The pressure from the most conservative parties in Europe slows down and reverses the fight against greenwashing. The European Commission announced on Friday, June 20, its intention to withdraw the law against greenwashing that it had promoted in March 2023. This regulation sought to end and sanction those companies that use unverified environmental claims to appear more sustainable. At that time, the European Union explained that 50% of the sustainability claims made by companies were false or lacked scientific basis.
Since its presentation, the directive followed the usual legislative process: the European Parliament approved its position, as did the Member States in the Council of the European Union. From that point, the Commission, the Parliament and the Council began an institutional dialogue that has lasted for more than a year to try to reach a common position.
According to eldiario.es, after two meetings and waiting for a third, which was finally not held, just over a week ago the alarm was raised due to an unusual situation: the withdrawal of the legislative proposal. Although none of the three institutions involved offered official statements, the European People's Party sent a letter stating that the regulation "could unduly hinder communication on sustainability through excessively complex, costly and administratively burdensome procedures".
Faced with the surprise generated by this decision, a spokesperson for the European Commission clarified that the withdrawal of the law will only materialize if a specific amendment recently introduced is maintained. "One of the priorities of this Commission is to reduce administrative burdens for small businesses," she said.
The objective of this directive was to help consumers better understand sustainability claims. If a product is advertised as ecological, it must be justified. President Ursula von der Leyen's U-turn has been harshly criticized by some of her political partners, who accuse her of "weakening environmental commitment" and "delaying progress in environmental protection." This decision adds to other recent setbacks, such as the relaxation of CO₂ reduction targets for vehicles, the postponement of regulations against imported deforestation, and the reduction of the scope of the carbon adjustment mechanism.