As Ireland takes the helm of the Council of the EU, a new EEB memorandum calls on Dublin to shift Europe from short-term deregulation to long-term resilience. 

From geopolitical shocks to record-breaking heatwaves and continued efforts to weaken environmental safeguards, the Irish Presidency begins at a moment when the gap between Europe’s environmental reality and its political direction has rarely been more stark. 

Brussels, 1 July 2026 – As Ireland prepares to assume the Presidency of the Council of the European Union on 1 July, the European Environmental Bureau (EEB) is calling on the incoming Presidency to steer Europe away from short-term deregulation and towards policies that tackle the root causes of the climate and environmental crises while strengthening Europe´s resilience to their already unfolding impacts.

The call comes as Europe experiences its second major heatwave of 2026, with record temperatures once again exposing the growing human, environmental and economic costs of the climate crisis. Yet despite increasingly stark scientific warnings, political momentum has continued to favour dismantling environmental safeguards rather than accelerating their implementation.

Today, the EEB publishes its Memorandum for the Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, setting out priorities for the next six months, alongside its 10 Green Tests assessing the outgoing Cypriot Presidency.

“The science predicted this future, and it is arriving exactly as expected,” said Faustine Bas-Defossez, Policy Director at the EEB. “Every heatwave reminds us that Europe cannot adapt its way out of a crisis it continues to make worse. Our resilience depends on preventing further climate, biodiversity and pollution damage just as much as preparing for the impacts already unfolding. That means investing in nature, climate action and public health – and implementing, not dismantling, the laws designed to protect people and shield us from climate impacts.”

The Irish Presidency begins at a pivotal moment for the European Union. Alongside continued geopolitical instability, the next six months will shape negotiations on the post-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), the future of the LIFE programme, the Common Agricultural Policy, and several legislative proposals and omnibus packages that could significantly alter the EU’s environmental acquis, including health, biodiversity and water protections.

The EEB warns that Europe’s long-term security and prosperity depend not on deregulation, but on addressing the structural risks posed by climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. Persistent failures to implement existing environmental legislation already cost the EU an estimated €180 billion every year while exposing citizens to preventable health risks and environmental damage.

The EEB is calling on the Irish Presidency to have political courage and leadership to:

• ensure that “simplification” leads to better implementation, not deregulation;
• secure an ambitious long-term EU budget that invests in climate resilience, nature restoration and pollution prevention, including continued dedicated funding for the LIFE programme;
• safeguard science-based policymaking, democratic accountability and meaningful civil society participation;
• resist attempts to weaken cornerstone environmental legislation, including on biodiversity and water;
• strengthen implementation and enforcement of existing environmental law across the European Union.

Alongside the memorandum, the EEB’s 10 Green Tests assess the outgoing Cypriot Presidency against key environmental priorities. The assessment concludes that while progress was achieved on a number of important files, the Presidency did not succeed in reversing the broader trend towards deregulation at a time when accelerating climate impacts underline the need for stronger – not weaker – environmental action.

“This is a defining moment for Europe’s future,” said Patrick ten Brink, Secretary General at the EEB. “Citizens are asking for protection – for their health, their environment and their future. The Irish Presidency has an opportunity to help restore confidence by putting science, prevention and long-term public interest back at the heart of European decision-making. The solutions exist. The challenge now is to deliver them.”

The EEB’s Memorandum for the Irish Presidency was developed in consultation with more than 190 environmental organisations across Europe and sets out ten priority areas to guide the Presidency towards a greener, fairer and more resilient Europe.

Read our full Assessment of the Cypriot Presidency.
Read our full Memorandum for the Irish Presidency.

– ENDS –