Green party gains should embolden the EU on climate change

Eurosceptic nationalists were supposed to be the big winners in the latest European Parliament polls. Rightwing parties did advance. But the largest relative gainers — and potentially most consequential — were insurgents of a different stripe: the Greens. These elections mark the moment the environmental agenda moved firmly into the European political mainstream. With the Trump administration threatening to pull the US out of the Paris agreement on climate change, the Green surge will intensify the pressure on the EU to be a global standard bearer.

The Greens’ 69 seats will still represent only 9 per cent of the 751-seat legislature, but are a one-third increase on last time. Green parties finished second in Germany and third in France; polling suggests they were the first choice of many young voters. Unlike far-right parties that are off-limits, moreover, the Greens will be essential partners for centrist groups seeking to build a pro-European majority. They can extract a significant price for their support.

Some may be wary of this shift. But the urgency of tackling issues such as climate change and air quality means moving to more sustainable models of development is now an ineluctable task for business and industry.

Europe’s Green parties, meanwhile, have morphed from the long-haired sandal-wearers of 1970s caricature into responsible and disciplined political machines. They have worked effectively as part of regional and national coalitions in several EU countries. The additional pressure their increased clout will put on EU institutions and national governments is welcome.

That pressure will now be intense within the parliament and on EU leaders to adopt the European Commission’s ambitious proposal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to “net zero” by 2050. While that is undoubtedly a stretching target, the Greens are right to push the EU to make a bold and world-leading promise as countries prepare their next round of pledges on how to meet the Paris agreement goals.

A bigger Green presence could help offset the propensity of German and other governing parties across EU institutions to bow to industry lobbies, for example on emissions standards. The Greens could also usefully apply pressure for further reform of the European emissions trading system to push carbon prices to more meaningful levels.

Trade may be a contentious area. Though Green MEPs say they are not intrinsically opposed to trade, they have been traditionally sceptical of EU trade agreements with other countries and called for tougher, enforceable rules on environmental sustainability. The EU has already adopted a rule that it will agree full trade deals only with countries that are also signatories to the Paris agreement. While it will still be possible to do trade deals with the EU under the new parliament, partner countries are likely to have to accept more of the kind of environmental safeguards some developing countries regard as disguised protectionism or undue interference.

The EU must exercise care in implementing greener policies. As France’s Emmanuel Macron — one of the most vocal supporters of a 2050 net zero target — has discovered, policies such as carbon taxes on energy can hit poor and rural populations disproportionately, and spark protest. But exercising responsible global leadership on environmental issues is not merely a moral imperative. As the weekend’s elections showed — perhaps not coincidentally, the first major polls since the school strikes organised by the young Swedish activist Greta Thunberg — it may be a potent way of connecting the European project with a new generation of voters.

Letter in response to this article:

Extreme poverty is also a key issue for Green MEPs / From Tim Cole, Europe Executive Director, The ONE Campaign, London WC2, UK