Katri KULMUNI

Policy topics Katri KULMUNI is active on

What Katri KULMUNI has said (37)

• 2026-03-12 “Answer given by Ms Roswall on behalf of the European Commission 7.5.2026 Written question The Commission published the guidance document [1] on the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) [2] on 30 March 2026. The aim is to provide clarity to stakeholders ahead of the first implementation milestones. The possibility of allowing Member States to apply a transitional approach until at least the beginning of 2027 regarding the producer responsibility was examined by the Commission in cooperation with the responsible Member States’ committee on waste. The PPWR is directly applicable in Member States by 12 August 2026. However, in terms of extended producer responsibility, national implementing measures will be needed. In this context, the Member States have a margin of appreciation to take measures that accommodate for national circumstances in the implementation of the PPWR. [1] https://environment.ec.europa.eu/publications/guidance-document-packaging-and-packaging-waste-regulation-ppwr_en. [2] Regulation (EU) 2025/40 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 December 2024 on packaging and packaging waste, amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 and Directive (EU) 2019/904, and repealing Directive 94/62/EC, OJ L, 2025/40, 22.1.2025.”
  Sustainable packaging · Overall simplification of regulation in the EU
• 2026-02-25 “Answer given by Mr Tzitzikostas on behalf of the European Commission 5.5.2026 Written question Regulation (EC) No 1370/2007 on public passenger transport services by rail and by road [1] does not preclude the use of the same rail rolling stock in the performance of commercial activities and public services. However, when rail passenger transport operators carry out commercial activities as well as services under public service obligations, they should respect the obligation of accounting separation between transport services subject to compensation for public service obligations and other activities (point 5 of Annex to Regulation (EC) No 1370/2007 [2] ). In addition, Article 6(3) of Directive 2012/34/EU [3] prohibits the transfer of public funds paid for activities relating to the provision of transport services as public-service remits to activities relating to the provision of other transport services or any other business. If these two conditions are respected, the rail rolling stock used under a public service contract could be used also for commercial operations. [1] Regulation (EC) No 1370/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2007 on public passenger transport services by rail and by road and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) Nos 1191/69 and 1107/70 (OJ L 315, 3.12.2007, p. 1. [2] See also Commission notice on interpretative guidelines concerning Regulation (EC) No 1370/2007 on public passenger transport services by rail and by road (OJ C 222, 26.6.2023, p. 1), point 2.6.5. [3] Directive 2012/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 November 2012 establishing a single European railway area (recast) (OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p. 32.”
  EU support of rail transport · EU Competition policy
• 2026-02-12 “P-000520/2026 E-000615/2026 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Séjourné on behalf of the European Commission As mentioned in the reply to written question P-001106/2024, the EU vehicle emission typeapproval requirements 1 are in place to make sure a reagent solution remains available for use in cold temperatures. The active ingredient in a reagent is typically urea in a concentration with deionised water. For AdBlue the urea concentration is nominally 32.5% 2 by weight and has a freezing point of approximately minus 11 °C. This is very close to the lowest possible freezing point for the mixture, while still providing effective emissions reduction capabilities. The EU legislation does not require the use of AdBlue as reagent. As mentioned in the reply to written question E-002846/2024, EU emissions legislation would allow for improved reagents with lower freezing points to be placed on the market. Nevertheless, the Commission is aware of practical obstacles and the need for recertification. The Commission is discussing with national type-approval authorities possible ways for simplified approval procedures. There exist several other measures to ensure that a reagent remains available and effective at low ambient conditions, including heating systems or insulation. To increase awareness of freezing of reagent solutions under extreme cold weather conditions in some Member States, targeted enforcement activities by national (Nordic) market surveillance authorities to verify compliance to the existing vehicle emission type-approval requirements on this topic could be considered. 1 Commission Regulation (EU) No 582/2011, http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2011/582/2026-01-01 and Commission Regulation (EU) 2017/1151, http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2017/1151/oj. 2 Defined by ISO 22241.”
  Road transport environmental policy
• 2026-01-28 “E-000349/2026 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Virkkunen on behalf of the European Commission The Commission will present a proposal for a Cloud and AI Development Act. This will facilitate the development and adoption of European cloud and AI technologies, especially in the public sector, thus addressing the risks stemming from the EU’s reliance on third countries. The Act will promote the development of the EU cloud and AI offer by driving investment and simplifying permitting procedures, with the aim of tripling EU data centre capacity by 2030 and bringing it to a level that matches its needs by 2035. The Act will provide a harmonised definition of sovereign cloud and AI computing services and criteria for the public sector to procure secure and sovereign services for the most critical use cases. The intervention rationale is based on the report ‘The future of European competitiveness’, which estimates the European infrastructure investment gap to be around EUR 75 billion until 2030 and around 70% of the European cloud and AI market is dominated by US hyperscalers. These figures illustrate the EU’s reliance on third countries for cloud and AI computing services and the risks to its strategic autonomy and industrial competitiveness. Leading by example, the Commission launched in 2025 a EUR 180 million tender for the provision of sovereign cloud services. There are no global figures on how much the EU institutions, EU programmes or the national public sector pay for US cloud services companies, but in 2025, EU institutions, bodies and agencies spent EUR 87 million on public cloud services.”
