Last Friday was the second session of our two-day crash course on CSRD reporting organised by Voka - Kamer van Koophandel Vlaams-Brabant in collaboration with Charlotte Vandierendonck of Studio D.

Karlien De Ryck and Bart Bellen gave an update of the European Commission’s Omnibus proposal following the discussions of last week in the European Parliament and Council. Based on the last discussions, the European Commission’s proposal to significantly reduce the scope of the CSRD package created controversy and may not be approved as such in the short term. However, the Commission’s proposal to postpone the implementation of CSRD seems likely to qualify for an accelerated approval procedure. In addition to the status of the Omnibus proposal, we also discussed related topics including the latest developments regarding “greenwashing” and the proposed EU “green claims” directive.

During workshop we also reviewed in detail the specific requirements under each reporting standard (ESRS) and compared each ESRS with the corresponding voluntary reporting standard for SMEs (VSME).

𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞-𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞:
• Regardless of any amendments to the regulatory framework, sustainability remains top-of-mind for companies previously in scope.
• A continued commitment to sustainability is necessary to respond to demands of other companies in the supply chain and is expected to give compliant companies a competitive advantage.
• Companies would however appreciate being given more time to prepare.
• A deep-dive into the ESRS showed that a simplification and alignment with existing regulations would reduce “red tape” and increase efficiency.
• Voluntary reporting standards are expected to become more important.

Thank you Voka - Kamer van Koophandel Vlaams-Brabant for the organisation and Studio D for the pleasant collaboration, and to all participants for the lively interaction.

#CSRD #CSDDD #ESG #Sustainability #CorporateReporting #contrastlaw #Voka #Workshop