supports the revision of the Tobacco Taxation Directive, recognising the need to adapt the excise framework to market developments, new products and public health objectives, while stressing that the reform must remain proportionate, predictable and economically sustainable;
  • The EESC:

    • fully supports the Commission’s efforts to promote a more comprehensive and holistic approach to tackling VAT fraud by enabling the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) to access value added tax (VAT) data under Council Regulation (EU) No 904/2010;
  • The EESC:

    - calls for the establishment of a dedicated Union strategy for islands (Islands Pact);

  • In the opinion, the EESC:

    • regrets that the Commission has once again refrained from presenting the Annual Sustainable Growth Survey (ASGS) and stresses that sustainable economic growth is a necessary condition for Europe to meet its multiple commitments, welcomes the European Macroeconomic Report, which provides a deep dive into the underlying structural challenges facing the EU and the new recommendation on human capital, which is a crucial element in filling the EU technological gap, also taking into account the EU demographic challenge;