  EU digital & tech sovereignty · Digitalization of public governance & administration
• 2025-11-05 “E-004369/2025 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Virkkunen on behalf of the European Commission The online protection of consumers is a priority for the Commission, as stated in the ecommerce communication 1 , which provides for measures and enhanced collaboration to address challenges posed by e-commerce. Under the Digital Services Act 2 (DSA), the Commission is actively monitoring the compliance of providers of very large online platforms, e.g. Shein, Temu, AliExpress. If it suspects an infringement of the DSA, it can open an investigation, as the ones into Temu and AliExpress, which pre-date the recent detection in France of illegal content and are broader in scope. The Commission welcomes the actions of French authorities regarding illegal products found on online marketplaces. In November 2025, the Commission sent a request for information under the DSA on how Shein ensures that minors accessing its service are not exposed to ageinappropriate content, on the distribution of illegal products on its platform and the effectiveness of its mitigation measures of such systemic risks. In parallel, under the Consumer Protection Cooperation Regulation, which will be reviewed in 2026, consumer protection authorities 3 , coordinated by the Commission, are investigating Temu and Shein for – as preliminarily found 4 − breaching EU consumer law. The Commission works closely with national market surveillance authorities to ensure full implementation and enforcement of the General Product Safety Regulation 5 and Market Surveillance Regulation 6 (the latter of which will be revised under the upcoming European Product Act to strengthen the EU market surveillance system), and to coordinate Priority Control Area actions targeting consumer goods bought via e-commerce. The EU customs reform 7 is also under negotiation and will be adopted in 2026. 1 https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/e-commerce-communication-comprehensive-eu-toolbox-safeand-sustainable-e-commerce. 2 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/2065/oj/eng. 3 https://commission.europa.eu/live-work-travel-eu/consumer-rights-and-complaints/enforcement-consumerprotection/consumer-protection-cooperation-network_en. 4 https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/files/document/print/en/ip_25_1331/IP_25_1331_EN.pdf. 5 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/988/oj/eng. 6 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2019/1020/oj/eng. 7 In the final stage of negotiation and to be adopted in 2026, https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/customs/eucustoms-reform_en.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online · Liability for online marketplaces
• 2025-10-20 “E-004117/2025 Answer given by Mr Hansen on behalf of the European Commission The Commission has received an official request from Finnish authorities to amend Commission Implementing Decision C(2016)1752 1 , including a proposal to increase the maximum amounts for the two categories of measures, for which available funds have been regularly fully used, namely, for investment aid and maintenance of traditional production systems for reindeer, and for compensation for damages caused by large carnivores. After analysis of the request, the Commission intends to proceed with adoption of the new Decision in the last quarter of 2025. 1 Commission Implementing Decision C(2016)1752 of 31 March 2016 authorising national payments for the production and marketing of reindeer and reindeer products.”
  Large Carnivores · Agricultural funding
• 2025-09-10 “E-003503/2025 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Séjourné on behalf of the European Commission The type-approval emissions legislation for heavy-duty vehicles 1 (Euro VI) sets out that emission control monitoring systems shall be operational at ambient temperatures between -7 °C and 35 °C. The vehicle manufacturer may use a heated reagent tank and dosing system to ensure compliance to the pollutant emission limits. A driver warning system informs the driver when a low reagent level, incorrect reagent quality, too low a rate of reagent consumption, or a malfunction, has been detected. This should lead to operation of a driver inducement system if not rectified in a timely manner. Recognising potential problems of using reagents in extremely cold temperatures, the Euro VI Regulation allows vehicle manufacturers to apply for a derogation, disabling system monitors at ambient temperatures below -7 °C in the case of frozen reagent. System monitoring may also be temporarily disabled at other ambient temperature conditions upon determining that the manufacturer has demonstrated with data and/or an engineering evaluation that misdiagnosis would occur at those ambient conditions because of its effect on the component itself (e.g. component freezing). Such derogation requests would need to be discussed between the manufacturer and the Type Approval Authority of the Member State that handles the emission type-approval application. 1 Regulation (EC) No 595/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2009 on type-approval of motor vehicles and engines with respect to emissions from heavy duty vehicles (Euro VI).”
