1 July 2025 - Over 195 businesses and investors urge the EU to uphold strong sustainability rules in the Omnibus package, warning that weakening them risks competitiveness and investor confidence.
Read the statement here.
Sign the statement.
As the European Parliament and Council debate sweeping changes to the EU’s sustainability framework, more than 195 businesses, investors and supporting organisations have come together to defend Europe’s leadership on sustainable finance. The main message: weakening the EU’s sustainability rules risks undermining competitiveness, investor certainty and long-term growth. This joint effort brings together companies and financial institutions – the users and implementers of the EU sustainability framework – to reaffirm the value of stable, coherent and meaningful rules.
The statement outlines five clear recommendations to preserve the integrity of the EU’s sustainability legislation while simplifying its implementation:
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Simplify the ESRS in a way that maintains the double materiality approach of the CSRD, covering environmental, social and governance topics, and ensuring interoperability with international standards and frameworks (including ISSB, GRI and TNFD).
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Include companies with more than 500 employees in the scope of CSRD, in line with the scope of the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD) which was adopted a decade ago. This will ensure regulatory continuity for companies reporting under NFRD and for companies that have already reported or prepared to report under the CSRD. A phase-in period of 2-4 years could eventually be applied, starting with companies above 1000 employees.
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Ensure the value chain cap allows for the constructive exchange of sustainability information between investors and companies.
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Safeguard the core elements of the CSDDD and maintain risk-based corporate due diligence, in line with the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights, and OECD Guidelines.
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Maintain a requirement under CSDDD for companies to adopt climate transition plans that include science-based targets with disclosures in line with CSRD. Clarify the requirement to “through best efforts, put into effect” these plans, which should explicitly reference an obligation of means, not an obligation of results.
Quotes on the statement:
Carine de Boissezon, Chief Impact Officer, EDF
"The EU, thanks to the Green Deal, is ten years ahead in the green industrial revolution. What is at stake is our health, the competitiveness of our businesses, our well-being and our sovereignty. Where there is room for smart simplification, let's tweak the regulation, but we need to stay the course and be proud of it to assert our leadership, our standards, our vision. If not us, who? If not now, when? When there is a will, there is a way!"
Alice K. Steenland, Chief Strategy & Sustainability Officer, Signify
"At Signify, we are committed to ensuring that the transformative power of light contributes positively to the environment around us. That’s why we’ve joined others in urging the EU to preserve the integrity of its sustainable finance framework – a vital structure for driving accountability and accelerating action on climate. One year after launching our Climate Transition Plan, we are making strong progress and remain committed to leading by example."
Tsvetelina Kuzmanova, EU Sustainable Finance Policy Lead, CISL
“The current political trajectory in the European Parliament risks taking us at least a decade backwards. The proposed changes fall below the standards already adopted by leading companies and investors, undermining the progress made in aligning sustainability with business strategy. The promised competitiveness compass is starting to look like swapping GPS for a paper map. What businesses require is a forward-looking framework that reflects market realities, supports innovation, and strengthens Europe’s global competitiveness.”
Disclaimer: The statement, coordinated by the Corporate Leaders Group Europe (CLG Europe), European Sustainable Investment Forum (Eurosif), Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC), Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and E3G will remain open until 29 August 2025 and will be updated weekly.
Join the signatories and show your support: Sign the statement
