EU seeks experts for sustainability review

September 3, 2021

The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) is seeking appointees for 11 new industry groups to assist with a review of the bloc's sustainability reporting standards. This development is the latest step in the EU's push for more stringent ESG reporting.

EFRAG wants six "highly qualified" members for each group to assess sustainability topics including climate change, labour rights, and small- and medium-sized enterprises.

Other groups will work on sector-specific disclosure standards and other environmental factors.

The expert groups will work alongside the existing Project Task Force on European Sustainability Reporting Standards (PTF-ESRS), a sub-committee of EFRAG responsible for researching and developing standards that will go on to form the basis of the EU’s incoming ESG disclosure rules.

These rules, known as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), are set to replace the EU's Non-Financial Reporting Directive, which has come under fire for a lack of detail and comparability.

Speaking in April, EFRAG board president Jean-Paul Gauzès said: ​“I am very honoured by the confidence the European Commission is putting into EFRAG by requesting EFRAG to prepare technical advice with proper due process, public oversight and transparency, contributing to the delegated acts through which the sustainability reporting standards will be adopted."

A focus on forward-looking information is to be expected from the upcoming guidance, with a focus on progress on internal climate or environmental targets as well as further disclosures in line with the EU’s Taxonomy and its new Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation. EFRAG is taking applications for the roles until September 15.