European Parliament overwhelmingly approves new CSRD
On 10 November 2022, the European Parliament voted overwhelmingly to pass the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). Tweet This! This is a major ESG (environmental, social and governance) regulation that brings together financial data, ESG information and assurance, for the first time.
The CSRD will replace the current regime under the EU Non-Financial Reporting Directive (“NFRD”) and will apply to all large EU companies. Non-EU companies with substantial activity in the EU (with a turnover over €150 million euro in the EU), will also have to comply. In total, approximately 50,000 organisations will need to comply with the CSRD.
The CSRD includes more detailed reporting requirements on a broad range of ESG matters, in accordance with mandatory European sustainability reporting standards. All large companies in the EU will need to disclose data on their impacts on people and the planet, and any sustainability risks they are exposed to.
With the CSRD, there is no ambiguity. Sustainability information, which includes topics within ESG, will need to be treated with the same degree of rigour and suspicion, as financial information.
With the CSRD confirmed:
- ESG is entering the annual reporting process
- Sustainability information will sit alongside financial information
- The amount of data that will have to be collected will greatly increase
- So too will the number of people involved in the new, integrated reporting process
- Sustainability information will be audited
The CSRD has been created to end greenwashing, strengthen the EU’s social market economy and lay the groundwork for sustainability reporting standards at a global level. It is expected to bring greater accountability to ESG reporting across the EU, making sure companies are providing reliable, audited and certified information.
78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards
SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.
Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.
7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started
Any size business can start taking sustainability action
GRI, IEMA, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom (venue: London School of Economics)
- Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
- Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
- Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP.
- Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement
References:
This article is based on published information by LEXOLOGY, the European Parliament and Yahoo Finance. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the publication’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original please revert to the following links:
https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=f7935a5e-009f-41dd-adbe-13964ca21694
https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/csrd-debrief-whos-impacted-prepare-142300090.html?