A German conservative opposition lawmaker is challenging the coalition government's plans to pass a major overhaul of C02 emissions targets through parliament on Friday, seeking an injunction to force a delay to the vote.
Thomas Heilmann, a lawmaker with the centre-right Christian Democrats (CDU), is arguing that the legislative process has been rushed. He asked Germany's Constitutional Court on Wednesday to delay the scheduled vote.
The proposed changes from Chancellor Olaf Scholz's centre-left coalition government would introduce fundamental changes to how Germany's legally binding climate emissions targets function.
Until now, if individual sectors such as transport or buildings fail to meet statutory CO2 emissions targets, the responsible ministries must submit immediate action programmes the following year.
With the reform, compliance with the climate targets will no longer be monitored retrospectively by sector, but will be forward-looking, multi-year and apply across sectors.
If it becomes apparent in two consecutive years that the German government is not on track with its climate target for 2030, then corrective action would be required.
The climate targets require Germany to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 65% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, with further reductions of 88% by 2040.
The law requires Germany to achieve climate neutrality, where no more greenhouse gases are to be emitted than can be captured again, by 2045.
Heilmann argued that such major changes require more time for lawmakers to review the potential impacts.
Some environmental advocacy groups have also criticized the proposed law changes as watering down the existing rules, as individual ministries would be held much less accountable for achieving targets in their respective areas of responsibility.