European Parliament pushes for improving the EU position ahead of COP21

The report on the Paris climate summit, adopted today by the European Parliament, calls for a full decarbonisation of the global economy by 2050 and an urgent review of the current, weak climate pledges.

The own initiative report adopted today in the plenary vote sets out the Parliament’s priorities for the Paris climate summit. It includes a call for a global phase-out of carbon emissions by 2050 and a science based revision of the current, weak Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) before 2020.

This report will add momentum for a successful outcome of the Paris climate summit – Wendel Trio, Director of Climate Action Network Europe said. The call to end carbon pollution by 2050 confirms the growing understanding that the 2050 long term goal is a crucial element of the Paris agreement. Vulnerable countries, global civil society, but also numerous businesses and local governments support the goal of decarbonization by 2050. The Paris agreement should send a clear signal to all businesses and investors that the end of fossil fuels will happen in the next few decades.

The Parliament also calls on “the Parties to agree at COP21 in Paris to revise the current INDCs before 2020 in order to bring them into line with the latest scientific assessments and 2°C compliant carbon budget”.

The Parliament has rightly acknowledged that the current climate pledges are not ambitious enough to prevent catastrophic impacts of climate change – Trio adds. The report shows that the MEPs take climate crisis seriously, by calling for a review of the current pledges before their implementation starts. The review needs to start immediately after the Paris summit and be concluded by 2018, so that the new targets are in place already in 2020. Every year of delay also means missed benefits of the transition to renewable energy systems.