As part of the proceeding of the People’s Climate Case - the case challenging the EU’s 2030 climate target for its insufficiency to protect the citizens and their fundamental rights-, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU have submitted their first defence to court. The EU Institutions ask the European General Court to declare the case inadmissible. Now, the European General Court is expected to start a preliminary procedure to decide if the plaintiffs of the People’s Climate Case could have a standing in the court and could be allowed to be heard about their claims.
The proposal to upgrade the EU’s long-term target to net zero emissions by 2050 included in the draft Long-Term EU Climate Strategy released by the European Commission today is an important step forward, but it is likely not enough to achieve the Paris Agreement’s goal to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C.
Read more: European Commission takes a step forward on climate change
The European Commission is expected to publish its proposal for a long-term EU climate strategy on Wednesday, 28 November. This proposal will set the stage for negotiations among European governments about how much the EU should reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and what action it should take to make sure it achieves the temperature goals of the Paris Agreement. The IPCC’s recent report says that the next 12 years are critical to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C.
Statement from the Board of Climate Action Network Europe, regarding allegations of inappropriate conduct within the management of the Climate Action Network International Secretariat:
Read more: Statement from the Board of Climate Action Network Europe
Just ahead of the world’s foremost summit on climate change, COP24, 16 European leaders have called upon all countries of the world to commit to review the levels of ambition of their Paris Agreement pledges by 2020, in light of the findings of the IPCC Special Report.
Read more: 16 European leaders call for raising climate targets by 2020