Security, Competitiveness and Sovereignty:  Why Sufficiency Matters for the EU

10 targets and measures to reduce energy and resource consumption, for a competitive and secure European economy. 

To enhance security, competitiveness and sovereignty, Europe needs a transformation in energy and resource demand that goes beyond and complements efficiency efforts. Indeed, sufficiency is the missing pillar to reducing costs for households and industry and achieving our climate and sustainability goals. It needs to be integrated into key European policy and legislative initiatives, such as the Green Deal and, more recently, the Clean Industrial Deal, which is an important step towards decarbonisation and renewed competitiveness.

From going beyond the current focus of circular economy policies to adopt a systemic vision of resources (including extraction and use) in the Circular Economy Act, to ensuring efficient use of existing building stock by establishing a comprehensive monitoring system of building use across Europe in the EU Affordable Housing Plan, or ensuring sustainable water management through comprehensive water impact assessments in the Water Resilience Strategy, there are many tools that can be activated immediately to make Europe more resilient and competitive.

This document proposes 10 actions and targets, embedded in current sectoral policy initiatives and legislation, to reduce energy and resource consumption for a more competitive and secure European economy :

1. Binding resource use targets to reduce the EU’s material footprint
2. Binding EU 2040 energy consumption reduction targets
3. Obligation to monitor the use of existing buildings in Europe
4. Taxation and allocated investment to address vacant and under-used buildings and encouraging reuse/repurpose
5. Mandatory water impact assessments in all new EU industrial policies
6. Water reuse promotion across sectors
7. EU target for citizen-owned energy by 2050, including 2030 and 2040 interim targets
8. European scheme to achieve low-carbon modal shift, affordable access to quality public transport and resource-efficient vehicle design
9. Make the use of price-quality criteria in public procurement mandatory.
10. Establish mandatory sectoral Green Public Procurement criteria and targets