NGOs reaction to the European Commission’s communication on wolves in Europe

On September 23^rd , ClientEarth and a series of European NGOs sent a letter to the President of the European Commission Ms Ursula von der Leyen criticizing her recent comments on the presence of wolves in the European Union, as well as the recent call for the submission of data on the impacts of wolves in the EU.

The wolf is a strictly protected species in both European and international laws, whose conservation is ruled by an existing comprehensive legal framework.

We believe that the EU Commission’s press release is misleading the public on the existence of a danger in relation to the presence of wolves in Europe.

We firmly support that any potential downgrading in the protection status of the wolf would be disproportionate and contrary to scientific evidence.

We also believe that the followed procedure is not aligned with the EU Commission’s own Better Regulation guidelines.