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The days when the European Commission’s measures to combat “climate change” seemed like a monolithic strategy will soon be history. The days when the utopian targets of the Green Deal had to be achieved no matter what are over. The days when the grand goal of zero CO2 emissions seemed inevitable are already behind us.
“All new cars entering the EU market from 2035 will have to have zero CO2 emissions” is one of the measures included in the “Fit for 55” package, but what until recently seemed like a firm rule is no longer so. The inevitable (as clear-headed observers considered it) has happened. According to the latest proposal from the European Commission, the goal of a 100% reduction in CO2 emissions has been “softened,” turning into a 90% reduction, which means the de facto elimination of the ban on the sale of internal combustion engines. In other words, classic engines will still be option after 2035, one of the most comforting developments of the end of the year. At the same time, the Commission has also relaxed the targets for electric commercial vehicles, reducing the CO2 emission target from 50% to 40%. This is a significant step towards a major success not only for the automotive sector, but also for a return to normality for European citizens and families.
After five years of insisting on the mandatory implementation of these crazy environmental policies, European Commission representatives are now taking a diametrically opposite stance. What seemed impossible to achieve until very recently—real flexibility—has suddenly become something natural and really necessary for a truly competitive sector. The statements made by the Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, might have been shocking a few months ago, but today they point to a direction that may mean a return to normality: “The European automotive industry is a cornerstone of our economy, contributing 7% to the EU’s GDP and supporting nearly 14 million jobs. With the automotive package, we are strengthening the competitiveness of the sector by introducing flexibility in CO2 emission standards for cars and vans and a technology-neutral framework.” What a development!
But what could have prompted Brussels’ ‘sudden’ flexibility on an issue that seemed set in stone and had to be strictly implemented? Could it have been a revelation following the open opposition of conservative forces to the “Fit for 55” policies? An opposition based on realistic and pragmatic considerations, not ideological ones. Or did it give in to pressure from major manufacturers in the automotive sector, for whom such revolutionary changes would have had the most disastrous consequences?
The more the Greens and Liberals pushed their fanatical environmentalist agenda toward an increasingly dangerous utopia, the wider the gap between reality and fantasy became. Take the example of “competitiveness.” It has been one of the most widely discussed concepts. Let us be clear, the European Commission has no shortage of initiatives and strategies to identify ways to ‘stimulate’ the economic competitiveness of the EU bloc. However, the gap between the European Union’s economy and the global superpowers’ economies is not only an undeniable reality, but one that is growing ever wider. How can competitiveness be strengthened when a vital sector of the economy is under almost unprecedented siege, in the name of an ideology that promises a false paradise? The answer is: it cannot.
“Save the planet” policies would have buried the auto industry and condemned millions of workers to poverty, at great risk of losing their jobs. The days when the “net zero emissions” target had to be achieved at all costs are gone – or so it seems. We can breathe a sigh of relief. At least for now.