Éamon Ó Cuív’s Post

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Partner at McCann FitzGerald LLP

In December, I posted on the provisional agreement reached on new EU rules on responsible business conduct to be implemented through the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) and noted that it was subject to approval by the co-legislators, a process usually regarded as a formality. At that stage, it could hardly have been anticipated the rollercoaster journey the legislation would still have undertake before being finalised - cancelled votes, outright rejection, and frantic last minute negotiations and amendments in the face of a legislative cliff edge. And while the journey has not yet reached its destination with European Parliament approval still outstanding, a significant hurdle was overcome on Friday with the approval by the European Council of a revised CSDDD containing a number of significant concessions to Member States that had voiced concerns about the impact of the legislation on EU industry. These are reported to include: 💥 reduced scope with only companies with a turnover in excess of €450 million and more than 1000 employees being within scope with the lower thresholds applicable to high impact sectors being deleted (it has been reported that this reduces the number of companies in-scope by nearly 70% when compared to the text agreed in December) 💥 extended phase-in provisions with companies with more than 5,000 employees and €1.5 billion turnover having 3 years to comply with the directive, those with over 3,000 employees and €900 million turnover having 4 years with the remaining companies having 5 years 💥 deletion of provisions requiring larger companies to “promote the implementation” of a climate transition plan through internal financial incentives Notwithstanding these concessions, the implementation of CSDDD represents a watershed moment for corporate accountability and it’s likely that companies will start taking early steps to align themselves with its requirements despite the long lead-in period, including by reference to the UN Guiding Principles and OECD Guidelines for multinational enterprises. https://lnkd.in/eX5tmh3U #csddd

EU agrees to watered down rules on supply chain standards

EU agrees to watered down rules on supply chain standards

rte.ie

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