Is it possible to improve competitiveness while not neglecting sustainable development goals? This complex task was tackled by the Head of the Corporate Reporting, Audit and Credit Rating Agencies Unit at the Directorate-General for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets of the European Commission, Sven Gentner, who was among the participants in the fourth edition of the ESG&FRIENDS 2025 forum, organized by the first specialized media for promoting ESG in Bulgaria, ESGnews.bg.
“There is no more appropriate time to ask this question. This is one of the most pressing problems faced by the Commission – the combination of sustainability on one hand and competitiveness on the other. In order to understand the complexity of the situation, we need to take a step back. We had prepared a comprehensive framework at the European level for what we aim to achieve in terms of sustainability. We also set specific political goals – for example, to be carbon neutral by 2050. Or the diversity goal. In fact, these conditions are still absolutely valid today. EC President Ursula von der Leyen stressed that the Green Deal remains a key element of the Commission’s policy, which will be implemented,” commented Sven Gentner.
The problems are getting worse
He stressed that the problems that the EC is trying to solve by achieving these goals are getting worse and it is necessary to act more quickly.
“We are in a completely different environment than four or five years ago. The reasons for this are clear – the war in Ukraine, energy prices, competition from other foreign players. Our task is to ensure that companies doing business in the EU are not overwhelmed, are competitive and at the same time adhere to the common goals. This is what our efforts are currently in,” said Sven Gentner.
He also explained that on February 26, EC President Von der Leyen will announce some adjustments to the current regulations.
“The goal is to give companies more time to deal with the rules, and to simplify the rules themselves. This is a political decision, the goal is for business to take a breather and become competitive again. But that is exactly what politics is – the ability to unite different goals and to achieve a workable solution. Let me emphasize once again – we must act quickly and clearly. In Bulgaria, for the first time, large companies are about to submit non-financial reports, and everything must be ensured so that this can be done without unnecessary difficulties,” said Sven Gentner.
The situation in Bulgaria
During the discussion, it was clarified that two bills have already been submitted to the National Assembly, according to which Bulgaria will not implement the directive in full this year. There are also such bills in other member states.
Sven Gentner revealed the views on the issue in the European Commission.
“I would not like to discuss domestic political matters that concern Bulgaria. I can say two things – firstly, we believe it is extremely important that all parties concerned remain extremely focused on the problem. The directive can only work if we have a common European framework that operates in all Member States. Secondly – as I have already said, we understand that there is a need for changes to help businesses. Such changes will be made. However, this does not mean that the requirements will disappear. Sustainability remains an extremely important element that will have to be at the heart of the entire European Union. It must be understood that the problems we want to solve are not created by bureaucracy or regulations. They already existed when we started our work. And they affect everyone – politicians, companies, customers. Our task is to explain once again what we are trying to achieve and how simplifying the rules will help to do this,” Gentner emphasized.
