The text, adopted in plenary, will make the building sector climate neutral by 2050, all new buildings should be zero-emission from 2028. Existing residential buildings would have to be classified as at least E on their energy performance by 2030, and D by 2033 - on a scale going from A to G, the latter corresponding to the 15% worst-performing buildings in the national stock of a member state. Non-residential and public buildings would have to achieve the same by 2027 and 2030 respectively. Ciarán CUFFE (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, gives a press conference in the EP. The transcription is the result of an automatic process, please check against delivery.

plenary session

press conference

Energy (T2)

consumers' protection (T)

CUFFE, Ciarán (Greens/EFA, IE)

Fit for 55 (T)

Press conference by Ciarán CUFFE (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur on Energy performance of buildings

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciar&aacute;n CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, It's good to be with you this afternoon. And I think we have sound. So, look, I'm very pleased with the deal. It is a Greens European Free Alliance win, particularly on the social safeguards. But also there are reassurances on finance and flexibility is offered to member states. I certainly believe that this deal is both fair and realistic. It is flexible and I certainly believe it is the right plan for Europe.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciarán CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, It's fair and realistic because it will lower energy bills. It will tackle the root causes of energy poverty and it'll create jobs. It will create local jobs, and also it will provide funding for renovations. It's flexible, because each member state develops a renovation plan, and that renovation plan is based on improving the lower performing buildings in that member state.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciarán CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, And we calibrate the 15% that corresponds to a G energy rating from the worst performing 15% of buildings in that in that country. We also allow exemptions for heritage buildings and also up to a 22% derogationm if the member if the member states so wishes. But it's the right plan for Europe as well. It ensures we reach our climate targets and it will be a big cut to our gas dependence, which has been up until recently on Putin in Russia.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciarán CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, But we don't want to flip from one dictator to another. We want to ensure that Europe attains energy security and that we move away from fossil fuels. Buildings are important. Buildings consume 40% of Europe's energy, and they're responsible for 36% of the greenhouse gas emissions. So over one third of the emissions come from buildings. And if we tackle this, we're well on our way to our climate targets.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciarán CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, This winter, householders all around Europe, including ourselves, have opened up a bill and seen sky high prices. If we renovate our buildings, it will reduce our energy bills going forward. And this is hugely important. And we also want to take people out of energy poverty even before this winter, before the pandemic, we know that tens of millions of Europeans were suffering from energy poverty in cold, draughty homes in the winter, in overheated homes in the summer.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciarán CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, This proposal will tackle this. It will deliver more comfortable living spaces in our towns, in our cities. It will improve air quality because the move away from burning coal, oil and gas will improve urban air quality. And we saw in the pandemic the relationship between COVID mortality and poor urban air quality. So we're tackling that as well.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciarán CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, But I also think a lot of Europe needs an economic boost at the moment. We're seeing flatlining growth in several countries and the improvement the renovation of buildings will boost jobs and it will boost not only highly skilled construction professionals, but it will also boost unskilled labour at a local level. It's a good story for SMEs. It's a good story for householders. It's a good story for tenants.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciarán CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, So I'm certainly pleased with what we've achieved in the deal and happy with the deal, and I am pleased that all the major groups signed up to it and the vast bulk of the amendments went the right way today. So, I'm pleased with that. There were attempts from some parties, particularly on the far right, to remove the ambition from the file, and thankfully that didn't happen.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciarán CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, And in conclusion, it is a fair deal. It's a flexible deal. And by giving legislative certainty, I know that the money will flow. That's the message I have heard over the last year from the European Investment Bank, from the European Central Bank. Show us the certainty, we'll make the money available. That money is already flowing in terms of low interest loans to member states and to local authorities.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ciarán CUFFE, (Greens/EFA,IE), Rapporteur, But this will increase over the coming years and it needs to because this is a project. It's not a three year or a five year project. It's a project that takes us to 2050 to achieve A-rated buildings all around Europe and in doing so, safeguard the planet as well as safeguard people in their homes. Happy to take any questions.