President von der Leyen hosted the first Strategic Dialogue on the Future of the Chemical Industry in Europe with representatives of the sector. The Dialogue was also attended by Executive Vice-President Séjourné and Commissioner Roswall. The objective of the Strategic Dialogue is to jointly identify priority measures to deliver on the Commission's commitment to support the chemicals industry's competitiveness while ensuring sustainability, security, and safety.

The President recognised the key role of this sector for many aspects of Europeans' everyday life, from batteries to fashion. The chemical industry, as the industry of the industries, employing more than one million people in the EU, provides critical input to key sectors such as defence, healthcare, and energy.

The President emphasised the Commission's commitment to boost the competitiveness of the European industry, including by supporting innovation. In this context, she underlined the role of the Clean Industrial Deal – Europe's roadmap for decarbonisation and competitiveness – as well as its focus on the following key pillars: mitigating high energy costs; improving access to capital; addressing the skills gap; and simplification, as well as the need to diversify supply chains.

Representatives of the sector asked for the fast implementation of the Competitiveness Compass, the Clean Industrial Deal, and the Affordable Energy Action Plan. The participants to the Dialogue also exchanged views on topics of high relevance for the sector, such as high energy costs, unfair trade practices, the impact of US tariffs, and support to the sector in its digital and green transition. Industry representatives also addressed the complexity of the regulatory framework.

To maintain EU leadership in the field of chemical safety, the President announced the Commission's commitment to present by summer an Action Plan for the chemical sector, a sector-specific Omnibus, as well as a Chemicals Industry Package by the end of the year. In all these initiatives, the Commission's approach is to ensure that consumer protection and competitiveness go hand in hand.

The Commission President and the participants agreed to remain in close contact to ensure that the interests of the industry, of its workers, and of European consumers remain well protected.