MEP Paulo do Nascimento Cabral expressed great satisfaction with the approval in Strasbourg of an amendment proposed by the PSD Delegation in the European Parliament. This amendment safeguards the Outermost Regions (ORs), including the Azores and Madeira, from the extended application of carbon taxes under the revised EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).
"It is a victory for the Azores and Madeira," stated Cabral, highlighting that the measure provides essential protection against additional carbon taxes on products such as electricity, hydrogen, cement, aluminium, iron, steel, and fertilizers. It was also ensured that these imported products can circulate between ORs without the carbon tax, and that products processed in these regions can be traded within the rest of the EU without additional charges.
Cabral criticized the European Commission's initial proposal for ignoring the specificities of the ORs and the European Parliament's draft report which only offered a derogation for French ORs. "It was thanks to the PSD's intervention that we ensured the inclusion of the Azores and Madeira," he emphasized. The amendment is considered a matter of "basic justice," protecting the regions, entrepreneurs, and farmers from new costs that would affect their competitiveness.