  Road transport environmental policy
• 2025-07-02 “E-002692/2025 Answer given by Mr Hansen on behalf of the European Commission The Commission is aware of the challenges that farmers face to access loans and has taken comprehensive action to improve the situation. Through its technical assistance platform on financial instruments fi-compass 1 and in cooperation with the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Commission has conducted studies and market analyses 2 on access to finance for farmers and EU agricultural enterprises. The studies show that the EU financing gap for agriculture 3 increased to EUR 62 billion in 2022 with young farmers accounting for 22% of the total shortfall. Several obstacles in accessing loans have been determined, also for individual Member States. These findings were taken into account by the Member States in the preparation of their Common Agricultural Policy Strategic Plans. To address these difficulties, the Union provides support through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development via an efficient toolbox for Member States, which allows them to create and efficiently use financial instruments 4 . To bolster their use, the Commission proposed recently to increase the maximum amount of aid for working capital finance from EUR 200 000 to EUR 300 000 for a period of three fiscal years and has made value-added tax explicitly eligible when support is provided through financial instruments. Their combination with grants can give access to more affordable and cheaper financing (lower interest rates, lower collateral, longer repayment periods, etc.) for farmers. In addition, in follow-up to the report of the Strategic Dialogue on the future of EU agriculture, the EIB offers EUR 3 billion in loans for agriculture and other bioeconomy activities in the period 2025- 2027, with a focus on young farmers, gender equality and green investments. 1 https://www.fi-compass.eu/. 2 Available at fi-compass website under the EAFRD section: Market analysis publications on financial instruments: https://www.fi-compass.eu/library/market-analysis?fund%5b%5d=47&fund%5b%5d=44. 3 The unmet credit demand due to constrained or absent access to bank financial products. 4 In total 12 Member States programmed financial instruments under the CAP Plans 2023-2027, amounting to EUR 1.1 billion total public support. Additional support by the end of 2025 will be provided through financial instruments created under the rural development programmes 2014-2022.”
  Agricultural funding
• 2025-06-05 “E-002286/2025 Answer given by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission The growing popularity of nicotine pouches raises serious public health concerns. There are no safe levels of tobacco or nicotine consumption, including from smoke-free nicotine products such as nicotine pouches. Nicotine is a toxic and highly addictive substance and the growing appeal of these products, in particular among young people, is a worrisome trend. Nicotine pouches are currently outside the scope of the Tobacco Products Directive 2014/40/EU (‘the Directive’) 1 . The market presence of these products was noted in the Commission Report on the application of the Directive 2 . The increasing availability and use of these products, particularly among young people is being assessed in the context of the ongoing evaluation of the EU legislative framework for tobacco control. This evaluation aims to address concerns regarding young people’s access to novel tobacco and nicotine products. The next steps will be determined based on the findings of the evaluation. Nicotine pouches may be subject to national measures, provided that those measures comply with EU law, including the provisions on the free movement of goods of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). The TFEU, does not preclude restrictions justified on one of the grounds of public interest laid down in Article 36 TFEU, including the protection of public health. 1 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02014L0040-20231023. 2 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM%3A2021%3A249%3AFIN.”
  Smoking regulation · Regulation on New Oral Nicotine Products · Restrictions of flavours in tobacco products
• 2025-05-19 “E-001992/2025 Answer given by Mr Tzitzikostas on behalf of the European Commission Since the start of the new College, the Commission has been actively engaging with successive Council Presidencies and individual Member States to reflect upon the legal and practical issues raised by the earlier discussions between the co-legislators on the proposed Directive discontinuing seasonal changes of time and repealing Directive 2000/84/EC 1 , and to examine the possibilities for the resumption of those discussions. In this context, following discussions on the proposal initiated by the Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU, the Commission has decided to respond to a Member State call for further analysis to be undertaken on this matter. A study is accordingly expected to be launched in 2025, and the European Parliament will be kept fully informed of its progress. 1 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2000/84/oj/eng.”
  EU competences on health
• 2025-04-23 “E-001628/2025 Answer given by Ms Roswall on behalf of the European Commission The voluntary guidelines on Closer to Nature Forest (CNF) Management 1 aim to promote biodiversity-friendly and adaptive forest management for forest multifunctionality and climate change resilience without neglecting socio-economic benefits. They reflect the various forest management practices in the EU and include region specific chapters on challenges and opportunities for implementing CNF objectives, principles and tools in different forest types and forestry approaches. The guidelines were prepared with a broad consultation of relevant stakeholders and active co-authorship of the Forest and Nature Working Group. The Commission is currently exploring all follow up options, including in relation to incentives for nature-positive actions and private investments such as nature credits. 1 https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/2d1a6e8f-8cda-11ee-8aa6-01aa75ed71a1.”
