Jedlicka, Moravansky: The right-wing faction in the European Union has targeted environmental non-profit organizations, choosing to focus on a dispute regarding lobbying activities

Thursday, Feb 13, 2025

Denik Referendum

Debate erupt over LIFE program funds, with right-wing MEP groups proposing freezes due to lobbying concerns.

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[This is an automatically generated summary, for reference only]

Disputes surrounding the use of funds from the LIFE program, a European Union tool supporting an ecological economic model and providing grants to non-profit environmental organizations, have become controversial. Some commentators view this as a major scandal or the culmination of efforts by the European right wing to reduce support for ecological organizations. Following calls from the renewed Commission led by Ursula von der Leyen for environmental groups to stop using LIFE funds for lobbying costs, a Dutch tabloid reported that some civil society organizations had used EU money via LIFE to lobby for proposals, specifically those of former Commissioner Frans Timmermans regarding the Green Deal. A group of cross-party right-wing MEP’s, led by Monika Hohlmeier, proposed freezing payments totaling 15.6 million euros from LIFE intended for specialized non-profits like Carbon Market Watch and WWF Central and Eastern Europe, citing suspicions that the European Commission’s Directorate-General attempted to push stricter versions of its own proposals through activist networks, calling for a thorough investigation.

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