PM stresses need for countries to be able to choose their own energy mix to achieve carbon neutrality

Addressing the COP26 climate change conference in Glasgow Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis criticized the EU’s Green Deal as overly ambitious and irrational at a time when the continent is threatened by energy poverty. The Czech prime minister argued that the proposed ban on combustible engines in 2035, or carbon allowances for transport and individual housing by which the European Union wants to achieve zero emissions by 2050 will have scant effect without a similar commitment by the world’s leading polluters such as China and the US.

Babis said the “Fit for 55” proposals pay no heed to the conditions and dispositions of individual member states, or the ratio of industry to GDP, arguing that if the EU fails to balance green needs with economic common sense then the European Green Deal could become the European Green Suicide. He said it is absolutely crucial for individual states to be able to choose their own energy mix to achieve carbon neutrality.