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The European Parliament’s centrist majority is once again divided over environmental issues.
Parliament will next Wednesday vote on amendments to the EU’s rules on deforestation-free products, which would ban the import of goods such as cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soy and timber if their production causes deforestation or forest degradation.
The European People’s Party (EPP) is calling for parliament to join member states in calling for a one-year delay and easing due diligence obligations on companies. But the Socialists and Democrats, as well as Renew Europe, fear this will weaken anti-deforestation rules too much.
Future votes could therefore create new rifts in the majority supporting European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
“The EPP Group has put together an amendment that (reflects) the board’s position word for word,” group spokesperson Daniel Kester said at a press conference. “The EPP Group wants a one-year postponement in order to have more time to agree on the necessary legal reforms.”
The EU regulation on deforestation-free products was originally due to come into force on December 30, 2024, but three months earlier the European Commission had proposed a 12-month delay. This was approved by the Council and the European Parliament, so the implementation of the regulation was postponed until the end of this year.
The European Commission then postponed the plan again, citing technical problems with the IT system set up to deal with due diligence reports submitted by affected companies. The Board and Parliament will now have to agree on this further postponement.
step on the brake
The council’s opinion, approved by member states on Wednesday, calls for an additional six-month cushion for small and medium-sized businesses and a one-year deferral of applications until December 30, 2026.
It would also limit the liability of businesses that first place imported products on the market to submit due diligence declarations, and downstream businesses would be relieved of this obligation. Member states are also calling on the European Commission to schedule a review of the simplification by April 2026 to assess the impact on operators, with a view to eventually amending the law.
Lawmakers in favor of updating the regulations rejected the proposal.
“The board’s mandate is fundamentally flawed and unacceptable,” German Socialist Party lawmaker Delara Burckhardt told Euronews. “Early review before restrictions apply will lead to reopenings and postponements. It’s like stopping time through the back door.”
He still wants an agreement with the EPP before a vote, but stressed that regulations should be implemented as soon as possible, at least for large companies.
Renew’s Dutch lawmaker Gerven-Jan Gerbrandi has also been highly critical of member states’ requests.
“The board’s opinion is a dramatic setback for efforts to combat deforestation and, by extension, climate change,” he said. His concerns go beyond this specific law and touch on the overall push for simplification and deregulation championed by the European Commission, which is seeking to repeal several environmental laws adopted in the past.
“If the goal is to attract investment, this sledgehammer approach to deregulation is completely incompetent,” he explained. “It creates a lot of economic uncertainty, especially for companies that are planning for the long term and adjusting their investments accordingly.”