POLITICS
(Brussels) The Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) “welcomes” the European Green Deal that the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, presented to the European Parliament today. “It is very important that Europe takes the lead in protecting our environment”, COMECE General Secretary Fr. Manuel Barrios Prieto told SIR news agency. “It is also desirable – he added – that the EU institutions go beyond the Green Deal, by promoting a true ecological conversion to a more sustainable society for future generations, through a just transition that leaves no one behind”. These words from the General Secretary of COMECE come as the EU Parliament debates the measures included in the Green Deal intended to make Europe the first climate neutral continent. Inspired by Pope Francis’ Encyclical “Laudato Si’” and in the context of the recent assembly of COMECE, the EU Bishops have paid particular attention to the EU’s ecological policies, encouraging European institutions to “implement policies that promote integral human development”. It should also be noted that, following the recent Synod of Bishops for the Amazon, COMECE President Card. Jean-Claude Hollerich, together with other Catholic Church leaders from all the continents, issued a call on policy makers participating in the COP25 to “take immediate action to address and reverse climate change”.
