Next German government has to make climate action mainstream in politics – NGOs
Clean Energy Wire
The coming legislative period is decisive in implementing the sustainable transformation in all economic sectors, a group of German environmental NGOs has said while presenting its demands for the next government. “The next four years will be decisive in determining whether we succeed in limiting global warming and stopping the extinction of species,” the umbrella group DNR, which is leading the NGOs, said in a press release. A total of around 11 million members are represented by the groups involved. Faced with the consequences of the coronavirus crisis, the new government after September's election must “turbo-charge” green recovery, explained DNR president Kai Niebert. He called for climate action to be made mainstream in politics and for sustainability to be the basis for action across all policy areas. Core demands include:
- German government must push for more ambition in implementation of European Green Deal
- Align trade policy with 1.5°C temperature goal
- Push for ambitious EU CO2 limits for cars
- Ban new combustion engine cars before 2030
- Decide exit from fossil gas by 2040
- Phasing out fossil fuel support through development finance, export and investment finance and export credit guarantees
Germany will head to the ballots to elect a new federal parliament in autumn 2021. Climate and energy have consistently moved up in voter priorities since the last election in 2017. A string of hot, dry summers that took a toll on the country's environment have contributed to massive climate protests led by the Fridays for Future movement, which put emissions-reduction efforts at the heart of public debate. All major parties have now decided on their lead candidates: Armin Laschet for the conservatives, Annalena Baerbock for the Greens and Olaf Scholz for the Social Democrats (SPD).
