AK welcomes the Commission's announcement to propose a Circular Economy Act. This initiative offers an opportunity to align Europe's excessive resource consumption with the EU's sustainability and economic goals. However, the consultation focused primarily on strengthening economic security and competitiveness, while the social dimension of the transformation remains unclear.

Regional economies and the circular economy are not sufficiently linked in the draft. Without such an integrated approach, key opportunities for economic stability, quality job creation and greater security of supply risk being missed. While recycling and the strengthening of secondary raw materials are emphasised, reuse and repair – the most effective levers for conserving resources – receive insufficient attention. To be truly effective, the Circular Economy Act must give equal weight to environmental and social objectives.