  Management of EU forests
• 2025-01-16 “E-000170/2025 Answer given by Ms Roswall on behalf of the European Commission 1. Sweden, Finland and Estonia have different levels of legal protection 1 for their wolf populations under the Habitats Directive 2 . Consequently, the constraints and the possibilities for wolf culling in the mentioned Member States are not the same. As regards Sweden, an infringement procedure has been opened in 2010 3 in relation to their wolf management practices. In Finland, the derogations granted by national authorities under Article 16(1) of the Directive to allow killing of wolves have been the subject of a preliminary ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), in case C-674/17 4 , in which all the conditions for such practices have been clearly defined. On 12 October 2021, the Commission adopted a guidance document 5 providing clarifications of the legal provisions under Articles 12 and 16 of the Habitats Directive and reflecting the latest legal interpretations of the CJEU, including the above-mentioned ruling concerning wolf derogations in Finland. 2. Following the adoption of the EU proposal 6 to reduce the protection status of the wolf under the Bern Convention 7 , after its entry into force, the Commission will present a targeted legislative proposal to implement this change in EU law and to modify accordingly the regime of the wolf under the Habitats Directive, moving the wolf from Annex IV (strict protection) to Annex V (protection). 1 Protected (Annex V) in Estonia and in the Finnish reindeer management area. Strictly protected (Annex IV) in the rest of Finland and in Sweden. 2 Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora, OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7–50. 3 INFR (2010)4200: https://ec.europa.eu/atwork/applying-eu-law/infringementsproceedings/infringement_decisions/?lang_code=EN&typeOfSearch=byDecision&active_only=1&noncom=2&r _dossier=&decision_date_from=&decision_date_to=&DG=ENV&title=NATURE&submit=Search&langCode= EN&version=v1&refId=INFR(2010)4200&activeCase=true&dg=ENV&page=1&size=10&order=desc&sortCol umns=decisionDate 4 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/TXT/?uri=CELEX:62017CJ0674 5 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=PI_COM:C(2021)7301 6 https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_24_6202 7 https://www.coe.int/en/web/bern-convention”
  Large Carnivores
• 2024-10-23 “E-002229/2024 Answer given by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission The use of ‘gluten-free’ and ‘very-low gluten’ statements is harmonised across the EU 1 , ensuring consistency in food information. The Food Information to Consumers Regulation (FIC Regulation) 2 lists gluten among the substances or products that cause allergies or intolerances. This Regulation requires that such substances or products be declared to consumers at all times. For prepacked foods, these substances or products must appear in the ingredient list, with a clear reference to the substance or product's name as specified in Annex II of the Regulation. The reference must be highlighted to distinguish it from the rest of the ingredient list, for example, through changes in font, style or background colour. Evidence shows that most food allergy incidents occur with non-prepacked foods, making the declaration of potential allergens particularly important. Therefore, the FIC Regulation requires the provision of allergen information also for non-prepacked foods 3 . While the FIC Regulation stipulates that Member States may adopt national measures regarding the presentation and expression of this information, in order to suit local practical conditions, the provision of allergen information remains vital. Allergen information must always be readily available to the consumers to ensure their safety. Member States have a primary responsibility to monitor the application of the relevant legal provisions and to take the necessary steps for enforcement. In its role as guardian of the Treaties, the Commission will continue monitoring the situation and may decide to take appropriate action. 1 Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 828/2014, OJ L 228, 31.7.2014, p. 5. 2 Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, OJ L 304 22.11.2011, p. 18. 3 Those offered for sale to the final consumer or mass caterers without pre-packaging, or foods packed on the sales premises at the consumer's request.”
  Food labelling harmonisation at EU level
• 2024-09-19 “E-001764/2024 Answer given by Ms Kyriakides on behalf of the European Commission The Commission is aware that new regulatory requirements may impact small enterprises with limited resources to comply. The evaluation of the food contact legislation 1 concluded in 2022 that, amongst other matters, it should take better account of the needs of small businesses 2 . This aspect will be thoroughly considered in the ongoing preparatory work for a revision of the legislation 3 . The legislation for plastic food contact materials sets out an authorisation procedure that applies equally to any user of authorised substances. Historically the use of wood in plastic food contact materials was authorised because it was presumed inert. However, as bamboo added to plastic was shown to be not inert and unsafe 4 , the Commission requested the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to re-evaluate the safety of the use of wood in food contact plastic. EFSA concluded that wood should be evaluated on a species-by-species basis as wood cannot be considered inert and may contain toxic substances 5 . The amendment revoking the authorisation 6 was preceded by discussion with Member States and stakeholders which did not identify any operators adding wood to plastics. Nevertheless, in addition to the usual transition period of 18 months, the Regulation includes a mechanism for operators to apply for evaluation of the safety of wood in plastic materials within a 9-month period 7 . EFSA is available for advice prior to the submission of an application as provided in the General Food Law 8 and has drawn up a catalogue of further support possibilities –some addressed to small enterprises– while respecting its obligations with regard to transparency and independence 9 . In addition, several technical and scientific guidance documents are available for applicants 10 . 1 The basic act is Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 October 2004 on materials and articles intended to come into contact with food and repealing Directives 80/590/EEC and 89/109/EEC; OJ L 338, 13.11.2004, p. 4–17. 2 https://food.ec.europa.eu/food-safety/chemical-safety/food-contact-materials/revision-eu-rules/evaluation-eurules_en 3 https://food.ec.europa.eu/food-safety/chemical-safety/food-contact-materials/revision-eu-rules_en 4 https://food.ec.europa.eu/food-safety/eu-agri-food-fraud-network/eu-coordinated-actions/bamboo-zling_en 5 https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2019.5902 6 Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/1442 of 11 July 2023 amending Annex I to Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 on plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with food, as regards changes to substance /authorisations and addition of new substances; OJ L 177, 12.7.2023, p. 45–58. 7 So far five applications have been submitted. 8 Article 32a of Regulation (EC) 178/2002, available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legalcontent/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02002R0178-20240701 9 https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6472 10 https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/applications/foodcontactmaterials/regulationsandguidance”
