{"id":2100,"date":"2026-09-15T16:21:57","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T14:21:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/press-release\/cheapest-protection-we-will-ever-buy\/"},"modified":"2026-09-15T17:04:35","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T15:04:35","slug":"cheapest-protection-we-will-ever-buy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/press-release\/cheapest-protection-we-will-ever-buy\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cCheapest protection we will ever buy\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"2100\" class=\"elementor elementor-2100 elementor-2086\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6cce96c1 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"6cce96c1\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-60bd55d3 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"60bd55d3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Following a summer marked by deadly heatwaves and devastating wildfires across Europe, Volt MEP Kai Tegethoff, member of the Committee on Environment, is calling for binding climate resilience checks across the EU budget, dedicated national funding for climate adaptation and a European backstop to ensure that households are not left without insurance as climate risks increase.<br\/><br\/><\/p><p> <\/p><p>More than 36,000 people are estimated to have died from heat this summer, and wildfires and other extreme weather caused economic damage estimated at \u20ac180 billion across Europe in a single season. Germany alone suffered losses equivalent to around 1% of its GDP.<br\/><br\/>  <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5bf4d033 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"5bf4d033\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The cost is immense<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-51c08a4f elementor-widget__width-inherit elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"51c08a4f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" src=\"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/20260915_EP-209984A_PBU_LD_0228-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-2095\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/20260915_EP-209984A_PBU_LD_0228-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/20260915_EP-209984A_PBU_LD_0228-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/20260915_EP-209984A_PBU_LD_0228-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/20260915_EP-209984A_PBU_LD_0228-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/20260915_EP-209984A_PBU_LD_0228-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/20260915_EP-209984A_PBU_LD_0228-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">(c) European Parliament 2026<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9eb4f86 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"9eb4f86\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>\u201cThe wildfires are out and the temperatures have dropped. Media attention is already turning elsewhere, but the tragedy isn&#8217;t over. Across Europe, families have lost their homes and communities have been left to rebuild. The cost is immense, both for victims and local governments. Climate adaptation is not an abstract environmental policy \u2013 it is about whether people can live safely in their homes and whether they can still afford to insure them.\u201d<br\/><br\/><\/p><p> <\/p><p>Tegethoff criticised attempts by the political right to portray spending on climate resilience as an unnecessary burden, arguing that the costs of failing to prepare are already vastly higher.<br\/><br\/> <\/p><p> <\/p><p>\u201cWe are told that climate resilience is too expensive and that protecting homes and communities is red tape. But when insurers pull out and declare entire areas uninsurable, somebody still pays the bill. Without public action, that somebody is ordinary people.\u201d<br\/><br\/><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-67d31f92 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"67d31f92\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Promise must be backed with money<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7eba8a4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"7eba8a4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Tegethoff is calling for binding climate-resilience checks across the entire EU budget, ensuring that European spending does not create or reinforce vulnerabilities to heat, drought, flooding and wildfires. He also wants dedicated national adaptation funding and a European backstop against growing climate-related insurance gaps, so that families are not left alone when private insurers withdraw from high-risk areas.<br\/><br\/> <\/p><p> <\/p><p>Tegethoff, who also stressed the urgency of stronger European action during a European Parliament debate, is calling on Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to put climate adaptation at the heart of her State of the Union address on Wednesday and to back political commitments with concrete funding and binding measures.<br\/><br\/><\/p><p> <\/p><p>\u201cAdaptation is the cheapest protection we will ever buy. Europe can either invest now in protecting people, homes and infrastructure, or pay many times over after every heatwave, fire and flood. Ursula von der Leyen should make climate resilience a priority in the State of the Union. And that promise must be backed with money.\u201d<br\/><br\/><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-15c18118 elementor-widget elementor-widget-video\" data-id=\"15c18118\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;video_type&quot;:&quot;hosted&quot;,&quot;start&quot;:1572,&quot;end&quot;:1645,&quot;controls&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"video.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-hosted-video elementor-wrapper elementor-open-inline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<video class=\"elementor-video\" src=\"  https:\/\/cdn-mmc.watchity.net\/hls\/52c6b566-e8e5-4a7d-8c6c-650f8cf3f30f\/407ae749-1bd9-4993-b4d5-736407383399\/f8c9ff4d-e9cb-40e7-b71a-992ce43be3be\/407ae749-1bd9-4993-b4d5-736407383399_,FH,H,S,D.mp4.urlset\/master.m3u8#t=1572,1645\" controls=\"\" preload=\"metadata\" controlsList=\"nodownload\"><\/video>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-766c5f0a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"766c5f0a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>For Tegethoff, this summer has demonstrated that relying on emergency responses and local solidarity alone is not enough. Communities across Europe have repeatedly had to evacuate neighbours, fight fires and rebuild after disasters themselves.<br\/><br\/> <\/p><p> <\/p><p>\u201cEl pueblo salvando al pueblo \u2013 people saving people \u2013 should not be a tragic necessity. European solidarity means making sure communities are prepared before disaster strikes. We need to put public money into people\u2019s future now, rather than paying for preventable destruction afterwards.\u201d  <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>After summer of wildfires MEP Kai Tegethoff (Volt) calls for binding EU climate resilience measures<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2096,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2100"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2100\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2103,"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2100\/revisions\/2103"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2096"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kaitegethoff.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}