Doslovno izvješće

Ponedjeljak, 11. rujna 2017. - Strasbourg

25. Utjecaj međunarodne trgovine i trgovinskih politika EU-a na globalne vrijednosne lance (kratka prezentacija)

  La Présidente. – L’ordre du jour appelle le rapport de Maria Arena sur les répercussions du commerce international et des politiques commerciales de l’Union européenne sur les chaînes de valeur mondiales (2016/2301(INI) (A8-0269/2017).

  Maria Arena, rapporteure. – Madame la Présidente, notre système économique globalisé repose sur des processus de production fragmentés et de masse. La plupart des biens que nous consommons aujourd’hui sont le résultat d’un assemblage de diverses opérations effectuées aux quatre coins du monde. Parfois pour le meilleur: des recherches de complémentarité, des partenariats d’innovation, des ressources et des matières premières qu’il faut aller chercher de manière respectueuse. Parfois pour le pire: une main-d’œuvre bon marché, sans protection, des destructions environnementales, de l’évasion fiscale.

Ces opérations sont souvent coordonnées par des entreprises internationales par le biais de partenariats contractuels ou de sous-traitances multiples. L’Union européenne, en tant que première exportatrice et importatrice mondiale de biens et de services peut – et je dirais même doit – faire de sa politique commerciale un véritable levier pour faire de ces chaînes de valeur mondiale des outils au service d’un développement durable pour tous et ainsi contribuer à une mondialisation plus juste et plus équitable.

Actuellement, le manque de transparence et la dilution des responsabilités tout au long de ce processus augmentent les risques d’exploitation des travailleurs, le non-respect des droits fondamentaux et favorisent la concurrence déloyale sur un plan social, sur un plan environnemental, mais également sur un plan fiscal.

Ce rapport s’inscrit aussi dans un contexte où la politique commerciale européenne fait l’objet de vives critiques des citoyens qui demandent une mondialisation plus juste et plus transparente. Il demande donc à la Commission de prendre toute une série de mesures afin de rendre les chaînes de valeur mondiale plus responsables et plus transparentes.

Pour n'en citer que quelques-unes, je ciblerai, par exemple, l’inclusion dans les accords commerciaux d’un chapitre «développement durable» contraignant mais aussi exécutoire, ainsi que la clause contre l’évasion fiscale et la fraude fiscale. Il y a également la prise d’initiatives inspirées par la législation sur les minerais des conflits ou le devoir de vigilance de l’entreprise dans un cadre contraignant de devoir de vigilance tel qu’énoncé par l’OCDE, ou encore la mise en place d’un système de labellisation qui garantit un mode de production respectueux des normes internationales du travail et/ou des normes environnementales. Je citerai, par exemple, l’initiative prise par l’Italie, aujourd’hui même, en ce qui concerne la labellisation de l’origine des tomates produites de manière respectueuse.

Bien d’autres éléments importants se retrouvent également dans ce rapport comme les initiatives et le rôle du secteur privé, le multilatéralisme et la prise en charge de la fin de vie des produits.

Ce rapport est le fruit de longues négociations entre les différentes visions de la façon de maîtriser cette mondialisation. Nous avons trouvé, il me semble, un bon équilibre dans la recherche d’un objectif commun, qui est de faire du commerce un outil d’émancipation pour tous. Un de nos collègues citait récemment les paroles sages de Simone Veil, qui disait: «La recherche des compromis doit nous conduire vers une solution plus élevée que la position particulière de chacun». Ce rapport, selon moi, illustre cette recherche.

Je remercie les rapporteurs fictifs, particulièrement M. Ruas, ici présent, d'avoir trouvé effectivement les compromis qui pouvaient tous nous satisfaire. J’espère que nous serons nombreux à voter ce rapport demain.

Interventions à la demande

  Seán Kelly (PPE). – Madam President, I listened very carefully to what the rapporteur had to say and I think, by and large, it was a very balanced and sensible contribution. As a Member of the INTA Committee, I take a huge interest in trade, and trade is very important, because if you produce a good, you must sell it, and obviously, if you are the European Union, being able to make trade deals around the world has had a huge positive impact overall on the economy in all our Member States. The Korean agreement is probably the best, being hugely successful, growing exports by almost 50 per cent in the space of four years. But where there are problems, as the rapporteur pointed out, they must be looked at and dealt with in package with all the other issues. So I think the solution is to go ahead and have our trade agreements, but look at the downside and consult with the stakeholders to ensure that any negative aspects are minimised.

  Nicola Caputo (S&D). – Signora Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, la politica commerciale dell'Unione, in particolare sul versante internazionale, è diventata ultimamente una delle grandi preoccupazioni per l'opinione pubblica. Trattati come il CETA non sono il modo corretto di impostare una politica commerciale.

Le proteste e le reazioni che si sono viste in tutta Europa dimostrano innanzitutto che le PMI costituiscono l'elemento centrale della catena globale del valore: i trattati di libero scambio, se non opportunamente modulati, affossano i piccoli produttori europei, mettendoli in competizione con aziende che non rispettano gli stessi standard di qualità e che risparmiano sulle materie prime e sul lavoro.

L'Unione europea, nello stabilire la sua agenda di politica e di commercio, deve rimanere fedele ad alcuni principi irrinunciabili, rispondendo in modo efficace al dumping sociale e ambientale, combattendo le pratiche commerciali sleali e assicurando la dignità e i diritti dei lavoratori, ma allo stesso tempo deve ricordarsi di tutelare le sue specificità e le sue eccellenze. Non si può continuare a svenderle appena possibile.

