During the plenary session of the European Parliament in Brussels (17-20 May 2021), MEPs debate on the liability of companies for environmental damage: opening statements by Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), rapporteur and by Virginijus SINKEVIČIUS, European Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries by Caroline ROOSE (Greens/EFA,FR) DEVE; Delara BURKHARDT (S&D,DE) ENVI. This transcription speech is the result of an automatic process. Check against delivery.

Brussels

corporate social responsibility (T)

statement

debate

plenary session

environmental protection (T)

MANDERS, Antonius (EPP, NL)

ROOSE, Caroline (Greens/EFA, FR)

BURKHARDT, Delara (S&D, DE)

SINKEVIČIUS, Virginijus (LT, EC)

european climate law (T)

Liability of companies for environmental damage: opening statements by Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), rapporteur, Virginijus SINKEVIČIUS, European Commissioner for Environment, Caroline ROOSE (Greens/EFA, FR), and by Delara BURKHARDT (S&D, DE)

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, Thank you, President, Mr Commissioner, welcome to you. 20 years ago, I was already rapporteur on the Environmental Liability Directive, but that directive has not yet been fully transposed into the national law. Certain member states and the result of that is different approaches and different applications of the liability regime for environmental damage.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, We now have an own initiative report containing several recommendations which address the two other institutions. We would like them to figure in a regulation. We would like that then to be regulation harmonised across the European territory so that we have fair conditions for companies, but in particular to protect the environment.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, The most important thing, Mr President, is that if this legislation sees the light of day, it should have a preventive effect no one wants to cure rather than prevent. So this is really what this an initiative report is all about. This is what we've tried to get across as a message. So we urge the European Commission, but also the member states to transpose the directives that are not working properly, but also to reform them.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, No one had foreseen the digital transformation or the changes within who was talking about I 20 years ago. And yet we're dealing with legislation that's 20 years old and the member states still don't want it. We started this an initiative report with 180 amendments. And thanks to the help of all the different colleagues and coordinators from the different groups, we've been able to crystallise certain positions and I'm delighted about that.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, So I think this proposal that we're tabling today is the right way forward. Now, usually I don't mention any names, but here I'd like to thank Julia Lindemann from our group who's worked so hard.They've done a huge job. So what are the recommendations, Commissioner? The current directive of environmental damage is so submerged by various different texts that are not well applied or applied in a different way in the member states.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, We therefore have to have a harmonised text. In other words, a regulation. If you have this, if you do this, you'll have a single market that will act as a lever and it will show other countries that we have set the bar high for our industry. In particular, because we can ask for reciprocity, Mr. Commissioner. For example, Mr. Reynders and his due diligence, we can impose this reciprocity on other countries.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, So we're exporting our values and our standards whilst at the same time protecting European industry from cheaper imports from countries that do not respect any legislation. The definitions are not clear. I've already had an opportunity to say that technology doesn't stop. Said definitions have to be continually updated to take into account technological change, to take into account new materials.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, Access to justice. We want to be able to use the August regulation here. Now, we cannot have all hands on one hand and then not have access to justice. We would like a European task force that can truly help member states implement the legislation in the right way, in a uniform way. We need to exchange information on what's going on in other countries.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, We also need to accompany the member states to properly transpose this unified legislation. We commissioner would like a standard insurance in different categories, different sectors to make sure that the taxpayer doesn't have to keep paying when no one is liable for the damage. We would like supply chain responsibility.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, We don't want business to go bankrupt. If they've caused damage and then disappear, then the taxpayer has to foot the bill. I can give you some examples of companies who 20 years ago caused serious pollution or put polluting products on the market and where damage still exists today, but whose identities have completely disappeared because we don't know who was responsible because maybe there was a subsidiary, Pfizer, for example.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, We know of other cases in Italy. We know that there are waste recycling. Companies that have simply washed their hands of the liabilities. We want to find the real perpetrators. We want the leaders of companies, for example, Volkswagen and Diesel Gate, who have knowingly harmed the environment.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, Simply to fill their pockets, we want them to be brought to justice. Commissioner, prevention is key and that is one of the guiding themes of our proposal. And we hope the Commission will take this on board, will put it into a regulation, and we hope that the member states will not be too short termists. This is in the interests of our children, our grandchildren and the future of the European Union.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur, Last point, president. A point about ecocide. As you know, we are members of the parliament think that the definition of ecocide has to be for international organisations, and we're happy to accept that. Thank you.

SOUNDBITE (English), Virginijus SINKEVIČIUS,  European Commissioner for Environment, Thank you very much, President honourable members, let me first of all, thank the rapporteur, Mr Mandrax, the shadow rapporteurs, as well as the jury committee for excellent work on this important report. And of course, thanks also to the ENVI, LIBE and DEVE committees that have provided their opinions on this matter.

SOUNDBITE (English), Virginijus SINKEVIČIUS,  European Commissioner for Environment, Environmental crime is growing. It causes serious harm to the environment, human health and law abiding companies preventing and remedying environmental damage, but also ensuring that conducts endangering or damaging the environment are criminalised, are both necessary to a greener and more sustainable Europe.

