Look into the role that local and regional authorities can play in the field of consumer protection.

Opinion outlined the importance of consumers in the green transition: consumers need to be informed and empowered so that they can make informed choices based on comparable, transparent and clear information, including information on the durability, reparability and social and environmental footprints of products.

The Commission tabled an initiative on ‘Empowering the Consumer for the Green Transition’, amending two existing directives: the unfair commercial practices directive (UCPD) and the consumer rights directive (CRD).

The amendment to the EU’s consumer rights directive would oblige traders to provide consumers with more detailed information on products durability and reparability in line with the CoR recommendations.

THE EUROPEAN COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS



- stresses the need to develop consumer protection and the associated implementation tools in order to take full account of the major challenges facing the European economy, such as the COVID-19 crisis, the green transition, digital transformation, globalisation and the emerging specific needs of certain vulnerable consumers;

- stresses that EU consumers play an essential role in the green transition and therefore they need to be informed and empowered so that they can make informed choices based on comparable, transparent and clear information in accordance with the European Commission's environmental footprint methodology, including information on the durability, reparability and social and environmental footprints of products; this information needs to be based on solid data and consumer research. In the process of information spreading the involvement of local and regional authorities is recommended;

- calls for the European Commission, the Member States and local and regional authorities to direct financial incentives from the EU recovery plan towards guaranteeing long-term economic, social and environmental progress while reducing resource use, avoiding and removing hazardous substances and improving circularity of materials and systems;

- stresses the importance of developing consumers' financial literacy, including in the area of new digital technologies, by supporting projects in this field at local and regional level;