  Νότης Μαριάς (ECR). – Κυρία Πρόεδρε, οι Συμφωνίες Ελευθέρων Συναλλαγών επί της ουσίας διάλυσαν τις οικονομίες των αναπτυγμένων κρατών και ταυτόχρονα άνοιξαν αγορές όπου εκεί επικράτησε η εκμετάλλευση των λαών για ένα κομμάτι ψωμί από τις πολυεθνικές. Και αυτό είναι ξεκάθαρο και αντιληπτό. Ήρθε η ώρα λοιπόν να ληφθούν μέτρα. Πρέπει επομένως να έχουμε σημαντικές πιέσεις στις χώρες όπου παράγονται τα προϊόντα από τις πολυεθνικές, προκειμένου πρώτα απ’ όλα να τηρούν την εργατική νομοθεσία, να έχουν προσχωρήσει στις συμβάσεις της Διεθνούς Οργάνωσης Εργασίας.

Δεύτερον, θα πρέπει να υπάρξει ρήτρα για την προστασία των ανθρωπίνων δικαιωμάτων. Επιπλέον, πρέπει να υπάρχει μία ρήτρα για την τήρηση των περιβαλλοντικών όρων. Δεν θα πρέπει να επιτρέπουμε την παιδική εργασία και την εκμετάλλευση και την αναγκαστική εργασία. Νομίζω ότι αυτά είναι απαραίτητα στοιχεία, προκειμένου να μπορέσουμε να έχουμε μία διαφορετική αντίληψη σε σχέση με το διεθνές εμπόριο.

  Ivan Jakovčić (ALDE). – Gospođo predsjednice, htio bih prije svega čestitati izvjestiteljici gospođi Areni na ovom sjajnom izvješću zato što, stavimo ruku na srce, samo Europska unija ima tu moralnu snagu uspostavljanja jednog vrijednosnog lanca na našoj planeti. Nitko drugi osim Europske unije. I to je, mislim, vrlo važna poruka koju moramo poslati na ovoj raspravi i sutra kod glasanja.

Želim istaknuti tri ključna momenta kako ih ja vidim, a to je zaista izrabljivanje u mnogim državama radnika, jeftine radne snage, prejeftine radne snage, želim istaknuti problem utaje poreza, poreznih oaza i svega onoga drugoga što znamo što se tiče poreza, problem zaštite okoliša i uopće uništavanje okoliša u nekim državama. Sve to na kraju najčešće opet plaćamo mi, jer je Europska unija najveći donator i najviše pomaže raznim zemljama u razvoju, drugim zemljama s kojima imamo trgovinske sporazume. U tom kontekstu, mislim da je ovo jedno vrlo cjelovito izvješće, i još jednom se želim zahvaliti kolegici Areni na njemu.

(Fin des interventions à la demande)

  Miguel Arias Cañete, Member of the Commission. – Madam President, let me first thank the European Parliament, the Committee on International Trade (INTA) and the rapporteur, Ms Maria Arena, for the attention, work and time that they have invested in this report. The Commission shares with the European Parliament concerns and goals regarding sustainable development and the 2030 Agenda, both of which are central to many European Union policies, including the trade and investment policy.

The European Union policy on corporate social responsibility and responsible business conduct is implemented through initiatives by businesses and by their stakeholders, complemented where necessary by adequate regulatory measures. I would like to recall that corporate social responsibility is mostly a voluntary process, and enterprises are responsible for the impact they have on society.

Let me just briefly recall some of the many actions we take in the area of global value chains. As regards European Union trade and investment policy, recent European Union trade agreements contain rules of origin that support the integration of the industry in the global value chains. In all trade negotiations, the Commission is promoting provisions on public procurement and intellectual property rights. In this context, we aim at developing solid procurement tools against corruptive practices and promoting sustainable procurement.

These agreements also contain provisions on corporate social responsibility and responsible business conduct, together with binding commitments on core labour standards and international environmental conventions which are subject to dispute settlement. We also work with the OECD in developing due diligence guidelines and on their implementation. Under the unilateral Generalised Scheme of Preferences, corporate social responsibility is indirectly addressed via the requirements and dialogues on labour standards and environmental conventions.

And as regards the gender dimension, the Commission is developing further its trade-related policies. Following the Gender Forum hosted by the Commission earlier this year, more will be done on promoting gender equality and integration into bilateral and multilateral instruments, such as the trade negotiations with Chile or the WTO Ministerial Conference in December 2017. Also, as regards other policies, the Commission takes numerous actions linked to global value chains: there are capacity—building and outreach programmes which help developing countries to promote reforms for effective enforcement of social, environmental and labour standards. Support is given to European Union small and micro enterprises, taking on board the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

The Commission cooperates closely with the International Labour Organization on decent working conditions in global supply chains, but also on occupational safety and health, social dialogue, child labour and forced labour in supply chains. With regard to jurisdiction rules, work is done within the Hague Conference on Private International Law, and we are negotiating a worldwide convention on recognition and enforcement of judgments by indirect jurisdiction rules with third states.

The European Union also has legislation in place for corporate social responsibility and responsible business conduct. Let me give you just two examples. The 2014 Non-Financial Disclosure Directive for large European Union companies requires companies with more than 500 employees to disclose information on policies, results and risks concerning environmental aspects, social and labour-related matters, respect for human rights, anti—corruption and bribery issues. And the 2015 Anti-Money Laundering Directive puts in place rules that reinforce the vigilance by banks, lawyers, accountants and other professionals as regards, among other things, the identification of beneficial owners of companies and trusts.

We are addressing all these sustainable development issues – and many more – on a regular basis, and the Commission will continue to work closely with the European Parliament on them.

  La Présidente. – Le point est clos.

Le vote aura lieu mardi, le 12 septembre 2017.