Belgian business group tells government to delay COP26 commitment

The Federation of Enterprises in Belgium (FEB) has written to Deputy Prime Ministers Sophie Wilmès, Pierre-Yves Dermagne and Vincent Van Peteghem to request that the government does not implement the COP26 target to end new direct public support for the fossil fuel sector by the end of this year until an international or at least pan-European solution is found. The Kingdom of Belgium was one of 30 countries that signed up to the COP26 political commitment "to end new direct public support for the international unabated fossil fuel energy sector by the end of 2022, except in limited and clearly defined circumstances that are consistent with a 1.5°C warming limit and the goals of the Paris Agreement”. The FEB said this week that it subscribes to the objectives of COP26 and believes that Belgium must implement the reforms. But, the federation added that Belgium must take steps towards the commitment in a “pragmatic and realistic manner”, and in close consultation with stakeholders, to avoid placing Belgian businesses at a competitive disadvantage compared to nations that have not signed up to COP26. FEB stated that nature of the commitment needs to be clarified. “The exact scope of the statement is unclear. It must be defined with precision and with the necessary nuances,” states FEB. “Clarity and consideration of companies' concerns are essential to guarantee legal certainty and not be ahead of the facts. The lack of adequate alternatives would in some cases compromise a smooth and gradual transition,” continued the federation. “Possible undesirable side effects must be avoided at all costs, hence the importance of consultation with stakeholders. Last but not least, it is important to guarantee fair conditions of competition. Belgian companies cannot be ousted from the world scene by foreign players who have not signed this declaration. A global solution must therefore be favoured,” stated the FEB. The FEB also noted that the commitment was on the agenda of the EC’s regular meeting of finance ministers (Ecofin) on 15 March. “We hope that a solution can therefore be found at OECD level, or at least at European level,” stated the federation. The FEB’s stance is in stark contrast to climate activists in Belgium and its own prime minister Alexander De Croo who said back in November at the COP 26 summit in Glasgow that national governments need to accelerate their efforts to reduce CO2 emissions. “We simply cannot afford not to act,” he said, referencing that year’s heatwaves and floods in western Europe as examples of the impact of climate change. The prime minister’s speech was dismissed at the time as “blustering bravado” by climate activist Anuna De Wever. There may also be some legal implications from the FEB’s call. In June 2021, a Belgian court ruled in favour of NGO Klimaatzaak and 58,000 plaintiffs that Belgium’s failure to meet climate targets is a violation of human rights. The Brussels Court of First Instance ruled that Belgian authorities had breached the European convention of human rights and its right to life (article 2) and right to respect for private and family life (article 8) by not taking all “necessary measures” to prevent the “detrimental” effects of climate change. However, the judge ruled against the NGO’s call for tougher emission targets to be imposed upon the state on the grounds that this would be in breach of the separation of powers between government and the judiciary. This effectively meant that the court’s judgment was without any financial or legal consequences, as noted by Belgium’s climate minister Zakia Khattabi.

Belgian business group tells government to delay COP26 commitment

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