Europe's Self-Inflicted Wound: The Corporate Responsibility Retreat
By dismantling corporate sustainability rules, European businesses are handing competitive advantages to their foreign rivals.
The European Union’s current retreat from corporate social responsibility measures adopted during the 2019-2024 legislative term threatens to backfire spectacularly, undermining both European companies and domestic producers.
During the previous European Commission’s mandate, two landmark directives emerged as central pillars of the Green Deal’s ambitious corporate accountability framework.
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) established comprehensive reporting requirements for companies’ environmental and social impacts, creating transparency where opacity had long reigned.
Author's summary: Europe's retreat from corporate responsibility threatens its businesses.