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Wolf: Europarl back to Middle Ages

Posted by Europe correspondent on

Strasbourg 08.05.2025 With 371 votes for, 162 against and 37 abstentions, Parliament supported the Commission’s proposal for a targeted change of the Habitats Directive to align the EU wolf protection status with the Bern Convention, lowering it from ‘strictly protected’ to ‘protected. The Commission’s proposal to alter the protection status of wolves in the EU came following president Ursula von der Leyen calling of a pony by a wolf.

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MEPs Anja HAZEKAMP said it was a pure revenge of the European Commission president, who lamented the loss of her old pony Dolly. The opinion about cruel revenge for an old pony forgotten, and neglected in the field, expressed in the European Parliament Chamber by the Green MEP has been widely shared in social media:

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As a result the EU member states will have greater flexibility in reducing their wolf populations to please hunters, and farmer, neglecting scientific evidence of importance of wolf at heart of the eco systems of the European forests. The decision taken by MEPs expressed the commercial interests of certain groups, neglecting general public interest to maintain harmonious, and balanced eco systems in Europe. From now onwards the measures against wolves will be taken by local authorities at whims and fancies of the hunting clubs, and narrow interests of farmers.

On behalf of the almost 300 undersigned environmental and animal protection organisations, they were writing with regard to the European Commission’s commitment to “decide on a proposal to modify, where appropriate, the status of protection of the wolf within the EU and to update the legal framework, to introduce, where necessary, further flexibility”.

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“It is of significant concern that a policy decision on such a crucial issue is being prepared in such a non-transparent manner. Moreover, it is based on an irregular consultation process that was launched by the Commission’s press release on ‘Wolves in Europe’ on 4 September 2023, which included misleading information regarding wolves. Our concerns about this were outlined to you in our letter dated 11 September 2023” the NGOs wrote.

“We would like to re-emphasise that any decision to change the protection status of wolves must be based on reliable scientific data, according to the provisions of the relevant legislation, and not on anecdotal evidence submitted through a non-transparent and irregular consultation process. Furthermore, we are concerned that the discussion of this issue has so far been largely dominated and driven by farming industry and hunting interest representatives, who are keen to position themselves as speaking on behalf of rural communities. Yet the reality is that there is actually a high degree of support among rural communities for the strict protection of wolves in the EU, as shown by an independent survey, commissioned by several animal protection organisations, which was carried out in November 2023 in 10 Member States”.

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“Unless there is substantial new science-based evidence gathered by the European Commission services, we believe the science and public opinion are clear: the modification of the protection status of the wolf – either under the EU law or the Bern Convention – is not justified”.
Anna van Densky from European Parliament, Strasbourg

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