On 8th October 2019, Frans TIMMERMANS, from Netherlands, Executive Vice President-designate for European Green Deal, is heard by the Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) in association with the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) and Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) of the European Parliament in Brussels to test his general competences, European commitment and specific expertise related to his portfolio. On this occasion, Frans TIMMERMANS has the opportunity to make an opening statement. The following transcription is the result of an automatic process. Check Against delivery.

Brussels

Committee on Industry, Research and Energy

Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

TIMMERMANS, Frans (NL, EC)

Committee on Transport and Tourism

hearing

hearing of Commissioners

2019 Commissioners' hearings (T)

hearing of Frans TIMMERMANS 2019 (T)

Hearing of Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice President-designate, European Green Deal: opening statement by Frans TIMMERMANS

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: Thank you very much Chairman. But I'm not going to end up like Uncle Ben did getting killed off at the start of the film. But thank you very much for that introduction. I have very little to add but I'll do my best.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: I've been really looking forward to our meeting tonight. We have a lot to discuss and I've come here seeking your support and also your guidance. All of us here ran as candidates in the European elections in May. We went to our citizens with plans for the future and now you as they're directly elected representatives will get five years to turn these plans into reality. And I am here today hoping you will give me your support to do my bit in the von der Leyen Comission to make sure we deliver what we promised.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: That this is not going to be easy is the mother of all understatements. We are faced with a challenge that is truly existential and what we need to do will be truly transformational. This is about rebooting our society so that what we hold dearest is preserved and improved for our children grandchildren and future generations. We cannot afford the luxury of screwing this up. I will keep the diagnosis of the challenges we face to a minimum because frankly to repeat the signs to you is a waste of everybody's time.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: You all know and we all know the problems. We know the possible dire consequences for our habitat, health and our future. We all know that our citizens want us to do something about it and fast. What we must do now is act. Citizens want the EU to take action that corresponds to the magnitude of the challenge.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: We also want action that caters for the practical challenges they experience every day. Putting food on the table, heating their homes, getting a job, finding a good school for the kids, decent care for their elderly parents and in general just making ends meet the World and their world are one and the same. We can only succeed if both prosper neglect one and both will suffer.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: That is why if you decide to confirm the von der Leyen Commission we will ensure that the profound transformation required is a just transition. We need to put fairness at the centre of our policies and base all of our future work on a set of just transition principles. And we need a dedicated just transition fund to support the people and communities most affected. Including those in the industrial coal and energy intensive intensive regions.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: It is our task to demonstrate clearly and concretely that our citizens to our citizens that the Green Deal can help solve problems and improve life for them now not just 20 or 30 years down the road. Clean air in our cities and clean water in our rivers and oceans. That is what we need so that we can lead healthier lives on a planet that can sustain all of humanity. Where the economy grows to the benefit of the many not the few with jobs for everyone.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: In short the European clean deal must put Europe on the right track to a sustainable future and ensure that every european is on board and no one is left behind. Our ambition is to make Europe the world's first climate neutral continent. We can achieve this by 2050 if we plan well and start straightaway. The next five years will be crucial. I will propose a climate law within 100 days of taking office to enshrine in legislation the EU's 2050 climate neutrality objective.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: This law will set the long term direction of travel for all our policies. I will also start work immediately to deliver a high level of ambition for 2030. And as soon as possible, I will put forward legislative proposals that will help us to reduce emissions by at least 50 percent or even better by 55 percent. We will review and update our existing climate and energy legislation.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: It is also clear we have to consider additional measures to achieve our goals. Cleaner transport less energy hungry buildings. A more sustainable food system. We cannot afford the luxury of complacency. But on the other hand there is no reason to despair either. Compared to 1990 the EU has achieved a reduction of greenhouse gases of 22 percent while our economy has grown by 58 percent. We have shown that tackling climate change does not harm the European economy.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: Now we need to raise the bar and aim for higher ambitions. This is something we can do. We have the skills, we have the brains, the people. We should also muster the political will in every single member state. I could go on giving you targets and percentages. I could elaborate on the broadening of the ETS. And I'm sure we'll come back to that in your questions.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: But first I would like to talk about what the Green Deal could do for Europe's citizens. For instance, for social housing tenants or homeowners. Especially those already struggling to pay their energy bills now. We're talking about more than 50 million Europeans which to me is a completely unacceptable figure. We should not raise their energy bill. We should lower it. And that's entirely possible by being more energy efficient.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: Together with member states and regional and local authorities we should consider large renovation projects for social housing tenants and private homeowners to pay for installation of double glazing or the fitting of solar panels. We should set up fair financing schemes in cooperation with EIB and Invest EU to ensure residents don't have to find tens of thousands of euros upfront which is simply do not have.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: But rather we support this investment or they are given a credit line and use the energy savings to gradually pay off the costs. With initiatives like this the Green Deal could mean lower energy bills for better and more comfortable houses. Everybody wins. Public buildings like schools and hospitals should also be eligible for support, improving energy efficiency could free up more money for education and health care. And by the way all of this renovation work would create stable and local jobs you can't de localize that work.