European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced plans to significantly toughen the EU’s emissions-cutting target to at least 55 per cent by 2030.

“I recognise that this increase from 40 to 55 is too much for some, and not enough for others,” von der Leyen said in her major annual policy speech to EU MPs in Brussels on Wednesday.

“But our impact assessment clearly shows that our economy and industry can manage this.”

The European Parliament and EU leaders still have to agree to the 2030 plan.

Discussions are highly charged, with some countries claiming they cannot manage bigger cuts because of their economic reliance on high-polluting sectors such as the coal industry.

Environmentalists, in contrast, claim that 55 per cent is not enough to achieve the European Union’s longer-term goal of climate neutrality by 2050.

-AAP