This week in EU policy: Is the EU slipping on clean aviation fuel?

It’s a big week for the EU's various institutions. First, it's plenary week in Strasbourg, where MEPs are expected to urge the EU to actually get to work on implementing the Clean Industrial Deal.

Meanwhile, a quarterly meeting of EU environment ministers is to meet in Luxembourg, to give their updates on their countries' 2030 strategies, and the Commission is expected to propose further measures to end reliance on Russian fossil fuels.

Too much going on to fit in one weekly update, but read on for some highlights.

1. Leading EU lawmaker calls for further ‘simplification’ policy cuts

The news: Jörgen Warborn, the Swedish MEP leading Parliament negotiations on ESG and CSR reporting policies, has called for the EU to roll back its policy agenda even further, exempting more companies from reporting rules.

What happens now: The EU is to agree on final changes to reporting policies over the coming months.

What it means for impact companies and investors: It’s the logical next step for the ‘simplification' agenda, and it’s not great news for the EU’s climate strategy. Warborn – who is a member of the largest political bloc in the European Parliament - wants to roll back reporting requirements even further, from exempting companies with under 1,000 employees (as is the current proposal) to 3,000. He and his allies argue that the ‘red tape’ will hold back Europe’s competitiveness. Whether or not that’s true, cutting back those requirements further would likely harm the impact community, draining interest in ESG-focussed startups and depressing investment into the sector.

2. WHO launches Climate Change and Health Commission

The news: The World Health Organisation has launched an independent advisory group to research and provide recommendations on the health-climate nexus.

What happens now: The Pan-European Commission on Climate and Health (PECCH) has been officially launched, and we’ll keep an eye out for their first reports.

What it means for impact companies and investors: “Climate change is already making us sick. It’s killing us, and it’s only getting worse,” said the WHO’s Regional Director for Europe Dr Hans Kluge. His statements, at the launch of the PECCH in Reykjavík, highlighted the emerging awareness of this new sector of the climate crisis, and there was a lot in his speech for impact investors. Among other things, the PECCH aims to engage policymakers on finance around Europe, to push more resilience and adaptation investment, as well as decarbonization solutions for the healthcare sector – with an emphasis on the ROI of such investments. The PECCH’s upcoming reports are for sure going to prove excellent ammunition for any startups and funds looking to raise capital in this emergent sector.

3. EU Environment Council to meet

The news: A major meeting of the EU’s environment ministers is taking place in Luxembourg. On the agenda is preparations for COP30, circularity of the automotive industry as well as taking stock of individual 2030 national energy and climate plans.

What happens now: The meeting is being held today, 17th June – the results and notes will be published after.

What it means for impact companies and investors: Meetings of the environment council, which jointly sets EU environmental policy along with the parliament, should be watched closely to get a sense of where the policy winds are blowing. This session will be dominated by COP30 preparations, but it’s hoped as well that ministers will agree on a new regulation for circularity and sustainability in the automotive industry – which could spur a lot of momentum for impact in the car sector. They’re also planning to review the individual member states’ strategies to get to 2030, a good way to get a sense of which countries are putting the most money (and perhaps open to the most investment) for decarbonising. The influential European Environmental Bureau has taken the moment to urge the council to focus more on climate as a matter of human security, and lots of eyes will be on this meeting.

4. Major climate lobby warns EU is slipping on decarbonising aviation

The news: Transport and Environment, the most well-known climate advocacy group in Brussels, has issued a report showing that while Europe has had an early lead in the development of e-kerosene for aviation fuel (also known as e-SAF), major bottlenecks in development and a lack of streamlined financing are slowing progress.

What happens now: The T&E report is urging the Commission to address these issues with the upcoming Sustainable Transport Investment Plan (STIP), due later in 2025.

What it means for impact companies and investors: This is an interesting one to watch to see how the Commission reacts. “E-kerosene is key to decarbonising aviation,” according to T&E, and their report urges the Commission to strengthen funding mechanisms to get the level of investment needed for that decarbonisation. That lack of coherent funding is a familiar one for many sectors of the impact community, so seeing how the Commission reacts to this with the STIP later in the year might give a sense of their willingness to do more to unlock impact funding mechanisms.

5. Commission launches consultation on citizens’ savings and investment strategy

The news: The commission is seeking input on a blueprint for the Savings and Investment Union (SIU) strategy, which aims to unlock more of citizens’ capital for productive investments in Europe.

What happens now: The consultation, available here, will run for a month and will inform Commission recommendations expected later in 2025.

What it means for impact companies and investors: The EU is very keen to unlock the potentially trillions of euros of citizen savings for investment around the bloc, particularly to fund its defence ambitions. Industry bodies like Impact Europe are urging the Commission to consider mechanisms within the SIU to funnel more money to climate investment and other impact sectors. This consultation is a chance for the impact sector to get more involved and add their voice to those calls.

If you have any thoughts on this round-up, what should or should not be in here, or you want to reach out with a tip of your own, feel free to get in touch – editorial@loop.se.