The tripartite agreement on a CO2 tax on agriculture is hanging by a thread as parties in the Danish Parliament wish to reopen negotiations. The agreement, presented at a press conference on Monday evening, is not yet politically binding and still lacks approval from the Parliament. Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen (V) expressed his concern that further negotiations could jeopardize the agreement. He appealed to the Parliament to recognize the delicate balance that has been achieved between the parties.
“The government naturally wants a robust majority in the Parliament to support our vision, but appeals to read through the agreement and understand how delicate this is. In a Europe where farmers drive into cities and burn tires, and where climate activists glue themselves to highways,” Lars Løkke Rasmussen said.
The Foreign Minister described it as “quite unique” that organizations like the Confederation of Danish Industry (Landbrug & Fødevarer) and the Danish Society for Nature Conservation (Danmarks Naturfredningsforening) have been able to agree on the agreement and find a balance.
“One must also understand that it is delicate, and it will fall apart if one chooses to say that they prefer more of one thing or the other. This is both and,” he added.
The Danish Confederation of Industry (Dansk Industri), also part of the tripartite agreement, also appeals to the Parliament’s parties not to make changes to the agreement. Political director Morten Høyer stated that any adjustment could cause the agreement to collapse.
“If we can agree, it also means that you have hit the balances precisely in every line and every word in that text. I believe what we have crafted is so ambitious that if they begin to pick it apart from the Parliament’s side, the agreement falls apart. Then there are those who cannot support it. The agreement collapses, and that would be really, really unfortunate,” Høyer said.
The Radical Left’s (De Radikale) climate spokesperson, Samira Nawa, earlier in the evening told Jyllands-Posten that the party will not accept the agreement without further negotiation.
“I expect that we will be invited to real political negotiations after the tripartite agreement,” Nawa said.
The Danish Parliament has officially begun its summer break, and the government can only introduce the necessary bills in the autumn. The tripartite agreement includes, among other things, a billion-dollar fund for afforestation and land acquisition, as well as a CO2 tax on agriculture, which will come into effect in 2030 and be fully phased in by 2035.