120 NGOs have denounced attempts to place corporate interests over the climate in an open letter published on Wednesday.
The letter targets the 'Industrial Deal', or the 'Antwerp Declaration', an agreement reached by leading European CEOs in February. The text calls for the European Green Deal to prioritise economic growth and was supported by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and outgoing Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open VLD).
The letter refers to the declaration's signatories as "big polluting corporations" (led by chemicals lobby group CEFIC and including multinationals BASF, Bayer and Ineos). It warns that demands to relax the measures put forward by the Green Deal would be "disastrous for people and the environment."
Signatories include Corporate Europe Observatory, the Centre for International Environmental Law and Friends of the Earth Europe. In their view, the 'Antwerp Declaration' sets out to access public funds intended for the green transition, relax green measures "under the guise of 'competitiveness'", give the European Commission and corporations the power to "block" green initiatives and enable more free trade.
"We urge the EU and Member State leaders to reject these unsustainable industry projects, put forward by those with the deepest pockets and the smoothest public relations machines," they stated.
Credit: Belga
Enshrined behind closed doors at the Port of Antwerp four months ago, the 'Antwerp Declaration' argues that it is not possible to achieve the climate objectives currently on the table without hampering economic growth.
It calls for the Green Deal to place competitiveness at the centre of the green transition. With the support of von der Leyen and De Croo, the initiative is representative of centre-right and right-wing politicians' attempts to cater to industry interests despite the centrality of the Green Deal to the European project.
The open letter was intentionally published on the eve of an EU Summit where the bloc will decide on a strategic agenda for the next five years. With green parties performing poorly on the European ballot on 9 June and a rise in far-right, anti-green presence in the European Parliament, the Summit will be a key moment in anticipating the future of the Green Deal.
