During 2030 Agenda Stakeholder Forum I had the pleasure of participating in a workshop led by Witold Strzelecki from Business & Science Poland panel discussion. Antonina Maria Woźna from DG FISMA, Corina Murafa Benga from European Economic and Social Committee and Kamil Wyszkowski, manager UN Global Compact Network Poland.
Although the main topic of the conversation was the competitiveness of European companies, and Witold Strzelecki's excellent questions kept us focused on this topic, the discussion very quickly took on a rather one-sided character. Antonina Maria Woźna presented the Commission's arguments for putting forward the Omnibus proposal. The other three participants, however, presented further counterarguments in their statements.
It was significant that Corina Benga pointed out that the Commission had requested the EESC's opinion within 30 days, even though the Committee always presents its position within six months. The European Economic and Social Committee is a body established by the Treaty on European Union, and the Commission is required to consult it on a number of issues. The Committee is composed of over 300 representatives of employers, employees, and non-governmental organizations appointed by the Member States. I have written many times about the lack of consultation on the Omnibus draft, but I was not previously aware that the Committee had also been omitted. It is difficult for me to comment on how recklessly the Commission decided to act, in violation of the basic provisions of the Treaty.
Kamil Wyszkowski reminded that the laws of physics and chemistry are not subject to regulations modified according to the wishes of the European Commission. Weakening the competitiveness of European companies in the transformation process will not help them, but will only leave more room for dynamic growth of competition from other continents. The UN Global Compact's position on the Omnibus project is unequivocally negative.
I will not repeat my arguments regarding the Omnibus here, as you, as readers of the newsletter, are already familiar with them. Instead, I recommend that you listen to the latest episode of the Frankly Speaking podcast, in which Richard Howitt talks to Ludovic Flandin, vice president of WeAreEurope. He presents the results of the study I wrote about last week, highlighting several new and interesting details.
In turn, at the beginning of next week (specifically, on June 3 and 4, 2025), I will be participating in Investor Relations Congress of the Polish Association of Listed Companies. I hope to meet those of you who work in SEG member companies and have the opportunity to talk in person.
On June 3, 2025, I will also participate in a meeting during which a group of several representatives of companies, banks, investment funds, and organizations such as PRI and Eurosif will present their opinions on the Omnibus project to MEPs working in committees that are to issue their opinions.
If you are considering preparing a report based on VSME guidelines, take a look at the EFRAG website. Last week, it published complete tool used for reporting, together with a converter that automatically tags the prepared report with XBRL tags. For now, it is available in English, but I believe that the Ministry of Development and Technology will soon provide us with a Polish version, as was the case with the VSME guidelines themselves.
Last week, EFRAG also announced its composition. Sustainability Reporting TEG for another term. I am delighted to announce that I have been appointed for two years, until 2027. I promise to continue fighting for practical, useful, and comprehensive standards and, of course, to provide you with all relevant information from EFRAG as soon as possible 😊
P.S. I've bombarded you with links in this newsletter. But please read one more piece of information. Last week A German court has decided, that greenhouse gas emitters (in this case, the German energy company RWE) can be held liable directly as a result of lawsuits brought by people affected by climate change. When Polish highlanders, who are losing their winter business year after year as a result of shorter snow cover, read about this ruling, I expect to see an interesting lawsuit against the largest Polish energy companies fairly soon. And then we'll sit on the couch with popcorn and watch to see who the Polish court will rule in favor of: Polish highlanders or Polish companies with a large share of the State Treasury 😉
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