Far-right lawmakers to lead EU negotiations on new climate target

By Kate Abnett

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The far-right Patriots for Europe group will lead the European Parliament's work on the bloc's new climate target, European Union lawmakers said on Tuesday, a role that could complicate a deal on the goal to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040.

The Patriots group, which has rejected EU policies to curb climate change, is the third-biggest in the parliament, and includes the political parties of France's far-right leader Marine Le Pen and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Its appointment was confirmed by EU lawmakers including co-chair of the Green EU lawmaker group, Bas Eickhout, and Socialists and Democrats group chair Iratxe García Perez, during separate press conferences. A spokesperson for the Patriots did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Climate change has made Europe the world's fastest-warming continent, and a severe heatwave last week caused disruption across the continent. But governments from Italy to Poland have pushed back this year on ambitious emissions-cutting goals, citing concerns over the costs for industries.

The new role puts the Patriots in an influential position for when EU countries and the European Parliament negotiate the EU's 2040 climate target in the coming months - talks in which the Patriots will represent the European legislature.

The Patriots will be tasked with drafting an initial proposal for the parliament's position in these negotiations - although lawmakers from some other groups noted they can still reject the Patriots' draft and produce their own instead.

"It will force the pro-European groups to work together to carry this key proposal to an agreement before the COP30 in Belem," said French liberal EU lawmaker Pascal Canfin, referring to this year's U.N. climate summit in November.

The Patriots group holds eurosceptic positions including the accusation that the EU is seeking to replace national governments with a European "superstate".

The Patriots secured the negotiating role in a closed-door meeting on Tuesday morning, by outbidding the parliament's biggest group, the centre-right European People's Party, EU officials told Reuters.

The 27-country EU and other major economies including China are due to submit new climate targets to the United Nations by September, ahead of the COP30 summit.

Brussels has struggled to generate political support for the 2040 climate target, which the European Commission last week proposed after months of delay.

(Reporting by Kate Abnett; editing by Mark Heinrich)