considering the latest scientific findings of the IPCC reports and scientific climate data, in particular with regard to information relevant to the Union;

providing scientific advice and issuing reports on existing and proposed Union measures, climate targets and indicative greenhouse gas budgets, and their coherence with the objectives of this Regulation and the Union’s international commitments under the Paris Agreement;

contributing to the exchange of independent scientific knowledge in the field of modelling, monitoring, promising research and innovation which contribute to reducing emissions or increasing removals;

identifying actions and opportunities needed to successfully achieve the Union climate targets;

raising awareness on climate change and its impacts, as well as stimulating dialogue and cooperation between scientific bodies within the Union, complementing existing work and efforts.

from 2036, an adequate contribution towards the 2040 climate target of high-quality international credits under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement of up to 5 % of 1990 Union net emissions, corresponding to a domestic reduction of net greenhouse gas emissions by 85 % compared to 1990 levels by 2040, in a way that is both ambitious and cost-efficient, supporting the Union and third countries in achieving net greenhouse gas reduction trajectories compatible with the Paris Agreement objective to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 oC and pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1,5  oC above pre-industrial levels, ensuring the environmental integrity of those credits, while promoting the Union’s technological leadership; a pilot period from 2031 to 2035 to initiate a high-quality and high-integrity international credit market may be considered; the origin, quality criteria and other conditions concerning the acquisition and use of any such credits shall be regulated in Union law to ensure that they are based on credible and transformative activities in partner countries with the aim of achieving climate targets and policies compatible with the long-term temperature goal laid down in the Paris Agreement, that they are subject to robust safeguards, including ensuring integrity, avoidance of double counting, additionality, permanence, transparent governance, strong monitoring, reporting and verification methodologies, that they ensure economic, social and environmental co-benefits and human rights safeguards, and have a high ambition for the share of proceeds for adaptation and the sharing of mitigation benefits with countries concerned; when establishing the quality criteria, the Commission shall consider, where appropriate, complementing the criteria laid down under Article 6(4) of the Paris Agreement to ensure the respect of those safeguards and the highest quality of international credits, in particular with regard to permanence and human rights;

the role of domestic permanent removals under the system established by Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 1 ) for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Union (the ‘EU ETS’) to compensate for residual hard-to-abate emissions;

enhanced flexibility within and across sectors and instruments, to support the achievement of targets in a simple and cost-effective way;

the realistic contribution of carbon removals to the overall emission reduction effort, while taking into account the uncertainties of natural removals and ensuring that possible shortfalls would not be at the expense of other economic sectors, without prejudice to the possibility for Member States to use surplus natural removals to compensate for their emissions in other sectors;

the need to maintain, manage and enhance, as appropriate, natural sinks in the long term and protect and restore biodiversity, to promote sustainable and circular bioeconomy, and to take into account the effects of differences in forest age structure, natural variability and uncertainties, especially those linked to the impacts of climate change and natural disturbances in the land use, land-use change and forestry sector;

Member States’ post-2030 targets and efforts should reflect cost efficiency and solidarity, taking into account different national circumstances and specificities, including those of islands and outermost regions;

the best available and most recent scientific evidence, including the latest reports of the IPCC and the Advisory Board;

the social, economic and environmental impacts across Member States, including in relation to the objectives of decarbonisation and competitiveness for European industry;

the costs of inaction and the benefits of action over the mid-term to long-term;

the need to ensure and support a fair and just, pragmatic, cost-effective and socially balanced transition for all, taking into account different national circumstances and paying particular attention to impacts on consumer prices, energy poverty and transport poverty and to regions and sectors, including their investment capacity, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), farmers and vulnerable households affected by the transition to climate neutrality;

simplification and reduction of administrative burden, technology neutrality, cost-effectiveness, economic efficiency and economic security;

climate action as a driver for investment, innovation and increased competitiveness;

the need to strengthen the resilience and global competitiveness of the Union’s economy and reduce the risk of carbon leakage, in particular for SMEs and industrial sectors that are most exposed to carbon leakage, including in relation to exports, so as to ensure fair competition;

best available cost-effective, safe and scalable technologies;

energy availability and affordability, security of supply, energy security and energy efficiency, including the ‘energy efficiency first’ principle, as well as the strengthening of electricity grids and interconnections with a view to building a genuine Energy Union and promoting domestically produced energy;

the role of zero-, low carbon and renewable fuels in the decarbonisation of transport, including road transport beyond 2030 and concrete measures to assist manufacturers of heavy-duty vehicles to reach their targets, taking into account European content;

fairness and solidarity between and within Member States;

the need to ensure environmental effectiveness and progression over time, while also safeguarding social cohesion and ensuring food security and a just transition;

investment needs and opportunities, including access to public and private finance as well as support for innovation and access to innovative technologies across all Member States, taking into account geographical balance;

international developments and efforts undertaken to achieve the long-term objectives of the Paris Agreement and the ultimate objective of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), as well as the support of the Union to its partners in addressing climate change and its impacts.

the collective progress made by all Member States towards the achievement of the climate-neutrality objective set out in Article 2(1) of this Regulation;

the collective progress made by all Member States on adaptation as referred to in Article 5 of this Regulation.

the consistency of Union measures with the climate-neutrality objective set out in Article 2(1);

the consistency of Union measures with ensuring progress on adaptation as referred to in Article 5.

the consistency of national measures identified, on the basis of the integrated national energy and climate plans, national long-term strategies and the biennial progress reports submitted in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2018/1999, as relevant for the achievement of the climate-neutrality objective set out in Article 2(1) of this Regulation with that objective;

the consistency of relevant national measures with ensuring progress on adaptation as referred to in Article 5, taking into account the national adaptation strategies referred to in Article 5(4).

the Member State concerned shall, within six months of receipt of the recommendations, notify the Commission on how it intends to take due account of the recommendations in a spirit of solidarity between Member States and the Union and between Member States;

after the submission of the notification referred to in point (a) of this paragraph, the Member State concerned shall set out, in its following integrated national energy and climate progress report submitted in accordance with Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999, in the year following the year in which the recommendations were issued, how it has taken due account of the recommendations; if the Member State concerned decides not to address the recommendations or a substantial part thereof, that Member State shall provide the Commission its reasoning;

the recommendations shall be complementary to the latest country-specific recommendations issued in the context of the European Semester.

information submitted and reported under Regulation (EU) 2018/1999;

reports of the EEA, the Advisory Board and the Commission’s Joint Research Centre;

European and global statistics and data, including statistics and data from the European Earth Observation Programme Copernicus, data on reported and projected losses from adverse climate impacts and estimates on the costs of inaction or delayed action, where available;

the best available and most recent scientific evidence, including the latest reports of the IPCC, IPBES and other international bodies; and

any supplementary information on environmentally sustainable investment by the Union or by Member States, including, when available, investment consistent with Regulation (EU) 2020/852.