  GMOs
• 2024-09-19 “E-001763/2024 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Šefčovič on behalf of the European Commission The initial Regulation on Trade in Seal Products 1 allowed, as an exception, the placing on the EU market of seal products from hunts regulated by national law and conducted for the sole purpose of the sustainable management of marine resources. The Regulation was amended in 2015 2 , removing that exception, to reflect the outcomes of World Trade Organization rulings in the EU-Seal products case 3 . The Fitness Check of the EU Regulation on Trade in Seal Products and of the EU Seal Pups Directive 4 has been launched to assess their functioning, effectiveness and impact against their objectives, and whether they remain fit for purpose. Such evaluations are common practice in the lifespan of any piece of EU legislation. A report of the Fitness Check performed by external contractors on behalf of the Commission, which is expected in January 2025, will integrate the results of the public consultation and the call for evidence, a factual summary of which is already available on the Have Your Say portal 5 , and of targeted consultations with key stakeholders, as well as own literature review/research to fill possible knowledge gaps. The report will serve as input to a Commission Staff Working Document to be published in the first quarter of 2025. On the basis of the Fitness Check findings, the Commission will consider whether further measures are needed. 1 Regulation (EC) No 1007/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 September 2009 on trade in seal products, OJ L 286, 31.10.2009, p. 36–39. 2 Regulation (EU) 2015/1775 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 October 2015 amending Regulation (EC) No 1007/2009 on trade in seal products and repealing Commission Regulation (EU) No 737/2010, OJ L 262, 7.10.2015, p. 1–6. 3 https://policy.trade.ec.europa.eu/enforcement-and-protection/dispute-settlement/wto-dispute-settlement/wtodisputes-cases-involving-eu_en?f%5B0%5D=landing_page_title%3Aseal 4 Council Directive 89/370/EEC of 8 June 1989 amending Directive 83/129/EEC concerning the importation into Member States of skins of certain seal pups and products derived therefrom, OJ L 163, 14.6.1989, p. 37–37. 5 https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/14031-Trade-in-seal-products-fitnesscheck-of-EU-rules/public-consultation_en”
  Environmental regulation of fisheries
• “Mr. president, taxation of large digital platforms is being developed internationally to match the growth of the digital economy. And this includes an attempt to find ways to tax the activities of companies that may take place in the country where they do not have a physical presence. The OECD and G20 aim to create more harmonized tax standards for digital businesses, and to ensure they pay due taxes in countries where their income is generated, rather than shifting their profits to tax havens. The EU also has to promote taxation of large digital platforms in many ways of, of course, by global agreements, but also by national tax practices in order to promote digital digitalisation more generally and by creating norms for the sector. Because this is a cross-border activity and therefore tax solutions also need to be international, and it is self-evident that we have to. Collect taxes where their profits are made. This is one of the only ways that the EU can play hard against the US.”
  EU competences on taxation
• “Dear Mr. Chair, the EU is trying to improve its competitiveness, while at the same time many of its investments are on hold. The electricity grid lacks capacity and industrial projects are stuck waiting for a permit. May's permit processes must be accelerated. One problem keeps recurring. Long waiting times, months and sometimes even years passes while authorities process permits and courts handle appeals to accelerate permitting. We must ensure the authorities have the peace and stability to do their work, as well as sufficient funding. And if processing times and appeal procedures are set, authorities must also be provided with adequate resources and we as legislators need to take care that legislation is predictable For the whole part of this mandate, we have been modifying the legislation done in the previous term. Definitely on the right direction. But wouldn't it have been wise to do it at once, on the right track and not going back and forward every other mandate?”
  EU policy on permitting for renewable energy projects
• “Thank you, dear Chair. And Mr. Commissioner, on behalf to continue from behalf of our new group, I would like to say that we are overall pleased with the Commission's proposal, and it is most important that this issue is finally being addressed through legislation that so that the circumvention of Russian gas can be stopped and with it, the financing of Russia's waters can be cut off. This year, Russian gas will account for 13% of the EU's consumption. So alternatives really do exist. The member states that are still dependent on the Russian gas needs to seek alternatives and pursue energy freedom. We should act without delay, even ahead of the European Commission proposed timeline. And in practice, any gas whose origin cannot be clearly verified should be assumed to be of Russian origin. Therefore, it is essential that implementation is done properly and that authorities receive clear guidance and operational tools to ensure rules are enforced and not to circumvent in any member state. And to continue and to ask for the further steps. It is the most, most crucial that we avoid replacing the Russian energy dependency on fossil energy dependency on the other regions, like the United States or Middle East. So while the Commissioner is here at present, I would like to ask what will be the Commission proposals related to this, that we do not just replace the dependency to different regions, but we really do get rid off of the energy fossil dependency. We now are unfortunately heavy buried because that is the only way truly to intensify the European security we are looking for.”
