Responsible Policy Engagement in the EU

The document addresses the risk of 'over-inflated pressure from minority laggard interests' in EU policy debates, noting that trade association positions often do not reflect their broader membership. It highlights a growing trend of companies bypassing traditional associations to support climate-aligned policies through initiatives like Corporate Leaders Group Europe. The guide introduces the RPE Framework and tailored EU guidance to help businesses align their advocacy with their climate commitments, noting that 94% of business leaders in 2025 viewed stable net-zero policies as critical to investment.

• There is a discrepancy between the public positions of trade associations and the views of their member companies, with some associations presenting inflated support for weakening regulations, such as the EU Emissions Trading System, the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
• Business support for climate-aligned policy in the EU has increased significantly, with the proportion of firms actively advocating for such policies rising from 3% in 2019 to 23% in 2025.
• A vast majority of business leaders identify stable clean energy and net-zero policies as essential factors for their investment decisions as of 2025.
• To counter the influence of laggard interests, some companies are utilizing alternative engagement initiatives such as Business for CBAM, the Nordic Near Zero Emissions Steel project, and Corporate Leaders Group Europe to advocate for industrial decarbonization and climate policies.

APA

We Mean Business Coalition (2026). Responsible Policy Engagement in the EU. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/resources/responsible-policy-engagement-in-the-eu/

Chicago

We Mean Business Coalition. Responsible Policy Engagement in the EU. 2026. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/resources/responsible-policy-engagement-in-the-eu/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=We Mean Business Coalition |title=Responsible Policy Engagement in the EU |date=29 May 2026 |url=https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/resources/responsible-policy-engagement-in-the-eu/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wemeanbusinesscoalition2026responsible, author = {{We Mean Business Coalition}}, title = {{Responsible Policy Engagement in the EU}}, institution = {We Mean Business Coalition}, year = {2026}, month = may, url = {https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/resources/responsible-policy-engagement-in-the-eu/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }