This year, writers from The New Federalist had the opportunity to participate in the JEF Political Commission sessions and engage in pivotal discussions. Alongside one of our resident columnists, Talisa Mazzoni, I attended the Political Commission 2 meetings, which focuses on the theme of Internal European Affairs.
Led by co-chairs Sorcha Ní Chonghaile and Mădălin Blidaru, PC2 dedicated its efforts to reviewing the resolution titled “Accelerate the Transition to the Circular Economy”, undertaking extensive revisions to ensure its relevance and functionality. Originally introduced during the London Federal Committee in 2019, this resolution was reaffirmed at the Liège Congress in 2021. Its core objective is to validate our political, ethical, and legal commitments to climate and environmental sustainability.
Throughout the discussions, the significance of carbon neutrality became apparent, emphasising the pivotal role of the circular economy, both domestically and globally, in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Through this Political Commission, there has been contact with JEF Europe’s partner Generation Climate Europe and, with help from the agenda of hope of EurHope, there have been many insightful points on the transition to a circular economy and the importance this action has to our lives.
This edition of the PC2 meetings successfully brought about a significant number of changes. Firstly, updated statistics have been presented along with an overview of relevant directives and inclusion of supporting a transition to a circular economy, extending not only to candidate countries but also encompassing EU member states. As climate policy is influenced by contemporary issues in today’s political landscape, PC2 has chosen to address the concern that JEF Europe is expressing: the EU’s failure to transition away from non-renewable energy sources following its disconnection from energy imports originating from Russia. Additionally, these meetings responded to the issues regarding a shift in mentality and a departure from current incentivisation practices, where transitioning to a circular economy remains largely unprofitable as it stands at present. The PC2 advocates for a EU-wide tax reform that incentivises reuse, recycling, regeneration, and the utilisation of secondary raw materials. Furthermore, there have been discussions on fair transition measures, the inclusion of vulnerable groups, and support for small businesses. Lastly, the proposal to establish a Digital Product Passport was endorsed, which aims to provide ecological footprint information for products. This initiative facilitates the seamless trade of sustainable and pollution-free secondary materials across borders.
This edition of the Political Commission 2 meetings proved to be productive and opened the floor for various members of the JEF community to pitch in, learn about the resolution, suggest amendments and talk about their ideas in the different sessions that were hosted online. In the Federal Committee of JEF Europe in Tartu, Estonia, the resolution (available here) passed unanimously.
If you have any questions, kindly refer to this link to learn more about JEF Europe’s policies and Political Commissions: https://jef.eu/jef-europe-policies/#political-commissions
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