Climate & Environment

EU calls for 90% emissions cut by 2040

European Commission has rolled back on new pesticide policy as it launched a new climate roadmap on Tuesday

Spanish farmers drive their tractors past the El Cid Campeador statue during a protest in demand of fair conditions for the agricultural sector, in Burgos, northern Spain. Picture: Getty

Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission President, has said she will withdraw a plan to halve the use of pesticides because it became a “symbol of polarization” following protests by farmers across Europe.

The European Union’s executive arm in June 2022 proposed a regulation to slash pesticide use by 50 per cent until 2030 as part of a plan to make farming more sustainable, but the European Parliament voted it down. Fears over falling ...