EPP drives EU 'regulatory simplification' as due-diligence rules are rolled back

The centre-right European People's Party, now the decisive bloc in the European Parliament, has used its leverage to scale back EU corporate sustainability-reporting and supply-chain due-diligence rules while keeping the headline 2040 emissions target. At the 18-19 June European Council, leaders prioritised cutting energy prices and a mid-July review of the Emissions Trading System, framing climate policy around industrial competitiveness rather than new mandates.

The shift marks a wider European turn toward 'keep the targets, cut the compliance burden', testing whether a centre-right majority can ease regulatory costs on business without abandoning climate goals — a balance being debated across many Western economies, including the UK.