The European Commission has recently published the Competitiveness Compass, its competitiveness strategy for the next 5 years, which proposes several pieces of legislation / action plans related to the circular economy.
The Competitiveness Compass builds on the Draghi report on the future of European competitiveness. Many of the recommendations are already reflected in the Political Guidelines and mission letters by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to the members of the College.
The three core areas of the Competitiveness Compass are innovation, decarbonisation and reducing excessive dependencies and increasing security.
Planned measures related to the circular economy and recycling include:
- Circular Economy Act (Q4 2026) – Aims to create a single market for waste and secondary materials, reducing reliance on virgin raw materials, boosting recycling capacity, and setting new eco-design requirements for key product groups.
- Steel & Metals Action Plan (Spring 2025) – Focuses on decarbonizing energy-intensive industries, ensuring fair competition, improving access to primary and secondary raw materials, and addressing global overcapacity challenges.
- Clean Industrial Deal (Q1 2025) – Seeks to align decarbonization with industrial competitiveness, including streamlined permitting, targeted state aid, incentives for low-carbon products, and support for clean technologies.
- Chemicals Package (Q4 2025) – Will secure access to critical chemicals, simplify regulatory frameworks, and ensure a sustainable balance between industrial competitiveness and environmental protection.
Source and more information:
- European Commission press release available here
- Competitiveness Compass available here
Source of image: European Commission © Copyright