On the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directives 2006/43/EC, 2013/34/EU, (EU) 2022/2464 and (EU) 2024/1760 as regards certain corporate sustainability reporting and due diligence requirements

The EU has for long been a global forerunner in sustainability and corporate due diligence and has committed to upwards convergence in both environmental and social sustainability both within the Union and globally. In the area of sustainability reporting and corporate due diligence, this has been exemplified by the Directives 2006/43/EC, 2013/34/EU, (EU) 2022/2464 and (EU) 2024/1760 which established a robust platform for corporate sustainability reporting and due diligence. The combination of these Directives ensured, amongst other things, the availability of sustainability related data and risks vital for both investors and NGOs assessing abuses, mechanisms for companies to improve the due diligence processes and sustainability of their entire value chains as well as increased access to justice for those suffering from harms throughout the value chain.

The current Commission proposal risks watering down the core elements of this newly established sustainability reporting and due diligence framework. Although the aim of simplification in terms of reporting duties for companies is laudable and steps related to, inter alia, electronic reporting or the increased use of guidelines are welcome, simplification cannot mean broad sweeping deregulation that changes the entire purposes of the previous directives. Dismantling core parts of the legislation risks not only creating regulatory uncertainty for companies, barring proper access to justice for those harmed, but also hampers the availability of quality, comparable and granular sustainability data that is much called for by investors and business partners alike. While the protection of especially SMEs from an overburdening of reporting requirements is a pertinent worry, there needs to be a more simple and efficient way of reaching this goal than dismantling the core parts of the existing sustainability reporting and due diligence framework.

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The Committee on Employment and Social Affairs calls on the Committee on Legal Affairs, as the committee responsible, to propose rejection of the Commission proposal.

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No RCV took place