Debate: State of play of the corporate sustainability due diligence directive
Date: TUESDAY, 12 MARCH 2024
Speaker: Didier Reynders
Language: FR

Cependant, je ne peux que regretter que, à ce stade, cette directive n’ait pas encore été approuvée au Conseil. Je tiens à louer les efforts de la présidence du Conseil en vue de trouver des solutions qui pourraient bénéficier du soutien de la majorité nécessaire. Mon objectif est clairement de voir cette directive adoptée durant cette législature. Pour ce faire, je soutiens la recherche de solutions flexibles. This directive aims to contribute to the sustainability transition. It will allow us to set a level playing field in the single market. Two Member States already have a corporate due diligence legislation, and several others are discussing plans to introduce new rules. Fragmentation should be avoided to the benefit of European companies as well as of all trading partners.  At an international level, we see standards being set to try to ensure the coexistence of economic growth with the respect for human rights, labour rights and the environment. Many companies in the European Union and elsewhere have already integrated due diligence in their business strategies.  Building on international standards, this directive would contribute to more resilient supply chains, which is important for the long-term performance of companies. This legislation would bring transparency in companies’ chains of activities and thereby facilitate private investment in sustainable and climate-friendly operations.  The directive follows a balanced approach to avoid excessive burdens for companies. It ensures that companies effectively address adverse human rights and environmental impacts in their own operations and in their chains of activities, while promoting closer engagement with partners in global supply chains. It does so in a proportionate manner, as it only applies to companies that have the capacity to implement due diligence, namely to large companies. It takes business concerns into account. Due diligence would be risk-based, allowing to use industry schemes and multi-stakeholder initiatives for its implementation. The directive also provides for accompanying measures to facilitate its implementation, as well as for the use of digital tools and technologies.  It is also more SME-friendly than any other existing due diligence legislation. SMEs would not have any direct obligation under the directive. We are aware that SMEs present in value chains of larger companies could be indirectly impacted. Therefore, the directive includes a wide range of measures to support and protect SMEs from disproportionate requests from the large companies covered by the directive.  We therefore hope that a final agreement can be reached very soon. The new directive would be a game changer, a major step forward in combating adverse human rights and environmental impacts. This would show once more that the European Union is committed to taking action to achieve the objective of a just, sustainable transition, while supporting the competitiveness of companies in Europe.  The Commission stands ready to deploy all efforts to facilitate the final adoption of this legislation. And, I repeat, one of the main goals is to have a horizontal approach for all the companies and a level playing field for all the companies from the EU, but also from abroad at work in the European Union. And one of the goals that I have explained since the beginning of the mandate of this Commission, maybe at the beginning of 2020, is that we will try to avoid fragmentation, to not let companies just in one or two Member States now, with the national legislation, like in France or in Germany, but to be sure that we have a level playing field for all the large companies in the EU or coming from the EU again, or coming from abroad but with a real turnover in the European Union.  So thank you for what you are doing to try to find a way to have a final agreement. And thanks again to the Belgian Presidency for the efforts to provide also some flexibility in the text, but with a real ambition to reach the goal that we have in such a proposal of a directive.