Frank Bold’s research shows significant improvement in corporate disclosures largely due to the standardisation brought by the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive. Companies are reporting ambitious climate targets and disclosing clearer, more comparable and meaningful sustainability information.
EU policy-makers are negotiating drastic changes proposed by the EU Commission to water down these rules as part of the first Omnibus on Simplification. The sudden U-turn and rushed legal process risks undermining momentum among the business community. Weakening the EU laws would roll back the progress made on transparency, data quality, and long-term climate planning at a time when consistency and ambition are most critical.
Our analysis shows how companies are responding to EU sustainability legislation, revealing positive developments in the transparency and quality of disclosures while also highlighting some persisting challenges:
Our analysts reviewed and assessed the sustainability information disclosed by 50 influential companies from the financial, textile, energy, agrifood and beverages, pharmaceuticals, mining and transportation sectors.
The complete research will be released this September, alongside a compilation of best practices.
Businesses require clarity, certainty, and stability to invest in sustainability reporting systems that meet market and stakeholder demands. The proposed rollbacks threaten not only environmental progress but also the credibility of EU leadership in sustainable finance. To preserve the achievements of the past decade and foster a forward-looking and competitive business environment, policy-makers in the EU Parliament must reject measures that weaken the CSRD and CSDDD and instead reinforce their consistent, effective application.
If you have any questions about the preliminary findings, or would like to share inputs, please get in touch with Susanna Arus at susanna.arus@frankbold.org or Lorena Bisignano at lorena.bisignano@frankbold.org.
Leading NGOs working on corporate sustainability and sustainable finance have published a briefing with key recommendations to help clarify directors’ responsibilities to oversee sustainability that fully fit with existing company law and corporate governance frameworks across Europe.
Frank Bold Society and the Neighbourhood Association Uhelná have drawn up a document with seven basic requirements that the Czech side should insist on when negotiating with Poland. See the press release for background information.
In the face of recent opposition addressed to the EU Commission by some business associations and specific governments from Nordic Europe, NGOs have reiterated their support for the European Commission commitment to present an initiative on Sustainable Corporate Governance in 2021, following the roadmap set in the EU Green Deal and the Action Plan on Sustainable Finance.
