Meloni urges EU to deliver long-term response to high energy prices

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni urged the European Union on Monday to abandon short-term fixes and develop structural measures to address persistently high energy prices, warning that the bloc risks locking itself into a cycle of emergency dependency that threatens industrial stability.

Speaking at an assembly of the Assolombarda business association in Milan, Meloni stated that Europe needs “structural and long-term responses” to break free from perpetual crisis management. She described her proposal for the upcoming European Council meeting as “a simple proposal based on common sense as well as responsibility,” according to the Italian news agency ANSA.

Joint letter calls for regulatory easing

Meloni, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever also sent a joint letter to European Council President Antonio Costa linking energy costs and regulatory simplification to industrial competitiveness, the Italian prime minister's office said. The leaders called for accelerated investment procedures in priority sectors including energy and digitalization, a moratorium on new bureaucratic burdens, and reduced corporate sustainability reporting requirements for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Brussels pushback on emissions suspension

Meloni also criticized the EU's emissions trading system for increasing prices and creating harmful disparities between member states. Italian Deputy Environment Minister Vannia Gava urged the EU Environment Council in Luxembourg to consider suspending the launch of EU ETS 2 — a separate cap-and-trade system covering road transport and buildings set to begin in 2028 — though EU Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said the Commission did not plan to amend the timetable. Visiting Rome on the same day, EU Justice Commissioner Michael McGrath noted that the Commission was working closely with governments to provide flexibility in addressing living costs while maintaining fiscal sustainability.