Ahead of the EU Council’s vote on the European Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, over 300 business and human rights practitioners joined a call to support the CSDDD.

The statement reads:

🌍 BHR Professionals’ Call to Support the CSDDD 🌍

The EU Council’s impending vote on the European Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) on February 9th demands stronger support now more than ever. The pressure on the German government to abstain during the EU Council vote is high.

This upcoming vote on the CSDDD is more than a legislative formality – it is a defining moment for our shared future. The CSDDD represents an unprecedented opportunity to shape a sustainable future for all.

Numerous companies and business associations in Europe and around the world have expressed their support for the CSDDD. This Directive is a much needed and powerful tool to harmonise the current fragmented practices and level the playing field for respecting human rights and the environment. It will provide the legal certainty that the companies are calling for and that is needed to identify, assess, prevent, mitigate, and remedy adverse human rights and environmental harms.

As business and human rights (BHR) practitioners, lawyers and academics committed to supporting and encouraging responsible business conduct, we call on the EU governments to recognise the pivotal importance of the CSDDD. The legislator has gone to great lengths to ensure that the directive is both ambitious and achievable. Through rules on prioritisation and a special treatment of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the legislation constructively addresses the specificities and legitimate expectations of SMEs and makes a stepwise transformation possible.

Our concern extends beyond national borders: together, we urge the EU governments to understand the significance of the moment and act collectively to secure the CSDDD in the vote on February 9th.

It is time for decisive action to ensure businesses contribute positively to our society and planet and align business and human rights for good.

This week’s vote can shape the future of generations to come. Let's make it count for the better. Support the CSDDD.

[list of signatories attached]