Issue 504 | 4 November 2019

As Valdis Dombrovskis, prepares to take on the role of Commission Vice-President for An Economy that Works for People, he tells us why sustainable finance is essential both in safeguarding our planet’s future and making the financial sector a part of the green transition.

Continuing our look at sustainable finance, the European Parliament’s co-rapporteur on sustainable investment, Sirpa Pietikäinen, explains why she believes it’s important to define what constitutes sustainable economic activity. Shadow rapporteur, Dimitrios Papadimoulis, also tells us why the European Commission must act - and invest - to create a culture of genuine sustainable investment.

We also have in-depth coverage of the recent City of London Corporation event on accelerating green finance, which heard that financing the transition to a cleaner, zero-carbon economy, represents the investment opportunity of the century.

Our special feature in this issue is Industrial Policy, featuring comment from MEP Zdzisław Krasnodębski, vice-chair of Parliament’s Industry, Research and Energy Committee and Pierre Delsaux, European Commission Deputy Director-General for the Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs.

We also preview this year’s European Vocational Skills Week, take a look at what actions are being taken to tackle antimicrobial resistance and run ab article by Finnish deputy Nils Torvalds on innovation and the circular economy.

Finally, answering our five questions this issue is British Greens MEP Alexandra Phillips.