  EU approach to energy security (home-made vs import sources)
• “Dear, dear Madam Speaker, it is highly important to talk about the railroad safety in Europe and hopefully there is now lessons to be learned from these horrible tragedies. While Europe is very well connected with cross-border railroads, especially while looking from my perspective from the high north, Finland only has just one electrified railroad to the Western Europe now to Sweden. So this obviously should have been done already years ago and currently makes the country still quite vulnerable when it comes to railroad connectivity to cross Europe. So hopefully in the future we would also have another railroad connection to the western Western Europe. And while the Commission Commissioner is here to on the on the stage as well, I hope that the Norway wood would be kept on the table when negotiated on the Connectivities in the North. Likewise, for the safety of the northern regions and for the safety of the northern people also.”
  EU transport infrastructure integration
• “Thank you. Chair. There is a saying in my country that do not be prophesised when Provocated and the rapporteurs proposition to overrule the commission proposal seems to be somewhat a provocation. I find it to be really sad that there are forces who wishes to play with global warming, their inner politics and their populistic inner politics. I think it's way too serious theme to be played with Populistic. So many of the countries, especially the Nordic countries, has done already these emission reductions for a long time, even before the international agreements. Why? Because it is both important and wise in economic terms and environmental terms. And despite the international agreements, we will definitely continue them. But of course, I do hope that the international agreement will be brought and will be gathered all the nations, because that is exactly the playing field, that if you are afraid that, why doesn't China or India or United States does these emission reductions, of course they need to be at the same table and that is what we are looking for now. So hopefully there will be a very broad majority in the European Parliament from the broad centrist base over, over the party lines that will stick to the commission proposal and have the mandate for stick with the emission reductions that are so important both in economic and environmentally.”
  Climate efforts
• “Madam president, the chemicals industry is strategically very important. But at the moment, our legislation is at a point where companies that actually follow our stringent chemicals regulations do not get the business benefit that the legislator had thought about. And the companies that are not following legislation are getting the benefits. So that is why we need to revisit this legislation here. We have talked a lot about the forever chemicals, PFAS, for example, and that is very important. We have environmental quality standards, but in fact PFAS and forever chemicals, there are over 10,000 of those. And unfortunately, we cannot remove all of those and we cannot measure all of those. But it would be very important if the Commission focused on the most important ones and was able to remove those from the environment. And since the legislation here is very important, it creates problems for for the people and for the environment. We need to revisit it very carefully. Thank you.”
  Chemicals regulation
• “(15:59:27 – 16:01:30): Thank you, chair. So although the latest guidance has aimed to simplify the implementation of the regulation, unfortunately, the result is still partially opposite in some points. And there are still some, very key issues to be opened and questioned. Although the topic has been addressed both nationally and e level, many practical aspects are still in a legal uncertainty. For example, if 1 goes into a baseline, for example, in a sawmill, wood comes from different sources and is mixed at different stages of the supply chain. Now in the current interpretation, it can lead to a different reporting of the same production stream depending only on the origin of procurement model of the wood. So only on that how you have both of the wood is, is questioned. So in the same same line. And this obviously increases the administrative burden without any sort of benefit in combating the deforestation itself. So risk based nest, legal certainty, minimization of administrative burden, especially in low risk countries would be extremely important. And, and for example, with the sawmill case, I'd say that such side streams as wood chips, sawdust or bark should be excluded from the scope of the regulation. And then a final question I'd like to present to the commission. We have already in several countries, comprehensive monitored systems, with, Forest View Certification Systems. Could, commission assess how national systems like these could complement or partially replace the new requirements, especially in low risk countries, and whether this would also reduce the administrative burden on operators and that burden to EU IT systems.”
  Management of EU forests
• “There are over 350 million payment cards in the eurozone, making 12 over 12 billion payments a year and 6 billion cash withdrawals of the eurozone's 20 countries, 30 News International systems only in their card payments. Even though each eurozone country has at least one national payment card, program cards can be used outside of the issuing country only if they have a visa or Mastercard capability. These two U.S. companies control our credit card market completely. The EU is trying to increase its self-sufficiency in critical materials. We need self-sufficiency in payment systems, too. President Trump has shown by his when it comes to customs tariffs, how unreliable he is. The digital euro should be should be developed securely and not technocratic and expensively, as has been the case so far.”
  Digital euro
• “(16:38:07 – 16:39:42): Thank you, chair, and thank you for the report and for the good cooperation already at this stage. As the rapporteur considers, the international tax framework has become unnecessarily complex, and its effectiveness continues to be challenged. It also puts EU businesses at a disadvantage currently. While direct taxation remains a competence of the member states, obviously, international challenges require international solutions. In general, I'd say that the lack of coordination and cooperation in pillars 1 and 2 is not beneficial for European or American businesses engaged in transatlantic trade.”
