Simplification: discussions on EU Environmental Omnibus continue

EU leaders have called for accelerated progress on all omnibus packages, including the Environmental Omnibus Package, with the European Council urging co-legislators to deliver concrete results by the end of the year as part of its broader competitiveness and simplification agenda. The Commission has also been asked to eliminate outdated regulatory provisions (including secondary legislation) that are considered outdated, redundant, or that overlap with present inconsistencies, and to further speed up planning and permit procedures.

In EU Parliament, the leading ENVI committee has split the Environmental Omnibus into three parts for deliberations, with the EPP now taking the lead on EPR topics, assigning Ingeborg Ter Laak as Rapporteur. ENVI will however still vote upon all aspects of the omnibus, and it will be debated as one package, which will likely lead to delays.

As legislative discussions progress, several member states have raised concerns about proposed changes to extended producer responsibility (EPR) rules, in particular plans to suspend the obligation for EU-based companies to appoint authorised representatives in Member States where they are not established until 1 January 2035. The proposal would apply across several product categories, including batteries, packaging and packaged products, electrical and electronic equipment (EEE), and certain single-use plastic items.

The Commission has launched a stakeholder consultation on the omnibus proposals, with feedback accepted via the “Have Your Say” portal until 7 May 2026. The feedback will be summarised by the Commission and fed into the ongoing legislative discussions in the European Parliament and Council.  Landbell Group intends to contribute a discussion paper, outlining the potential positive and negative impacts anticipated from the proposed changes.

The Commission is expected to present a roadmap for the wider EU simplification agenda at the informal summit on 23 and 24 April in Cyprus, with endorsement by the Parliament and the Council to follow.

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