Green groups blast EU plan to limit regulations

A group of Europe’s largest environmental organisations is urging EU legislators to drop plans to scrap one existing regulatory burden on people and businesses for every new rule imposed.

This “one in, one out” principle, proposed by the European Commission president-elect Ursula von der Leyen, is a “deep concern” for the organisations that collectively call themselves the Green 10, they said in a letter to the European Parliament, published on 16 September.

The principle would lead to arbitrary cuts in regulations, and could slow or even reverse progress on protecting the environment, the group said. It called on the Parliament to use its hearings on commissioner nominees from 30 September to 8 October to have the principle dropped from von der Leyen’s plans for her Commission leadership bid, which is subject to a Parliament vote expected on 23 October.