The EU’s Action Plan on Financing Sustainable Growth could be boosted as part of the bloc’s recovery plans from covid-19.
In a statement, the EU Technical Expert Group on Sustainable Finance (TEG) has announced that its tools could guide the EU Council’s recently announced Roadmap to Recovery.
These include the taxonomy, EU Green Bond Standard, and Paris-Aligned and Climate Transition Benchmarks, which form its action plan.
The Members of the European Council identified the central role of the Green Deal in its Roadmap for Recovery from the covid-19 pandemic.
The deal, proposed at the end of last year, targets climate neutrality by 2050 and is backed by an investment plan.
President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said, on 28 April, that the European Green Deal will be “our motor for the recovery”, according to media network Euractiv.
The statement by the TEG said “we are in a time of unprecedented crisis”.
“Recovery plans should not support environmentally or socially harmful activities, which would worsen the current and future crises, locking in highly polluting infrastructure or promoting activities that do not contribute to social wellbeing for decades to come.”
It added “the private sector has a clear role in ensuring access to finance in a sustainable recovery”.
Right tools needed
The Teg explained its developed tools support substantial contributions to environmental and social objectives.
The experts; consisting of 35 members from civil society, academia, business etc, called on all governments, public institutions and the private sector to use the ‘right’ tools for the recovery plans; namely the TEG’s tools.
“Our scientists have warned us that loss of biodiversity and disease outbreak are closely related.
“If global temperatures warm above 1.5 degrees Celsius, we face catastrophic risks and disruption, both from inevitable measures to rapidly cut emissions in our economy and from the impact of changes in the natural environment on our health and wellbeing.
“The opportunity for a resilient, sustainable and fair economic recovery is right before us,” the statement added.
This article first appeared on ESG Clarity’s sister title Expert Investor.
