'Open letter to the European Commission : 240 researchers, mainly economists, warn against the Omnibus proposal'

Organised by the Veblen Institute and its scientific advisor, Jezabel Couppey-Soubeyran, 240 European researchers, mainly economists, have issued an open letter warning of the dangers of the ‘Omnibus’ initiative being prepared by the European Commission...

The letter expresses the concern of economists, experts and academics that ‘simplification’ will be used as a pretext to downgrade the level of ambition of these texts, which are essential to guide the European economy towards the objectives of sustainability and the European Green Deal.

For the signatories, this danger is all the more present given that the Omnibus project of 26 February is presented as the first stage in a broader wave of deregulation that is largely in line with the demands of major interest groups supported by several Member States, including France...

The signatories stress the dangerous nature of such a step backwards, in terms of environmental and climate action, but also for the European economy. They reject the competitiveness argument put forward by the Commission and point out that this is largely contradicted by the studies carried out when the texts were adopted. On the contrary, they propose an alternative vision in which stable standards and solid environmental requirements will lead to a stronger Europe that can face up to the challenges of our time...

• Full list of signatories
• Click here to sign the open letter