On 24 April 2024, the European Parliament approved the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) with a vote of 374 in favour (compared with 235 votes against and 19 abstentions).

The CSDDD will impose mandatory obligations for companies and their upstream and downstream partners to prevent, end, or take steps to mitigate their adverse impacts, covering topics including slavery, child labour, biodiversity loss, and pollution or destruction of natural heritage.

Approval from the European Parliament marks a key step in the legislative process. It follows an extended period of negotiation after the provisional agreement between the negotiating parties of the European Council and European Parliament was reached in December 2023. The European Council ultimately endorsed a revised draft in March 2024 after additional discussions.

Read the approved text