  Priorities of taxation policy in the EU
• “President, in this chamber we often hear, and we have now heard it during this discussion, how the green transition has been the root of all evil. But the opposite is true. As a matter of fact, especially in the Nordic countries, which have done a lot in the field of renewable energy. Even a long time before joining the EU now have electricity, which is the cheapest in the in all of Europe. And we warm our houses with this cheap energy as well. So you do not know your facts. Now that you say that the green transition is has caused our problems. It's exactly the opposite. And the fact that we have not done it enough is a cause to all of our problems. So we must have energy which is cheaper in Europe, and it is more sensible to do so than pay our money outside of Europe. This is an energy security question and a security question as well.”
  EU approach to energy security (home-made vs import sources)
• “The biggest spending items are agriculture and regional development. There are many needs for spending, defence, defence, green digital transformation, innovation, research, just to mention a few. What I'm worried about is has to do with our new debt arrangements. Joint debt arrangements. I come from Finland, a country which has the longest land border with Russia, so we know where the threat comes from. So we do need European defence spending. And at the same time, we have to take care that our budget is at a sustainable level. Unfortunately, we don't even know yet now where we can pay or where from. We take the payments for the debts of the joint previous debt. So we have to take care of our economic balance, and at the same time, we have to make these new and important take these important measures, because it doesn't sound good if we don't have good economy while we are trying to.”
  Defence spending
• “Thank you. Chair. I'd like to speak a few words on behalf of our group coordinator, Christoph Gertler, and to have some specific questions he wanted to oppose related to the ensuring that not a single molecule of Russian gas is consumed in the EU. How will be the traceability be done? And do the customs authorities have sufficient means, both technical and human, to enforce this? Secondly, how does the Commission plan to support Member States in phasing out gas altogether? And about the diversification? Um, related to the issue of Russian nuclear fuel? Uh, there is postponement of the package, and the matter is a bit more complex with the lack of the European alternatives. But do you have a publication timeline for 2025 for the commissioner? And finally about the instruments. Will there be mobilised parallel instruments EU funds EIB state aid to strengthen our European nuclear fuel cycle industry.”
  EU approach to energy security (home-made vs import sources)
• “I will speak in Finnish as our guest is also a Finnish native speaker. The IEA report gave a very striking statistic, the statistic that you presented in the beginning of your presentation, the indicators that touch upon the environment. It is regrettable that 28 of these indicators are lagging behind with regard to the objectives that have been set for four of these indicators, the objectives will not be reached. This is something that has now been admitted. And for 16 indicators, it looks unlikely that the objectives will be reached. Therefore, as a whole, looking at these indicators, we know already now that setting objectives and the different ways to reach these objectives have been badly set. Of course, there are some good practices on a national level. However, it was seen that we will not reach these objectives on a European level and this is an extremely bad result. Thinking about the environment in Europe in general. Therefore, I would like to ask the Executive director, what do you believe as a whole for these 28 indicators? What would be the most central measures that could be undertaken in order to reach these objectives that we have set together, and what could we do differently in the future in order to achieve these objectives with more success? The well-being of the environment is of crucial importance for our planet. Thank you. Thank.”
  Climate efforts
• “Madam speaker, Finland did an energy taxation reform already in the 1990s before the EU membership and divided the energy taxation into CO2 emission and energy content. This enabled energy policies at the same time to cut emissions and increase the share of domestic renewable energy. If the energy is local, so is the positive employment effect. I understand that the swift from the local coal production into renewables need regional and social impact. But still the renewables, especially in wind and solar, are today perfectly competitive in electricity production. And they are local too. So the problem isn't the ETS. The problem are policies on the national level that hasn't been pushing for renewables constantly and long enough. Today. The share of clean electricity and renewables is highest in the Nordics, and the electricity is the cheapest. How do you explain this? Well, you don't while you run away and aren't here present anymore.”
  EU approach to electricity market and prices
• “Thank you, chair. And thank you for the agency for the comprehensive and informative report. I concentrate now on my home countries, Finland specific country recommendations, and unfortunately it is so that if watched only strictly on environmental perspectives, one can criticize many things, but criticizing only doesn't bring solutions Yet as known, one of the biggest industries in Finland is forest industry that creates also many substitutes to the fossil based products. Side streams of the industry are used on heating during the most severe and harsh winter seasons in the world. Isn't it better to have the homes and cities heated with renewable energy instead of fossil energy, as it is the case in Finland? And what practical and feasible alternatives to usage of biomass you suggest for the cold climate regions, such as Finland, to have the homes heated also during the winter times, instead of only representing criticism towards it.”
