Tribune. ” No Green Deal without nuclear power ” declared, on August 26, Thierry Breton, the European Commissioner for the Internal Market. The inclusion of nuclear power in the list of “green” activities (taxonomy) remains the hottest debate since the launch in 2019 of the Green Pact, the legislative program aimed at supporting the transformation of the European Union (EU) towards a sustainable economy .
But the EU’s ambition will only be achieved if it also considers the social and environmental challenges facing supply chains beyond its borders. Clearly, no Green Deal without a duty of vigilance which secures imports into the EU.
To combat social dumping, it is not enough to erect customs barriers. To blind protectionism, let’s oppose a smart version that sorts the wheat from the chaff and pulls up companies regardless of their country of origin, an alternative that integrates due diligence systems, namely the precautions taken within even commercial transactions to prevent human rights violations among suppliers.
For a “value approach” and not a “country approach”
To one “Country approach” like that of the United States vis-à-vis China, we prefer a “Value approach”, supports Maria Arena, Member of the European Parliament. With the future directive on the duty of vigilance in environmental matters and human rights in value chains (suppliers), the European Commission wants to put companies on this path.
But knowing that self-regulation alone does not work, the executive wants to make vigilance mandatory. like what has already been promulgated on wood imports. Leading companies, which for a long time have deployed controls over their partners in the purchasing process, should share with their most reluctant counterparts the benefits of these practices.
the Barometer 2021 on responsible purchasing published by the Stanford Graduate School of Business and EcoVadis reveals that 81% of the 159 purchasing departments of global groups surveyed have increased their engagement in the last three years; 51% have a responsible purchasing policy in 2021 compared to only 38% in 2019.
Means for control
In addition, 63% consider that surveillance made them more resilient during the Covid crisis. And when actions are taken at sector level, suppliers progress faster, as shown by a study on behalf of the Ministry of Labor in Germany. Supported by two commissioners, Didier Reynders (justice) and Thierry Breton (internal market), the text of the directive, expected in the fall, nevertheless meets strong resistance.
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