EU: Hundreds march through Europe to stop deregulation wave
"From Maastricht to Brussels: Hundreds march through Europe to stop deregulation wave", 24 September 2025
Hundreds of marchers and supporters filled Brussels’ EU quarter yesterday after a 3-day, 60 km protest walk from Maastricht. The “Back to the Future” march brought together affected communities, trade unions, NGOs, and political leaders demanding an end to the EU’s deregulation wave, which puts workers, the environment and human rights at risk...
Hard-won rights rights are under threat as the European Commission pushes to slash environmental and social rules in rushed, top-down procedures. Concerned politicians and citizens – including Dutch MEP Lara Wolters, UN rapporteur Olivier de Schutter, and human rights lawyer Steve Bilko (Leigh Day) – have walked alongside affected communities, NGOs, and trade unions with a clear message for Commission President von der Leyen: drop the deregulation agenda and protect rules that hold companies accountable...
“I am marching because I belong to the billions whose lives are disrupted by climate change and flawed models of ‘development’ sold as sustainability. I march to remind Europe that the Global South deserves democracy, human rights, and freedoms; not as charity, but as a right. I march to expose the hypocrisy of governments that back dictators for vested interests. Today I am marching because silence is complicity, and I refuse to be silent.”Zia ur Rehman, Pakistani human rights defender and founder of AwazCDS-Pakistan
Early this year, the European Commission initiated a deregulation wave wiping away recent advances of the just transition in EU policy. The omnibus legislative packages[2] take a chainsaw to the core policies of the Green Deal. These policies are being repealed and muddled in rushed, undemocratic processes under intense pressure from the Commission. Among the losses are emission reductions targets from cars, anti-deforestation policies; sustainable reporting rules; prevention of corporate disasters; the ability of victims of corporate negligence to seek justice in court; fact-checking on greenwashing; the advance of renewable energy; and standards against toxic chemicals such as PFAS … and the list is still developing.
Europe’s global credibility on the line. Marchers stressed that deregulation is not just an internal EU matter. If Europe weakens protections, others will follow; undermining the EU’s role as a global climate and social leader.
This “Back to the Future” march was organised by Friends of the Earth Europe, the European Coalition for Corporate Justice, and the European Trade Union Confederation.