A leaked document on the EU’s priorities has been criticised as offering little more than “a collection of buzzwords” to tackle the climate crisis and accelerating the destruction of the natural world. EU leaders are due to adopt a “strategic agenda” for 2019-24 at a Brussels summit starting on 20 June, but a draft has encountered a volley of criticism from some green groups, who accuse officials of lacking urgency. The five-page document, drawn up by the team of Donald Tusk, the European council president, is intended to set the bloc’s priorities for the next five years in an “increasingly unsettled [and] complex” world. Spanning migration, trade and the EU’s place in the world, the document avoids details such as targets, budget numbers or specific countries. While it describes the climate crisis as an existential threat and calls for an “in-depth transformation of [the EU’s] own economy and society to achieve climate neutrality”, some campaigners say it lacks ambition. The document states that EU policies should be consistent with the Paris agreement, but spells out little detail about what that means.
Guardian 10th June 2019 read more »