  Management of EU forests
• “Thank you, Mr. Chair. A most ambitious climate goals are forward looking, but at the same time, we need to ensure the global competitiveness of the European steel in the position where there is overconsumption and subsidies in the global market relating to steel production. How is commission planning to combine these two approaches that we really try to create green steel, but it must compete at the same time in the global market, which obviously in the end is run by the price of the steel. And secondly, I'd like to know the commission approach on what are the actions the Commission is planning to do to create more clean electricity, because without it, obviously there is no green steel either.”
  Energy (green transition)
• “President, in Europe there are millions of SMEs. It's almost 99% of all businesses in this EU. Which we need to look at the competitiveness and they're very important competitiveness of Europe. I should also say that taxation obviously is a national competence and that's where it should remain. It is important that. We also need to reduce administrative burden. And the digitalisation of tax systems will lead to simplification. This is how we can, um, address problems which exist in, in tax systems. Uh, it would also allow for an extension of tax systems. And, and it's important that we focus on digitalization.”
  EU competences on taxation
• “Thank you, chair, and thank you for the replies commission gave, but unfortunately, I didn't hear you going through the problematic related to to solid carbon. And, uh, for example, the thematic related to graphite, which is very crucial in our batteries and defense industry. So I would be very grateful if you could particularly also comment on this, this, um, perspective of the matter, because certainly we do not wish to have a delegated act that would minimize the use of graphite for the crucial industries we are having in Europe.”
  Sourcing of critical raw materials
• “Dear colleagues, best way to decrease the price of clean electricity is to boost the production of it. So we need more capacity to build clean electricity. And this will obviously need also investments to the grid infrastructure that was mentioned also in the in the report, especially the Nordic states are very self-sufficient about the energy and they have great capacity to increase further the investments towards clean electricity. Also their heating system is based on renewables and still the energy price is very competitive. So it is self-sufficient, clean and competitive and it has been done by their own money. So if this has been possible without any remarkable international subsidies for them, it's possible for the rest of the rest of Europe. Likewise. The most important question, however, is the will the will to change the energy system towards renewables and not, not even now, rely on fossil based solutions that obviously gas likewise is it might bring short term relief, but in the end it makes us reliable on someone else that Europe shouldn't be on. So to be really also industrially and energy independent European countries need to support the policies towards renewables. Lowering the costs of fossil might bring a short term relief, but do we really want to be dependent on someone else? I think that we've seen during the last weeks and during the last years, that we do not want to be dependent on energy or any other way about the other continents. So the only way forward is to make investments and policies that create more clean electricity, more renewables, and that will in the in the end, also be beneficial for our industries.”
  EU approach to energy security (home-made vs import sources)
• “A century ago, even Finnish newspapers advertised ivory luxury items. The world has changed. Indeed. And the more effective ban on ivory trade and all other measures to prevent the illegal wildlife trade deserve our support. The importance of the issue is emphasised by the fact that this Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora is indeed the largest global wildlife conservation agreement between 100 and 85 countries. It is a completely different matter when it comes to legally hunted animals and their commercial exploitation. Decision making concerning them must be as local as possible. But this proposal does not apply to them. There is still a lot of work to be done against the illegal wildlife trade. And regarding this, the European Union has significant role to play globally.”
  Commercial whaling
• “Mr. president, the simplification of Cbam is a welcome example of a concrete legislative simplification, putting things into perspective and safeguarding EU's competitiveness, while at the same time 99% of the climate action remains protected. At the same time. So this is a balanced and a welcomed proposal. However, for the future to come, while the Commissioner is also here, I have two concerns. Free emission allowances will phase out starting already next year. What will be the instrument replacing it? Because it is an absolute necessity to have some sort of an export instrument for the European industry. And unfortunately, time is running while it's already May. Despite the simplification, we must ensure that no one is able to exploit it on false grounds. We must be vigilant and monitor closely that no company starts to split the importation into pieces under 50 tonnes in order to circumvent the cbam, and hopefully the forthcoming legislation is simple enough and simplified already so that it could be put in place at once.”
  Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)
• “Thank you, Madam Chair, and dear colleagues. The proposal for a directive has been discussed in the Council's working Party on indirect taxation for years, and the Member States understandings of the content of the directive in the Council's working party have been quite different in many respects. The proposal for a directive aims to make environmental governance more efficient, improve the functioning of the internal market and secure tax revenues. News. According to the commission's proposal, a minimum tax base on a certain amount would be replaced by tax based on the energy content of the product. A tax based on the energy content would eliminate the current structure that favors fossil fuels. For example, in my own country, Finland, an energy content tax is already in use. As the rapporteur states, the revision of the Energy Tax Directive should be carried out in a targeted and proactive manner. The move to determine taxation based on energy content is absolutely a positive step, and the annexes need to be updated to bring the Energy Tax Directive in line with current energy products and technological developments. I support the further work on the reform so that the key environmental, internal market and tax revenue objectives of the reform can be promoted more efficiently and effectively for the details. Bio based fuels should be excluded from the scope of the Energy Tax Directive. Small scale electricity and biogas production should be tax free, and the use of professional diesel should be allowed to continue.”
  EU taxation policy (political compass)