The European Commission’s plans to fight climate change, protect nature and make the European economy more sustainable have met with a ‘wait and see’ response from the Dutch press.

The plans, presented by the Dutch commissioner Frans Timmermans and commission president Ursula von der Leyen, aim to make Europe the first climate neutral continent by 2050 in an ‘economically and socially’ balanced way.

The plan covers transport, energy, agriculture, buildings, and industries such as steel, cement, ICT, textiles and chemicals and envisage spending 25% of the EU’s long-term budget on climate action.

‘The European Union already has a strong track record in reducing its emissions of greenhouse gases while maintaining economic growth,’ the commission statement said.  ‘Emissions in 2018 were 23% lower than in 1990 while the union’s GDP grew by 61% in the same period. But more needs to be done.’

Today we present an #EUGreenDeal which will fight climate change, protect nature, make our economy sustainable and leave nobody behind.

Because if this is not a social Green Deal, it will not be a successful Green Deal.

🇪🇺💚🌍 pic.twitter.com/YEwryXx8XS

— Frans Timmermans (@TimmermansEU) December 11, 2019

In its analysis, the Volkskrant said that even though there is little detail, there are enough hints to determine if some aspects of the proposals can be achieved.

Housing, for example, is responsible for 40% of energy usage and there are 150 million homes in the EU, the paper points out. To meet the 2050 target, two million homes will have to be fully renovated every year, but there is a major shortage of construction workers to do the job. And, more than that, how will this be financed? the paper asks.

The NRC describes the initial proposals as ‘ambitious, compelling and clear’. The challenges are ‘major’ the paper says in an editorial, but much will depend on the willingness of member states to comply. It has been difficult enough to win support from the man in the street in the Netherlands, and Europe as a whole will be no different, the paper says.

After all, what really counts is what happens at a micro level and the costs will be high, the paper says. ‘But as Ursula von der Leyen rightly said on Wednesday ‘the cost of doing nothing will be much higher’.

Industry

The Financieele Dagblad talked to Dutch chemicals industry association leader  Bernard Wientjes, who said he is pleased the plans envisage a level playing field across the continent.

‘The Netherlands currently has a leading role [in terms of climate legislation],’ he said. ‘But we have always said that all of Europe has to speed up to reach a CO2-free climate. And that is now going to happen.’

Meanwhile, Dutch Christian Democrat MEP Esther de Lange said that her group shared the ‘moral obligation’ to protect the planet. If other parts of the world do not play along these lines too, the EU should reconsider open access to the European market, she said during the first debate on the plans.

The European Commission will publish more detail about the plans and the strategy to reach a climate neutral Europe early next year.