Boiling in Brussels: Climate fights and Orbán vs. Pride

EU Confidential

POLITICO

Politics, News Commentary, News

4.4 • 175 Ratings

🗓️ 4 July 2025

⏱️ 37 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Europe baked, the Atomium shut early — and Brussels finally unveiled its long-delayed climate target. Host Sarah Wheaton speaks with POLITICO Climate Reporter Louise Guillot, Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent Nick Vinocur and EU Politics Reporter Max Griera about the EU’s new 2040 goal: What a 90 percent emissions cut really means, why critics say it’s already being softened, and how Denmark’s presidency of the Council of the EU plans to juggle climate, migration and more amid stormy politics. We also pull back the curtain on Ursula von der Leyen’s powerful gatekeeper, Bjoern Seibert — and on Viktor Orbán’s crackdown on Budapest Pride. Later, POLITICO’s Cities Correspondent Aitor Hernández-Morales joins to explore how Europe’s cities are navigating the heat — both political and literal — and why so many mayors are now turning to Brussels for help with urgent issues like housing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	I had the absolute pleasure of speaking to Pamela Anderson.
0:04.2	All thanks to the Dove Self-Eesteem Project.
0:07.1	We speak about the impact Y2K has had on women's body confidence and how Pamela has regained control.
0:12.9	The Dove Self-Esteen project is an amazing initiative supported by science-backed methodology
0:17.8	to help us improve our relationship with our bodies.
0:20.8	To find more
0:21.4	body confidence-building exercises, go to dove.com forward slash Y2K. That's Y2K-Selt W-H-Y2K.
0:32.4	Europe was united this week. In a furnace. It was so bad the Eiffel Tower was partially closed,
0:41.7	the Atomium shut down early here in Brussels, and more concerningly, wildfires raged in Greece,
0:48.4	Turkey, France, and parts of Scotland. You know the drill. Experts pointed to climate change.
0:56.5	The frequency and intensity of extreme heat events is increasing in Europe.
1:03.0	So voila!
1:04.5	What better week for the European Commission to unveil its long-delayed climate target?
1:10.6	The headline number?
1:12.1	A 90% drop in emissions by 2040.
1:15.8	It sounds ambitious until you start to learn about all the quote-unquote flexibilities.
1:22.7	After all, it's an awkward time to be unveiling deadlines for cutting emissions.
1:27.4	The EU's post-election shift to the right has made many governments more wary of it's an awkward time to be unveiling deadlines for cutting emissions.
1:31.8	The EU's post-election shift to the right has made many governments more wary of green rules, despite the heat.
1:38.6	And this isn't the only issue where the changing political wins are giving us whiplash.
1:43.6	Look at the politics of migration.
1:45.8	Deportations are likely to be a top priority for the incoming Danish presidency of the Council of the
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