Macron and Merz don’t care about EU industrial policy. On the margins of the EU summit in Brussels a Franco-German deal was made. The two EU member countries agreed that they would split the most fought-over part from the EU’s Industrial Accelerator Act, which sets low-carbon requirements for steel, cement, aluminium and clean-tech products such as batteries and solar panels. The two countries’ “Made in Europe” rules for electric cars must be adopted “as fast as possible and simultaneously” — the agreement says.
Paris hopes the new car definition will serve as a benchmark for the rest of Europe.
“We are driven by a clear ambition: to successfully transform our automotive industry while upholding our climate goals and our production in Europe,” said French president Emmanuel Macron on social media, announcing the deal.
“This is an investment signal to industry,” said German chancellor Friedrich Merz.
The deal came after Berlin accepted France’s demand for stricter “Made in Europe” rules that apply to fewer countries, while Paris agreed to looser emission rules for carmakers, as Germany had wanted.