SOUNDBITE (English), Virginijus SINKEVIČIUS,  European Commissioner for Environment, The environmental crime and environmental liability directives are complementary in that respect. And this is also reflected in your report, which broadly addresses a basic challenge that has been around since human societies first enacted laws. Namely, what do we do when laws are disregarded and harm is cost?

SOUNDBITE (English), Virginijus SINKEVIČIUS,  European Commissioner for Environment, When it comes to Europe's environmental laws, halfhearted enforcement and poor accountability are the weakest link in the chain in a market economy. Much of our prosperity depends on companies, most of all complying with comply with our laws. But from experience, we all know that some will encourage those lawsuits and cause environmental harm.

SOUNDBITE (English), Virginijus SINKEVIČIUS,  European Commissioner for Environment, Europe has a number of legal instruments in place to deal with this kind of behaviour as the report focuses on two in particular, the Environmental Liability Directive and the Environmental Crime Directive. It also focuses on a range of related topics. As you know, we are in the process of preparing a revision of the Environmental Crime Directive under the lead of my colleague Didier Reynders. But our actions do not stop there.

SOUNDBITE (English), Virginijus SINKEVIČIUS,  European Commissioner for Environment, We also have a framework for cooperating with national inspectors, police, prosecutors and judges, for instance. And under my own lead, we will soon start an evaluation of the Environmental Liability Directive. And your input to our work is most useful and appreciated, and it comes timely.

SOUNDBITE (English), Virginijus SINKEVIČIUS,  European Commissioner for Environment, I can reassure you that we will consider the European Parliament's report very carefully, and we look forward to continuing constructive cooperation on all the topics covered by the report and to delivering the level of accountability that our citizens and our environment deserve. Thank you.

SOUNDBITE (French), Caroline ROOSE (Greens/EFA, FR), Seems to thank you, president, commissioner, in January, after 13 years of legal battles, the shell company was recognised as being responsible for oil slicks in Nigeria that were seriously damaging to the environment. They damaged biodiversity and the public health in the region.

SOUNDBITE (French), Caroline ROOSE (Greens/EFA, FR), The multinational had to pay compensation to Nigerian nurses. This is historic. Things are moving, but it's very slow. Those who are responsible for these kind of disasters have to be condemned and properly punished if we want to avoid this being repeated in the future. The Directive on environmental liability.

SOUNDBITE (French), Caroline ROOSE (Greens/EFA, FR), Well, the Commission has to profoundly reform this text and ensure that victims have proper access to justice. We have to ensure that polluter pay becomes a principle and that this is fixed in Europe and elsewhere as well. And the EU has particular responsibility in ensuring that the actions of us and our companies avoid causing environmental damage internationally.

SOUNDBITE (French), Caroline ROOSE (Greens/EFA, FR), We have a duty to be vigilant, and we also have to ensure effective liability mechanisms in order to ensure that there's proper responsibility for companies and their chains throughout the EU. Environmental crimes has to be one of Europe's main objectives on the international scene. We have to have criminal penalties for these kinds of actions if they constitute ecocide.

SOUNDBITE (French), Caroline ROOSE (Greens/EFA, FR), The European Union has an historic opportunity to be an international leader in this, and it's crucial to protect human rights, environment and biodiversity.

SOUNDBITE (German), Delara BURKHARDT (S&D, DE), President, dear colleagues, environment crime occurs pairs with 285 million billions of profit every year. It's one of the most lucrative criminal activity, according to Europol. You can play with a discharge. You can cut down trees illegally. And of course, you also see quite a lot of economic benefit in Europe as well. And of course, this is at the cost of nature and the cost of citizens who have to then compensate for the environmental damage.

SOUNDBITE (German), Delara BURKHARDT (S&D, DE), So the problem is you have very vague legal concepts and they have different ways of treating this in criminal law systems. So that means we just have a bit of a quilt of different kinds of rules which may try to make people liable for environmental damages. So a reform has to be taken immediately to create clarity.

SOUNDBITE (German), Delara BURKHARDT (S&D, DE), And I think having this unity a more uniform approach, we can end the sense of having different rules apply to illegal forestry, illegal fisheries. These have to be included. And also the damage on human health have to be covered. For example, fiddling with the emission standards. That also has to be covered.

SOUNDBITE (German), Delara BURKHARDT (S&D, DE), And I think this is an important component for a socially fair green deal, because there if you if you live up to that promise, then this is just a transformation for everyone. The poor households, young people, old people, they're the people who particularly suffer from environmental crime.

SOUNDBITE (German), Delara BURKHARDT (S&D, DE), So I'd also like to thank thank you for the organisation of civil society, the courageous citizens without whom environmental crimes would simply happen without anyone noticing. And they in the future have to be able to have their voices heard in front of courts. And to your colleagues with the European Green Deal, we have the possible possibility of living up to a relatively simple principle polluter pays.

SOUNDBITE (German), Delara BURKHARDT (S&D, DE), If you violate the environment, then you have to pay for it. And this principle has to be strengthened with the reform of the liability and the crime directives. I think that's the only way we can have a fair, sustainable economy when responsibility isn't just something for shareholders, but it's for society and the environment. Thank you very much.