Circular economy remains priority

The transition from a linear to a circular economy will remain one of the key topics at European level over the next five years. This is according to the political guidelines for the new legislative period presented by the outgoing and incoming President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, shortly before her re-election on 18 July.

Even though political priorities seem to be shifting towards strengthening resilience and economic prosperity, the circular economy remains an important part of the solution.

The circular economy allows materials to be reused, reducing the need to import raw materials, especially from unreliable third countries, thereby decreasing geopolitical dependencies.

Von der Leyen wants to introduce a new Circular Economy Act to boost demand for secondary raw materials and create a single market for waste, especially for critical raw materials.

In addition, von der Leyen announced a Clean Industrial Act for her first 100 days in office to help decarbonise and reindustrialise the EU economy.

The Waste Framework Directive and packaging regulation

In addition to these planned new initiatives, the new Parliament must deal with some outstanding issues from the previous legislature in the coming months.

One issue is the revision of the Waste Framework Directive regarding textile and food waste. The Commission had made a proposal and the Parliament and Council have subsequently adopted their respective positions. The trilogue negotiations are now aimed at finding a compromise, but it is not yet clear when negotiations will start.

The new packaging regulation has also not yet been fully adopted and, following the trilogue agreement in March this year, must undergo another formal round in Parliament and Council before it can be published in the Official Journal.

New Commissioners

President-elect Ursula von der Leyen is currently coordinating the nomination of the new Commissioners with the Member States. They will appear before the Parliament in October before full approval in by the plenary. The new Commission is expected to be officially appointed by the Council in November and could take office on 1 December.

It is not only about recycling processes and compliance, it is also about networking. ERP shares knowledge, insights, and news so that together we can promote the sustainable agenda.