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Although the European Union has made great efforts to develop a recovery plan that includes sustainability goals, some Member States are failing to fulfil their obligation to implement such reforms.
A current analysis The analysis of the progress of the European National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), led by Openpolis and carried out in collaboration with partners from Slovakia, Greece and Hungary within the European Data Journalism Network, found that Bulgaria and Hungary in particular are extremely far behind in achieving their green transition milestones and targets: Bulgaria has only achieved 3% at the time of writing and Hungary has not achieved any target at all. These observations show how far Europe as a continent is from achieving its sustainability goals.
To support the continent’s post-pandemic development and provide financial support to the recovery of its Member States, the European Union launched the NextGenerationEU plan in 2021. At the heart of the project is the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), which includes climate and sustainability targets to ensure that the European Union’s recovery plan is in line with its goal of becoming the first climate-neutral (zero-emissions) continent by 2050.
As the EU’s financial allocations show, a key aspect of NextGenerationEU is to position the continent to achieve these goals, with at least 30% of the recovery plan and the EU budget earmarked for developing green projects and tackling climate change. Overall, the EU has allocated funds to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030, support the transition to clean energy and enable the development of sustainable transport.
While the continent collectively shares these broad goals, each individual member country has its own recovery plan and the freedom to decide where to invest, although there are certain criteria and milestones that each country must meet.
However, this lack of progress is less surprising given the political situation and general resistance to the green transition in Bulgaria and Hungary.
Bulgaria has been experiencing a number of political problems for years, although the sixth election in three years was held in June this year, no a minority government. This political uncertainty, coupled with what appears to be general skepticism about the green transition, has hampered the country’s progress in meeting its milestones and receiving reconstruction aid.
In 2021, the debate in the country about the green transition began to take shape, as Bulgaria was then was the most carbon-intensive economy in the EU, where almost half of the country’s electricity came from coal. Bulgaria, the poorest member state of the Union, was forced to The European Community attempted to phase out coal while at the same time reassuring miners that their livelihoods would be protected.
Although this happened three years ago, protests by coal and power plant workers continued, prompting the Bulgarian parliament in April 2024 to postpone a vote on the roadmap to climate neutrality, which, if adopted, would have released €4.4 billion in EU funds. In the run-up to the European elections in June 2024, a veteran coal miner and strike organiser said: “The Green Deal is a farce that threatens our well-being and fuels anti-European sentiments.” The former Bulgarian Prime Minister also commented on Bulgarians’ opinion of the deal, saying They describe how they feel “suffering and something invented by the Brussels bureaucracy, imposed on them and of which they are victims”, and suggest that this should be “an opportunity to modernise our production, economy and innovations”. However, amid political uncertainty and conflicting opinions at home regarding Bulgaria’s sustainable transition, the country has failed to make any significant progress.
In Hungary, attitudes and the political situation regarding the green transition are quite similar to those in Bulgaria. Viktor Orban, the prime minister of Hungary, which took over the six-month EU Council presidency in early July, has spoken out against climate action for years. In 2019, after more than a year of European discussions, Orban vetoed the EU’s plans to reduce carbon emissions by 2050. In response to the target of reducing emissions by 55% by 2030, Orban Politicians who support the Green Deal claim that they are “destroying the European middle class with the ‘Fit for 55’ legislative package”.
In recent months, the Hungarian president has reversed this step. Now they are “advocating for renewable energy and climate protection – but often without implementing a corresponding list of measures.” This shift comes after polls showed that a growing number of Hungarians consider the green transition important.
Nevertheless, the Hungarian president remained critical of Europe’s approach and strategy. In a recent opinion article In the Financial Times, Orban, like his counterparts in Bulgaria, expressed scepticism about the green transition, writing that it was a prime example of “misguided Brussels decisions that run counter to the realities of the global economy” and that the EU was “imposing its own ideologically motivated goals without adequately consulting industry.” While he insists that Europe must take a leading role in the transition, he is highly critical of the regulations put in place by the Union.
Due to these concerns from politicians and certain industries, both countries have failed to meet their expected milestones and therefore have not received part of their intended NextGenerationEU funding. However, if the EU really wants to become net-zero emissions by 2050, the governments of all 27 member states must support this vision and plan.
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