No one should choose between heating or eating. We will fight energy poverty
by improving energy consumers’ rights and information, by ensuring access to clean energy services, and by targeting energy-efficiency measures and renewable heating installations as a priority on energy-poor households. We will ensure that these measures are accessible to low-income and vulnerable households. Europe’s building stock cannot be decarbonised by 2050 without a strong focus on these hardes-to reach groups must be an integral part of decarbonising Europe’s building stock by 2050
3. We want to make Europe’s energy system more democratic. We want to empower Europe’s citizens to not only consume, but also to produce clean energy themselves more easily, with the so-called “prosumers” model. That is why we will foster citizens’ engagement in energy production, be it on an individual basis, such as solar panels on people’s own rooves, or collectively, through participation in a local energy community.
The clean energy transition is also about improving public health. Besides the gradual phasing-out of the use of coal for energy production and the modernisation of heating systems, the transition to cleaner mobility will reduce air pollution and improve citizens’ health. We want a clean mobility transition for accessible and sustainable mobility for all. Transport is responsible for about a quarter of the EU’s carbon emissions. It is a major air polluter in cities, causing hundreds of thousands of premature deaths in Europe every year. Therefore, we call for stricter emission standards for petrol and diesel cars, together with the new rules and strong EU supervision that we pushed for to prevent emissions cheating in the future. We want Europe’s car industry to move to electric and hydrogen power as fast as possible, or it will be superseded by car producers from other parts of the world. This is why the EU needs a just transition strategy for its automobile industry, to maintain and create jobs in this industry. It must prepare the workforce for new skills needed in the transition from combustion to electric car engines. Such a strategy must also support the establishment of a world-leading European battery industry, especially by targeted and increased research and development funding for new generation battery technologies and articial intelligence, to make full use of Europe’s research excellence. It must also be based on the sustainable generation of the extra electricity needed, and the smartening of Europe’s electricity grids to support it. The clean mobility transition needs an accelerated deployment of clean fuel infrastructure, such as electric car charging points, with the support of the automotive sector. Our clean mobility concept does not stop at electrifying individual transport. We also support more and better clean public transport as the best decarbonisation strategy, and urban planning for pedestrian-friendly and bike-friendly cities. A shift is needed to bring more freight and passenger transport from road to rail and waterways. Aviation is one of the most polluting modes of transportation. We must put a price tag on the pollution generated by kerosene. The revenues raised could be used for a European fund for Clean Transport.
Besides climate change, Europe’s industries are facing further challenges, including demographic change, resource scarcity, digitalisation and artificial intelligence, as well as increased global competition.