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According to Diederik Samsom, the negotiation agreement between the European Council and the European Parliament on the emissions trading system, the social climate fund and the CO2 border tax can be considered a breakthrough. He says so in BNR Koplopers. “We’ve been working on it for three years.”
Samsom, who in 2022 is Frans Timmermans’ chief of staff in Brussels, even thinks the term “breakthrough” is an understatement. “With this agreement, we can change everything on the way to a sustainable future. Polluters will pay. Big companies, because they pollute more, but also us as heating and car users. But we’re making it a double-edged sword, because the proceeds of those payments – tens of billions a year – are spent on sustainability and on people who can’t afford the higher costs so easily.
He speaks of an ongoing debate, “because of the rapid rise in energy prices”. He points out that the payment for pollution would represent euro cents in addition to the gas bill. “It seems marginal, of course, because right now tens of cents have been added to the gas bill per cubic meter of gas, but we want to channel the proceeds of this additional income to those who have the most difficulties. .’
Measurements
In the Social Climate Fund, it is the highest incomes that contribute the most. “That makes sense to me,” Samsom continues. “And then the money is preferably also distributed in a way that structurally solves the problem. You can compensate someone who lives in a poorly insulated house for their energy bill each month, or you can insulate the house at all of our expense.
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In addition to the Social Climate Fund, the EU is also dealing with measures to limit global warming to one and a half degrees. With the Fit for 55 climate plan – in which greenhouse gases must decrease by 55% in 2030 compared to 1990 – Europe has put an ambitious strategy on the table, which seems to be working better than we thought. initially. Samsom: “Now that the deal has been done, we have calculated what it will actually yield: a 57% reduction.”
‘On the edge’
But, he frankly admits, this percentage does not leave much room. “It’s at the limit of one and a half degrees, and unfortunately it’s also the case that Europe only emits 10% of the total CO2 in the world,” continues Samsom. “So what we add to our ambition won’t make a big difference on a global scale at some point.”
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It will therefore be difficult to stay below one and a half degrees of global warming if the United States, China and India do not participate. “So we won’t get there,” he continues. “That’s why we devote the other half of our energy – the half that we don’t devote to this package – to global negotiations. By taking a leadership position yourself, you ensure that other countries are drawn in, but it doesn’t happen automatically.
Shift focus
Because of this, Samsom thinks his team’s focus will change in the coming year. “So instead of looking at internal CO2 legislation, we’re going to look at the global negotiations that should lead to a more ambitious China, India or the US next year. Only then will we will reach a degree and a half.
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