Von der Leyen tries to maintain climate stance – POLITICO

Not everyone bought into von der Leyen’s sphinx-like approach. The French Greens, for example, broke with their group to oppose von der Leyen, condemning her for failing to detail a “proactive push for a Green Deal,” among other shortcomings.

Green NGOs were similarly skeptical. Von der Leyen’s offers “show that there is no turning back on climate,” said Chiara Martinelli, director of Climate Action Network Europe. “But it is too early to celebrate. We see a big risk that the competitiveness and deregulation agenda will overshadow ambitious climate action.”

But the Greens, the Green Deal’s biggest backers in the European Parliament, were probably so desperate to join von der Leyen’s centrist coalition and prevent the far-right from joining the EU that they effectively signed a blank cheque.

“If you ask me, is Ursula von der Leyen the green candidate for Commission president? Is that a green agenda? … I can tell you: No,” Green co-leader Terry Reintke said ahead of Thursday’s confirmation vote.

“We negotiated hard, we made compromises in the last weeks,” she continued. “And for me, the most important thing is that the majority that prevails today is the majority of the pro-European democratic groups in this chamber, because we have to stop the far right from coming to power.”

The report was co-authored by Louise Guillot.