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The Committee of European Audit Oversight Bodies (CEAOB) issued draft guidelines for limited assurance engagements on sustainability reporting under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). The objective is to facilitate the harmonisation of the sustainability assurance across the EU before the European Commission (EC) adopts EU limited assurance standard in 2026.
The proposed guidelines are non-binding and do not override national pronouncements that are in force in EU Member States (MS). However, national competent authorities may recommend or impose the use of the guidelines.
The guidelines are open for public consultation until 22 July 2024.
The Green claims directive sets rules for explicit voluntary environmental claims’ substantiation and verification to combat greenwashing. The Council’s general approach:
Trilogues will begin in the new legislative cycle.
On 17 June, the Council adopted the nature restoration law setting binding targets and obligations for nature restoration in different types of ecosystems. The purpose is to mitigate climate change and the consequences of natural disasters.
The regulation will be published in the EU’s official Journal and enter into force. It will be directly applicable in all MS.
The EC issued a report on the transition and physical risks of climate change. It describes the state-of-play of climate-related financial risk analysis in the EU as well as the potential policy responses. The report identifies key legislation to assess climate risk:
The Environment Council adopted conclusions on the 8th Environmental Action Programme (EAP) mid-term review. The (EAP) aims to accelerate the green transition in a fair and inclusive way and defines a framework for action up to 2030.
The Council continues to support the EU Green Deal implementation and, in its conclusions:
The European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) issued a joint opinion on the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), outlining policy recommendations to the EC:
The European Central Bank’s (ECB) biennial report on Financial Integration and Structure in the Euro Area (FISEA) focuses on structural developments in the financial system in the euro area and the EU. Among relevant sustainability-related recommendations, the ECB suggests:
The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) will finalise the revision of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Practice Statement 1 Management Commentary via targeted amendments to its Exposure Draft in the first half of 2025. The IASB will cooperate with the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) and will consider the Integrated Reporting (IR) framework in the final version.
EFRAG and the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosure (TNFD) issued a correspondence mapping between the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) and the TNDF’s disclosures. The mapping shows that standards are strongly aligned and addresses:
The ISSB announced its 2-year workplan, whereby the highest priority will be supporting IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 application.
In addition, the ISSB announced it will:
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