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: National initiatives, local jobs, backed by public and private financing and European support programs to share knowledge and capacity. That's in my view, how a European Green Deal can work directly for people. Dear friends our citizens might live increasingly in towns and cities but they also like to enjoy nature in their free time and they are worried about what's happening around them and in ecosystems far away. And I think all of us are very worried very worried.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: Whether it's the birds and the bees in our towns and countryside, the fish, an incredibly fragile coral in our oceans, our rich forests, or the wild and wonderful animals in remote corners of our planet we are killing it all off and at an alarming rate. We must stop this. That is why we will present a robust and ambitious biodiversity strategy for 2030. And why the EU must champion the most ambitious commitments possible at the next UN Conference of the parties on biodiversity in China in October next year.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: Like on climate we should lead on this as well worldwide. One way we can lead this work at home is in the food sector. This will be set out in the commission's Sustainable Farm to Fork initiative. But there's more we need to do. The burning of the Amazon and other primal forests in Central Africa and Southeast Asia has recently confronted us with the urgency of protecting our forests. Nobody has the right to say that's not your business to their international partners.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: These are global common goods but we should not simply point at others while doing too little ourselves. So here's an idea I would like to put to you. Trees clean the air, cool the city, sequest the CO2, shelter animal life and genuinely have the capacity to make us feel better. Let us embark on a massive project of reforestation across Europe. Let us restore our forests and create new green spaces in our cities. Let us make it a European plan so that we do it right all across the continent and so that so that every city, every region is given the benefit of sharing the best and most successful practices from all across the European Union.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: The Green Deal should not only be about International Biodiversity conferences far away but also about life around us. The beauty of this is that everyone can be part of this in a very tangible way and you can see the results straight away. And the Green Deal should benefit the health of our citizens. That's why Europe needs to move forward towards a zero pollution environment to tackle environmental degradation pollution, address air and water quality, hazardous chemicals industrial emissions, pesticides, endocrine disruptors and micro plastics.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: Air pollution is still one of the biggest killers in Europe. Do you know that more than 400000 premature deaths a year are a consequence of bad air quality. How can we accept this to protect Mother Earth, we also need to stop extracting her limited resources. We need to take our work on the circuit economy to a new level focussing on sustainable products and waste prevention. We must reduce, reuse and recycle to unlock all its potential for a low carbon economy. We will propose a new Circular Economy Action Plan focussing on sustainable products and resource use especially in resource intensive and high impact sectors such as textiles and construction.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: Honourable members. Transport is one of the most polluting sectors of our economy and we need to tackle this head on. All over Europe, people depend on their cars for the quality of their daily lives not sell them even for their livelihood. I know that and I don't want a car free Europe. I want emissions free cars in Europe and I want people to use clean public transport. We need to cut emissions in the aviation and maritime sectors in particular. If we are to meet our climate goals.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: This requires a careful mix of tools. We need to invest for example in our railways. Why is it that people choose to spend more time sitting in an airport waiting for a flight than sitting on a train getting to their destination in part because it's cheaper because we're not paying for the externalities. We're running up a debt on Mother Earth's credit card. She can not afford to pay that debt.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: This should not be seen as a threat to the transport sector. It's actually an offer. It's an offer because I want to empower the sector to roll out new clean efficient and affordable vehicles and infrastructure. I want Europe to have the best transport systems in the world. The Green Deal will only be successful if all Europeans are part of it. If you really bring the Green Deal close to home in fact into our homes. To take this project to the people we will make the European climate pact a cornerstone of the Green New Deal.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: The climate pact will bring together initiatives and pledges from communities companies neighbourhoods sharing knowledge and data, helping and inspiring each other with best practices and concrete results. Look at where you as European Parliament have achieved in mobilizing citizens in the "this time I'm voting" campaign. Look at what the Committee of the Regions are set up. Look at the initiatives of mayors all over the world. Look at how the NGO community is mobilizing people and putting concrete solutions on the table.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: But most of all look at what our kids are doing. Creating a global movement with the momentum to change the world for the good. Everyone can lead by example. Good choices breed inspiration and imitation. There is nothing greater I find than to be inspired by your kids.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: Dear friends I I've mostly spoken to you about what we need to do in Europe but of course there is a huge international dimension. We have to work to convince others to step up their ambition as well. I am fully committed to strengthening our international climate diplomacy and implementing the Sustainable Development Goals. With a Green Deal, Europe can lead by example but we should also be prepared to consider other instruments.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: For instance a carbon board tax to level the playing field for European products, If other countries do not go as far as us or refuse to go in the right direction. As an economic giant we have tremendous leverage in our trade relations. We can set global standards. We should use that leverage as best we can. Combined with convincing arguments to show that at the end of the day we can all be better off.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: Honourable chair, honourable members. We have a long term goal but we need to deliver short term incentives. It is all very well trying to stop the end of the world but we also need to take along the people who worry about getting to the end of the month. The transformations required are unprecedented and call for cooperation determination ingenuity. I'm certainly not saying this is going to be easy. I've never seen anything in Europe that's easy.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Frans TIMMERMANS, Executive Vice-President-designate, European Green Deal: At least nothing that's worthwhile everything that's worthwhile is complicated. But that's the challenge that's why we're here. If it were easy we didn't need a Parliament or we didn't need a Commission. It's because it's complicated that we need to do it. But also because it's the right thing to do. I want to sit here today before you as a as a partner and a friend ready to answer your questions and to work with you to build a brighter future. We do it for the people who have put us here, for the European citizens. Thank you very much.