The European Commission 2030 framework for climate and energy policies: a step back?

The European Commission has recently presented its new framework for climate and energy policies for the period 2020-30. The proposal comes during a time of increased concerns over the European economic competitiveness. Some of the measures required to reach the 2030 targets give the impression that the European Union is ready to give up its strict environmental policies. We argue that in order to reach these targets, something the European Union certainly fails to do with respect to the catchy 20-20-20 strategy, a substantial revision of the core elements of the 2030 strategy is required.