The
European Commission has launched a new EU Energy Poverty Observatory in an
effort to tackle a visible problem across the EU.
At an event
in Brussels on January 29, Vice-President for Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič
acknowledged that energy poverty “has reached an unacceptable level – not only
in the poorer countries of the EU but also in the richer ones”.
Roughly 9
percent of the EU population struggles to attain adequate warmth. According to
the Commission, the Observatory aims to support informed decision making at the
local, regional, and national level by providing a user-friendly and
open-access resource that will promote public engagement on the issue of energy
poverty, as well as serve to disseminate information and good practice among
public and private stakeholders.
Awareness
of energy poverty is rising in Europe and has been identified as a policy
priority by the European Commission in its Clean Energy for All Europeans
package of initiatives. The Commission proposed to establish a common definition
and required the Member States to monitor figures and issue detailed reports.
This is
part and parcel of the implementation of Principle 20 of the European Pillar of
Social Rights and one of the enabling actions being put in place to support a
just and socially fair clean energy transition, the Commission said.
“The launch
of the Energy poverty Observatory marks an important milestone in our struggle
for a more just, united, and inclusive Europe,” Šefčovič said, sitting at a
panel that included Polish MEP Jerzy Buzek.
“The
Observatory will develop indicators measuring energy poverty across the EU.
This will provide, for the first time, a comprehensive overview of the
situation based on comparable data. We live at a time when ‘alternative facts’
or ‘fake news’ are popular. But we must make sure our policymaking is based on
sound and well-researched facts and data,” Šefčovič said, adding the data will,
therefore, be useful for national and regional governments, for cities, civil
society, and even for entrepreneurs pitching their solutions.
The
observatory must also engage with the EU Member States, national, regional and
local stakeholders as well as contribute its expertise and assistance while
encouraging them to fight energy poverty, Šefčovič said.
https://www.neweurope.eu/article/eu-commission-says-energy-poverty-unacceptable-level/