The European Union’s Clean Industrial Deal (CID) seeks to align industrial competitiveness with decarbonisation, ensuring economic resilience amid geopolitical challenges. The success of this will depend on progress in a number of key areas. This paper proposes to secure funding of the Industrial Decarbonisation Bank (IDB) through EU ETS revenues and free allowances, to foster lead markets via public procurement and low-carbon standards, and to strengthen clean trade partnerships. Social cohesion measures are critical while sustainability reporting should be streamlined.