European Parliament cements position on climate change law with final vote

[BRUSSELS] The European Parliament has rubber-stamped its position on the European Union's (EU) climate law, confirming its support for a 2030 target to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 60 per cent against 1990 levels, according to vote results released on Thursday.

The vote confirms Parliament's position, which was agreed in preliminary votes earlier this week, on a landmark law to make the EU's climate targets legally binding.

Parliament must agree the final law with the EU's 27 member countries, only a few of whom have said they would support a 60 per cent emissions-cutting target. But by backing the goal, lawmakers hope to pressure countries to not water it down in the negotiations to an emissions cut of less than 55 per cent.

The EU's current 2030 target is a 40 per cent emissions cut.

REUTERS