What’s in the European Commission’s 2027 work programme?

What are the European Commission’s main priorities for 2027?

The three core pillars of the EU’s strategy for building an independent economy remain competitiveness, security and affordability.

In response to this year’s energy supply crisis, the Commission aims to reduce the EU’s dependence on fossil fuels and ensure price stability. The link between the climate crisis and energy security has become undeniable.

The emphasis is firmly on strategic independence in a volatile geopolitical context. To safeguard the EU’s competitiveness, the Commission has framed the green transition as a matter of risk management, energy security and independence, rather than a purely environmental goal. 

But we know that ambition needs money. The programme sets out what the EU wants to do next year, but the key question is how it will be financed, and who will pay. Public investment, the banking sector, and the EU budget all have a role to play. 

What are the key initiatives in the Commission’s work programme?

The 2027 agenda presents 23 new legislative and non-legislative proposals. Rather than adding new rules, it focuses on enforcing existing regulations and continuing on the path of simplification within banking, transport, energy and housing. 

The main initiatives are:

Competitiveness 

• One Europe, One Market roadmap, aiming to remove barriers within the Single Market and boost competitiveness. 

• A bank competitiveness and simplification package, aiming to reduce market fragmentation and reinforce the Single Market. 

Energy security and affordability

• A proposal to accelerate the permitting of energy infrastructure projects,  so that building is authorised faster.

• A revision of the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) and of the Electricity Market Regulation, to encourage heavy carbon-intensive industries to decarbonise and to ensure electricity is not subject to a higher tax burden than gas. 

• A European Grids package, aiming to modernise and expand Europe’s electricity networks across the EU. 

Simplification packages

• A housing simplification package, to make it easier to build and renovate houses.

• A post-2030 framework and a simplification package on energy, to reach 50% electrification in the EU economy by 2030.

• A new Pact against “gold-plating”, in which the Commission is working with Member States to prevent unnecessary national requirements from reintroducing administrative burdens that are already removed at the EU level.

Climate  

• A European heat wave plan and a European water initiative, to anticipate the negative effects of climate change and improve the management of natural resources.

EU Budget 

• A call on the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union to agree, by the end of the year, on the 2028–2034 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), which will define the EU’s next budget.

What are the criticisms?

Since the start of its mandate, the European Commission has proposed 12 omnibus packages which, according to the Commission, could generate over €22 billion in annual savings, representing 60% of its mandate target.

Of the 23 initiatives, 10 are simplification packages, which confirms the conclusion we reached last year - behind the label “simplification”, the door has clearly been opened to deregulation that is supposed to make the life of European businesses easier, but it risks becoming mere greenwashing. Efforts to simplify implementation and remove unnecessary administrative burdens are always welcome. However, this should not come at the expense of sustainability or social protections. 

In total, the Commission proposed to withdraw 18 initiatives and repeal 14 pieces of legislation - including the Green Claims Directive, which was meant to combat greenwashing in environmental marketing. Dropping it sends the wrong signal. People and investors need clear and honest information to be able to understand what is truly green.

What is missing?

Much of the work programme is about (weakening) rules. However, adapting to and countering the effects of climate change - such as heat waves and water scarcity - as well as  building the grids and efficient homes that Europeans need, all require public investment. 

The next EU budget will be the real test. What matters is not only its size, but what it funds and how. First, it should put public money behind the transition and people’s needs, and not leave too much to private finance and short-term competitiveness.

At the same time, public money will not be enough on its own. Banks and financial markets also decide where a lot of the money goes, and if they keep financing the very same polluting activities that are making us vulnerable to economic instability and inflation, they will undermine public efforts. That is why the banking package matters too: it should help steer finance towards the investments that Europe needs. 

Why does the work programme matter?

The 2027 work programme arrives at a moment when Europe’s energy and economic vulnerability is at stake. Soaring prices and rising bills are weighing on households and businesses, exposing how far the EU’s sovereignty still depends on fossil fuel imports.

The work programme is only a starting point. The decisions that count will be taken in the coming months, when the Parliament and Member States negotiate the Commission’s proposals. That is the moment to ask one thing of every proposal: does it make Europe fairer and more secure for the people who live here, and does it prepare us for the climate and energy shocks we already face?

This year’s energy crisis has shown what delay costs, and that households and businesses are the first to pay. Europe cannot afford to answer these questions slowly, or in a way that only benefits a few.

We will keep pushing for the answer to be yes.