Mayors of 58 cities from across Europe have today called for increased 2030 EU climate and energy targets. In an open letter to the President of the Council of the EU, Angela Merkel, and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, they demand a target of at least 55% legally binding at member-state level, with more targeted EU support offered to cities that have made even higher commitments of 65%.

The call follows the vote by the European Parliament last week in favour of a 60% target by 2030, and ahead of the European Council meeting starting today in Brussels.

EU funding should be channelled to a green and just recovery in cities, the mayors write in the letter, an initiative of the network Eurocities. Specifically, the mayors ask for the EU funding and recovery policies to lend more focussed support to “leading cities aiming to do their part of this goal with an even higher reduction target of 65%.”

This is the case for Stockholm where, as mayor Anna König Jerlmyr, President of Eurocities, says: “We applaud last week’s vote of the European Parliament in favour of an EU 60% reduction target by 2030. If we really want to be climate neutral by 2050, we should be even more ambitious and pursue up to 65% emissions reduction by 2030 – a target that many European mayors have already set for their cities. Cities are at the forefront of climate ambition in Europe and will be the engines of the European Green Deal. The EU must support them with a fit-for-purpose COVID19 recovery plan that directs massive investments to the green and just transition in cities.”

You can read the open letter here – and the press release here