MEPs are set to vote on the controversial EU Nature Restoration Law during a plenary (full) session of the EU Parliament today (Wednesday, July 12).
The Nature Restoration Law was first put forward by the EU Commission, as part of the European Green Deal, on June 22, 2022.
The proposal aims to restore damaged ecosystems across the EU by setting specific targets to restore habitats which are suited to capturing carbon, such as peatlands.
Last month, members of the EU Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) committee rejected the proposed EU law, as amended.
This followed the rejection of the proposed directive by the agriculture and fisheries committee.
Nature Restoration Law
Yesterday (Tuesday, July 11) farmers and environmental campaigners held rallies in Strasbourg, France, as MEPs debated the Nature Restoration Law in the parliament ahead of today’s vote.
This included separate demonstrations by agricultural umbrella group Copa-Cogeca and Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg’s Fridays for Future group.
Today, MEPs will initially vote on whether to reject the proposed directive outright. If members vote in favour of the law there will then be a series of votes on various tabled amendments.
These amendments include the position taken by the European Council, which is supported by the Irish government.
The EU Parliament’s largest political group, the European People’s Party (EPP), has directed its members to vote against the EU Nature Restoration Law. However, it appears that Irish Fine Gael MEPs, who are part of the EPP, may defy this.
Irish Fine Gael MEP Colm Markey previously stated that he believes the EU Council’s current position on the Nature Restoration Law “is the closest proposal available to achieving a practical and fit-for-purpose law”.
Last night, Ireland South Fine Gael MEP Seán Kelly said that he is planning to vote in favour of the proposed Nature Restoration Law.
“I cannot vote to reject this law for a number of reasons, primarily because the council has done a good job in amending some of the worst parts of the proposals,” Kelly said on Twitter.
He said that 93% of the members of Dáil Éireann voted in favour of the council position, including all Fine Gael members.
“Also, we have put down some very, very important and good amendments here in the European Parliament,” he added.
“If we vote to reject at the outset, then we won’t even get a chance to vote on those amendments.
“At the end of the day one has to do what one thinks is right, and the right thing to do is to vote not to reject, but to look at the proposals, and amendments one by one. And then I think we can find a very good landing spot,” the MEP said.
Speaking outside the EU Parliament yesterday, Ireland South MEP Grace O’Sullivan said that her fellow MEPs need to be “more courageous” on climate action.
“In Ireland, the Citizens’ Assembly explicitly called for the approval of a strong EU Nature Restoration Law. Here in Strasbourg today, the younger generation of Europeans are calling for the very same.
“MEPs need to heed the call and be more courageous in their climate action. If not they should face serious questions over why they failed to show political leadership when it was needed most. This is too big an opportunity for us to miss,” the Green Party MEP said.