The entire Flemish Government asks De Croo to vote against the 2040 Climate Target

Today, on the proposal of Flemish Minister for the Environment Zuhal Demir, the entire Flemish Government approved the 2040 Climate Target Vision Paper. This gives Demir support in her rejection of the European Climate Target of -90% by 2040. And, more importantly, at the same time, the Flemish Government unanimously calls on De Croo’s federal government and all other governments in the country to adopt the same attitude and to consider a dissenting vote so that Belgium can have the maximum influence on European decision-making. “Now that the Open Vld and cd&v parties are joining the resistance, they would be best off ensuring that their federal government also rejects the unworkable climate target for 2040. That would only be consistent,” says Demir.

With the vision paper, the Flemish Government is taking a general position on the European Commission’s Communication of 6 February 2024 on the European Climate Target for 2040, in which the Commission proposes a target of 90% net reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 compared to 1990. Minister Demir had expressed her own opinion about this earlier.

Concerned about energy availability and prices

The Flemish Government is of the opinion that the European Commission must abandon the 2040 target. “The Russian invasion of Ukraine has raised concerns about the availability of energy and about the consequences of rising energy prices for households and businesses and the sharply increased difference in EU energy prices with, above all, but not only, the USA,” the Vision Paper states. “The focus of the Member States in the coming years must be on achieving the already ambitious 2030 targets through concrete measures. In our opinion, the nature of these short-term challenges justifies postponing the discussion on the 2040 target.”

Insufficiently substantiated

The 90% target as proposed for 2040 in the European Commission’s Communication appears to be insufficiently substantiated, the Vision Paper states. “The Flemish Government will therefore not agree and will cast a dissenting vote if necessary,” it asserts. A critical analysis and impact analysis of European plans is still to follow in order to be prepared for further discussions.

Message to De Croo

Demir thus receives unanimous support from coalition partners the cd&v and Open Vld parties. The entire Flemish Government also has a message to Prime Minister De Croo’s government and the other governments in our country: “The Flemish Government calls on the other governments in this country to adopt the same attitude so that Belgium can have the maximum influence on European decision-making.”