This week the Irish Government announced its intention to research the environmental, social and economic impacts on the Irish economy of a four-day work week; the Environmental Protection Agency called for additional measures across all sectors to meet Ireland’s emissions-reduction targets; the UK financial regulator proposed further climate-related disclosure rules; and final approval was given to ‘the law of laws’, the European Climate Law.
Government to research impacts of a 4-day week
The Irish Government announced this week that it intends to open a call for research into the social, economic and environmental implications of a four-day working week.
This call will provide an opportunity to address the impacts of a shortened working week in the specific context of the Irish economy on, among other things, greenhouse gas emissions, competitiveness, staff productivity, gender inequality and job satisfaction.
The two departments which intend to fund the research – the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications and the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment – will formally open the call on 1 July 2021; it is anticipated that the call will remain open to proposals until 15 July 2021.
Additional measures across all sectors needed, the EPA warns
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in its annual report, published this week, stated that estimates that suggest Ireland is unlikely to meet the reductions targets for greenhouse gas emissions that had been set for it under the 2013-2020 EU Effort Sharing Decision target.
Ireland is estimated to have cumulatively exceeded its greenhouse gas emissions target by 12 million tonnes over the 2013-2020 period, despite the sharp fall in emissions last year due to the impact of COVID-19. The report states that Ireland will need to use carbon credits and possibly purchase surplus annual emission allocations from other EU Member States to achieve compliance with its EU climate obligations.
The report further stated that Ireland can still meet its targets for 2021-2030. Achieving this will involve full implementation of the 2019 Climate Action Plan, as well as additional measures particularly as more ambitious targets have been presented by the European Climate Law (see below) and Ireland’s Climate Bill, published last week.
FCA proposes further climate-related disclosure rules
The UK financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), has published new proposals to extend climate reporting requirements to most UK listed companies as well as to domestic asset managers.
The proposed rules are designed to help make sure that the required information on climate-related risks and opportunities is available along the investment chain – from companies in the real economy, to financial services firms, to clients and consumers, in an attempt to meet growing investor demand for disclosure.
The proposals follow the introduction of climate-related disclosure rules for the most prominent listed commercial companies in December 2020 which are aligned with the recommendations of the FSB Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).
Alongside these proposals, the FCA is also seeking views on other topical environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues in capital markets, including on green and sustainable debt markets and the increasingly prominent role of ESG data and rating providers.
Final approval for European Climate Law
Final approval has been given by the European Parliament this week for the European Climate Law. Parliament formally approved the law with 442 votes in favour, 203 against and 51 abstentions.
The bill, first proposed in March 2020, enshrines the bloc’s 2050 and 2030 climate goals in legislation. The EU was the first of the world’s three top polluters to do this (the other two are China and the US).
After months of negotiation between Parliament, the Commission and the Council, a deal had been reached in April 2021 on the climate law which put higher emissions-cutting targets at the heart of EU policymaking. The bill sets targets to reduce net EU emissions by 55 percent by 2030, from 1990 levels, and eliminate net emissions by 2050. It recognises the need to enhance the EU’s carbon sink and includes stronger provisions on adaptation. It also maintains the bloc’s 2050 climate neutrality goal at EU-level (rather than requiring each country to apply that deadline at home); and commits to a process for setting a 2040 climate target.
Representatives from the EU's member countries will formally approve the law on 28 June 2021, with Parliament and the EU then signing the text – a formal step – before it becomes law. The description in April of the law by João Pedro Matos Fernandes, Portugal’s Minister of Environment and Climate Action as ‘the law of laws’ was echoed this week by Frans Timmermans, head of EU climate policy, stating “This is the law of laws, because it will discipline us in the years to come”.
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