Commission says EU should slash greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040

The Commission said the EU should set an economy-wide 2040 target for 90% net greenhouse gas cuts compared with 1990 levels. File photo: AP/J. David Ake

The European Commission recommended on Tuesday that the European Union slashes net greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040, a target that will test political appetite to continue the bloc's ambitious fight against climate change ahead of EU elections.

While the overall target was within the range recommended by the EU's official climate science advisers, the EU executive weakened part of the recommendation concerning agriculture, in response to weeks of protests by farmers angry about EU green rules, among other complaints.