Conservative and populist members of the European Parliament have managed to fend off a number of extreme climate change proposals which would have had a major impact on both individuals and businesses.
A number of climate proposals which would have had a major impact on individuals and businesses within the European Union (EU) were shot down on Wednesday night after conservative and populist members of the European Parliament rallied to resist the measures.
While other militant green proposals — including a bloc-wide ban on all combustion engine cars by 2035 — did manage to get the green light from the bloc’s parliament, resistance from right-leaning members (MEPs) resulted in a total of three upset results, much to the chagrin of many committed Europhiles.
According to a report by POLITICO, proposals pushing for the creation of a new carbon trading system, the implementation of a new Carbon Border Tax, as well as establishing a so-called “Social Climate Fund”, were all shot down during voting, with a combination of pro-EU infighting and resistance from the right resulting in the three upset votes.
The unexpected results have been hailed as a “great victory” by Romanian MEP Cristian Terhes, a member of the European Conservatives and Reformists group.
“The left-wing parties wanted to create a system for carbon emission quotas, which will lead to the explosion of prices, making any product or service in the EU uncompetitive on the global market,” Terhes said in a statement given to Breitbart Europe.
“Conservatives, in favour of a life for workers and European industry that created prosperity, voted against this damaging Emission Trading System,” he went on to say.
By contrast, Dr Gunnar Beck — an MEP for the Identity and Democracy Group — warned that, while the upset votes were indeed a “limited success”, it would be naive to think that the fight against the policies is over.
Dr Beck emphasised that the votes only failed because the proposals were not “radical and unrealistic” enough for MEPs on the extreme left, and so many turned on their fellow Europhiles to help those on the right shoot the bills down.
“Any delay or any degree of moderation is — of course — a good thing,” Dr Beck emphasised, but he made clear while talking to Breitbart Europe that many other extreme climate measures did manage to pass last night, and that the proposals that did not “will be referred back to committee” and return soon enough.
“There is a danger that there is sufficient eagerness to do something that may be harmful,” the Alternative für Deutschland (Alternative for Germany, or AfD) politician continued. “Apart from this one limited and suspensory success, the European Parliament has taken a very considerable step towards the EU’s economic self-destruction.”
“The European Union is imposing enormous costs on… industries, at least some of which are still competitive on the world market, in the vague hope of establishing competitiveness and leadership in new ‘green industries’ that have yet to be created,” he went on, adding that those on the left have no “adequate awareness of the enormous costs” their green proposals are going to have for those living in Europe.