Commissioner McGuinness addresses the EFRAG SRB in a special public meeting.

The EFRAG has published a press release on the extraordinary meeting of the EFRAG SRB on 6 July, which was attended by Commissioner Mairead McGuinness. The Commissioner appreciated EFRAG’s work and emphasised the importance of a holistic approach for the economy’s development. The adoption of the first set of standards for the ESRS is in its final stages and expected by the end of July. The standards cover ESG reporting with a focus on material information and phasing-in options for reporting entities. EFRAG’s key priority is to provide guidance for successful implementation, with a gradual move to sector-specific standards. The Commissioner also stressed the significance of SME standards, both for listed SMEs under the CSRD mandate and voluntary use by non-listed SMEs. Feedback on the EC’s draft delegated act closed on 7 July.
EFRAG values the exchanges with Commissioner McGuinness and expressed gratitude for the opportunity. Key messages included the need for clarity, integrity, and user-friendly reporting standards. Coordination with ISSB and GRI standards, regulatory consistency, and defining materiality were also highlighted. EFRAG awaits the outcome of the public feedback on the EC’s draft delegated act, anticipating its timely publication.
Aleksandra Palinska, Eurosif’s Executive Director, addressed the concerns of Eurosif regarding the draft Commission Delegated Regulation, as published by the European Commission on 9 June, presenting the investors‘ perspective. The concerns relate to the latest changes especially the proposals to move away from requiring certain key disclosure indicators to be reported on a mandatory basis. She mentioned also a joint letter to the European Commission, in which Eurosif alongside the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC), the European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA), the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) as well as 92 asset managers, on behalf of the sustainable investment industry, call for maintaining the integrity and timeline for implementation of the CSRD and the corresponding first set of ESRS. The co-signatories of the statement request adjustments to the draft delegated act laying down provisions for set 1 of ESRS: Mandatory disclosure of key climate indicators, ensuring that environmental and social indicators required for the SFDR, the EU Climate Benchmark Regulation and delegated acts on climate benchmarks, Pillar 3 disclosures and other investor reporting requirements are disclosed by companies in scope, required explanations as to why certain sustainability topics are not considered material by a company, ensuring maximum interoperability of the ESRS with the ISSB and GRI standards to reduce fragmentation in the global reporting landscape and support cross-border capital flows while maintaining the principle of double materiality enshrined in the CSRD and ESRS and furthermore the reconsideration of the fully optional nature of: (i) own workforce disclosures on non-employees and (ii) biodiversity transition plans to provide investors with information on how companies are implementing their strategies and business models in line with the EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030 and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (please see eventID#22030 for details).
Interested persons may watch the recording on the EFRAG website.