Who Cares About the Environment? Analyzing MEPs' Environmental Attitudes in the European Parliament

On December 11, 2019, the European Green Deal was officially adopted by the College of Commissioners. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described this milestone as “Europe’s ‘man on the moon’ moment,” highlighting the EU’s ambition to lead global efforts in combating climate change and driving the transition to a sustainable economy. Scholars frequently described the European Parliament as an 'environmental champion' and an institution 'destined to save the Earth.' Key milestones such as the Paris Agreement and the European Green Deal have emphasized the urgency of climate change, placing environmental issues at the center of the European Parliament’s agenda. Internal factors, including a shift to the right within the Parliament in recent elections and the accession of environmentally skeptical states to the EU, along with external factors such as climate-related disasters, further influence the discourse by driving shifts in legislative priorities and fostering new coalitions among MEPs. Exploring how these pressures are reflected in parliamentary debates and decision-making processes offers critical insights into the EP’s environmental policymaking dynamics. This paper explores how parliamentary debates on environmental issues have changed over time and investigates whether these changes can be linked to developments in energy and climate policy or broader political events. It examines how representatives from various political parties discuss environmental matters within the EP. Despite significant scholarly contributions to comparative European legislative politics, key questions remain unanswered, particularly regarding environmental issues. By providing a time-series analysis of MEP debates in the EP, this study seeks to address gaps in the existing literature and offer a deeper understanding of the evolution of environmental discourse within the European Parliament.