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With its vote on the reform of the EU’s polluter-pays scheme today, the European Parliament’s Environment Committee has failed to introduce effective rules for the support of poor countries in adapting to climate change.

Europe needs ambitious targets and concrete policies to cut emissions and tacke the climate crisis, said Oxfam at the occasion of EU heads of state and governments meeting for a European Union summit in Brussels today.

Hundreds of European cities, regions, businesses, youth and faith groups and civil society organisations are urging European leaders to take decisive action to respond to the climate emergency by profoundly altering the way we run our societies and economies to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C.

Joint Media Reaction by Oxfam, CAN Europe, APRODEV, CIDSE

In a key committee vote on the reform of the EU bioenergy policy, the European Parliament has improved the reform proposal, but Oxfam says it does not do enough to end the EU's bioenergy policy's destructive effects on the climate and on people worldwide.

Oxfam welcomes the fast-track ratification of the Paris climate agreement by the EU. Now, EU governments have to show their practical commitment to protect people and the planet from global warming.

If Europe were to rule out its support of biofuels by 2020, the region could lower its net imports of grain and oilseeds by up to 27 million tons, remarkably reducing its dependence on foreign goods. Global food prices could also drop significantly.

Europeans may still be forced to buy biofuels made from food crops until 2030, as a result of the deal struck by EU member states and the European Parliament this morning on the Renewable Energy Directive (RED II), Oxfam said.

Europe can continue burning food to fuel cars and trucks in the EU, the European Parliament voted today. In the vote on the reform of the Renewable Energy Directive for 2030, MEPs supported rules that would allow member states to force-feed car drivers with biofuels made from food-crops at current levels until 2030.

Commenting on the failure of EU Energy Ministers to reach agreement on EU biofuel policy today, Marc Olivier Herman, Oxfam’s biofuels expert said: