The European Parliament 2009-2011: key legislation approved by MEPs

Caps on bankers' bonuses and stricter capital requirements. Under new rules on bankers' bonuses, upfront cash bonuses will be capped at 30% of the total bonus and 20% for particularly large bonuses. Between 40 and 60% of any bonus must be deferred for at least three years and can be clawed back if investments do not perform as expected. At least 50% of the total bonus would be paid as "contingent capital" (funds to be called upon first in case of bank difficulties) and shares. Each bank will have to set limits to salary-related bonuses on the basis of EU-wide guidelines. Bonus-like pensions will also be covered. In addition, new capital rules for bank trading activities and re-securitisations will ensure banks properly cover the risks they are running on their trading activity for investments such as mortgage-backed securities, which were central to the crisis.

EP final vote: 7.7.2010

Rapporteur: Arlene McCarthy (S&D, UK)

Supervision of financial institutions. This legislation sets up four new bodies with binding powers: three new European Supervisory Authorities (banking; securities and insurance; occupational pension sectors) plus a new European Systemic Risk Board to detect risks to the financial sector as a whole, replacing the current system of EU consultative committees. The new bodies, which have been operational since January 2011, have powers to settle disputes among national financial supervisors, with binding decisions in the event of disagreements. They can also ban risky financial products and activities. The authorities will be located in Frankfurt, Paris and London. The ECB president will chair the Risk Board for the first 5 years. The aim is to identify risks in the system at an early stage and respond more effectively in emergencies, by reinforcing supervision at EU level, thus contributing to financial stability.

EP final vote: 22.9.2010

Rapporteurs: Antolín Sánchez Presedo (S&D, ES), Sven Giegold (Greens/EFA, DE), Sylvie Goulard (ALDE, FR), José Manuel García-Margallo y Marfil (EPP, ES), Peter Skinner (S&D, UK), Ramon Tremosa i Balcells (ALDE, ES)

Hedge funds and private equity. The aim of the alternative investment fund (AIF) managers' directive is to boost investor protection and financial stability by subjecting all AIF managers in the EU to a binding authorisation and supervision system. The new rules introduce a "passport" for marketing funds in other EU countries. The directive covers funds with a portfolio of more than €100 million, including hedge funds, private equity, commodity, real estate and infrastructure funds.

EP final vote: 11.11. 2010

Rapporteur: Jean-Paul Gauzès (EPP, FR)

Late payment of bills. A new directive imposes a 30-day standard deadline for the paymente of bills for goods or services by both private and public sector organisations. Public authorities can extend the deadline to 60 days only with proper justification. Member States may opt for a standard deadline of up to 60 days for payments by health sector bodies. Contracts between businesses can, however, set deadlines of more than 60 days, if expressly agreed and not grossly unfair. If a payment is late, the compensatory interest rate payable will be the reference rate plus a minimum 8%. Creditors will receive at least €40 in damages to cover administrative costs. This directive must be implemented by Member States within two years.

EP final vote: 20.10.2010

Rapporteur: Barbara Weiler (S&D, DE)

Economic governance. The "six-pack" (six EU laws designed to tighten up economic governance in the EU) deals with fiscal issues, including a reform of the EU Stability and Growth Pact and new regulations to detect and address macroeconomic imbalances within the EU and the euro area. There will be increased surveillance, not only of deficit and debt levels, but also of macroeconomic imbalances (such as housing bubbles, loss of competitiveness, trade deficit and surpluses) with more emphasis on preventive measures. Sanctions will be semi-automatic. Fraudulent practices will lead to fines. The Commission will have more oversight powers over national fiscal policies. Countries with more than 60% debt/PNB will have to reduce this figure by an average of 5% a year.

EP final vote: 28.9.2011

Rapporteurs: Corien Wortmann-Kool (EPP, NL), Diogo Feio (EPP, PT), Vicky Ford (ECR, UK), Elisa Ferreira (S&D, PT), Carl Christoffer Haglund (ALDE, FI), Sylvie Goulard (ALDE, FR)

Short selling and credit default swaps (CDS): the regulation strengthens rules on short selling and CDS trading, two practices accused of fuelling market volatility. Naked CDS trading - purchasing default insurance contracts without owning the related bonds - will be banned, with an exception in cases where a sovereign debt market is no longer functioning properly. As for naked short selling - whereby the trader doesn't already own the shares he wants to sell - the trader will be required to locate the shares and have a "reasonable expectation" of being able to borrow the shares from the located party. The European Securities and Markets Authority will be able to restrict short selling and require other authorities to introduce exceptional measures to deal with difficult situations. The regulation will enter into force in November 2012.

EP final vote: 15.11.2011

Rapporteur: Pascal Canfin (Greens/EFA, FR)

Boat passenger rights. Passengers travelling on boats that can carry more than 12 people will enjoy more rights as of 2012. The new rules provide for assistance and compensation for delays as well as free assistance to disabled passengers. Passengers will be entitled to a maximum of three nights' accommodation (at up to €80 per night).

EP final vote: 6.7.2010

Rapporteur: Inés Ayala Sender (S&D, ES)

Passenger rights in bus and coach transport. New rules on compensation for delays and cancellations as well as assistance for disabled passengers will cover all long-distance scheduled services (250 kilometres or more), whether national or crossborder, starting in spring 2013.

EP final vote: 15.2.2011

Rapporteur: Antonio Cancian (EPP, IT)

Plane crash investigations. Airline accident investigations will be more independent and victims' families will be informed of any crash more quickly, under a new regulation approved by MEPs.  Airlines will have to provide a passenger list to the authorities within two hours of an accident (to be made public only if families agree). Passengers will be able to indicate a contact name in case of an accident.

EP final vote: 21.9.2010

Rapporteur: Christine de Veyrac (EPP, FR)

Tax on environmental damage by lorries. An update of the "eurovignette" directive will allow Member States to charge lorries for their environmental impact (noise, pollution). This is in addition to the tolls they may already charge under the existing legislation to cover maintenance and replacement of infrastructure. Revenue from these charges must be used to improve the performance of transport systems and cut pollution (Member States undertake to invest 15% of overall revenue in TEN-T networks; the rest should be used to reduce damage to the environment and develop all transport systems sustainably).

EP final vote: 7.6. 2011

Rapporteur: Saïd El Khadraoui (S&D, BE)

Crackdown on driving offences abroad. Europeans who commit driving offences will in future be equal before the law, even if they live outside the country where they commit an offence. Member States will have to provide details of the driver or holder of the vehicle registration certificate to the authorities of the country where the offence took place. Fines and payment methods will be based on the law of the state where the offence occurred. Offences covered by the new rules are speeding, driving under the influence of drink or drugs, not wearing seatbelts, going through a red light, not wearing crash helmets, using bus lanes and other banned thoroughfares and illegal use of mobile phones or other communication equipment while driving.

EP final vote: 6.7.2011

Rapporteur: Inés Ayala Sender (S&D, ES)

Consumer rights. New rules will make it easier for companies to sell online or at a distance in other EU states, while also giving consumers greater protection. Some examples:

• an 14-day EU-wide withdrawal (cooling-off) period for distance and off-premises sales (where the consumer cannot see the product before buying it) during which consumers may change their minds and get refund within 14 days;

• the cost of returning a product bought at a distance must be clearly stated in the sales contract;

• digital goods, such as music, films or software programmes, will be exempted from the right of withdrawal: the sale will be regarded as concluded from the moment downloading begins;

• any product ordered at a distance must be delivered within 30 days;

• the trader is responsible for any damage or loss of the product during delivery;

• end of hidden charges, such as those associated with the "pre-ticked boxes" sometimes used in internet sales.

EP final vote: 23.6.2011

Rapporteur: Andreas Schwab (EPP, DE)

Clearer food labelling. The energy content and amounts of fat, saturated fat, carbohydrates, sugars, protein and salt must all be stated in a legible tabular form on the packaging, under new rules approved by Parliament. At present, all ingredients - including allergenic substances - must be indicated on the labels of pre-packed foods. The new legislation extends this obligation to non-packaged foods, for example food sold in restaurants or canteens. Also the origin of fresh meat from pigs, sheep, goat and poultry has to be shown on the label (only beef, honey, olive oil, fresh fruit and vegetables were covered until now).

EP final vote: 6.7.2011

Rapporteur: Renate Sommer (EPP, DE)

Textile labelling. This legislation simplifies procedures for placing new fibres and innovative products on the market. It will be compulsory to state if textiles contain real fur or leather. Parliament has also asked for an assessment of a country-of-origin labelling scheme by 2013.

EP final vote: 11.5.2011

Rapporteur: Toine Manders (ALDE, NL)

Organ transplants. People needing organ transplants should face shorter waiting times after Parliament approved a directive on quality and safety standards for human organs used for transplants. The directive covers all stages of the chain from donation to transplantation and provides for cooperation between Member States. It aims to ensure that human organs used for transplantation comply with the same quality and safety requirements throughout the EU.

EP final vote: 19.5.2010

Rapporteur: Miroslav Mikolášik (EPP, SK)

Pharmacovigilance of medicinal products for human use. EU and national web portals will be set up to give information on medicinal products and their proven side effects. Patients will be able to report side effects directly to national authorities. A black symbol on a package will indicate that the product is subject to additional monitoring. Personal data protection will be guaranteed.

EP final vote: 22.9.2010

Rapporteur: Linda McAvan (S&D, UK)

Fake medicines. A new EU law should prevent fake medicines from entering the legal supply chain. It introduces new safety and traceability measures as well as penalties for counterfeiters. Internet sales will be covered. New safety features have to be placed on individual packs in order to identify them, guarantee their authenticity and enable pharmacists to check whether the outer packaging has been tampered with. These features would apply to all prescription medicines (unless there is clearly no risk) and, in exceptional cases, to non-prescription medicines (where there is a risk of falsification). Where medicines are repackaged, these safety features must be replaced by equivalent ones. If the fake medicines reach patients, an alert must be given within 24 hours.

EP final vote: 16.2.2011

Rapporteur: Marisa Matias (GUE/NGL, PT)

Healthcare without borders. EU citizens will be reimbursed for healthcare they receive in another Member State as long as the type of treatment and costs would have normally been covered in their own country. The authorities may require that patients seek ‘prior authorisation’ for treatments requiring overnight hospital stays or specialised healthcare. Any refusal will need to be justified according to a restricted list of possible reasons. Each country must establish a ‘contact point’ to provide information to patients considering seeking treatment abroad. The rules concern only those who choose to seek treatment abroad as the European Health Insurance Card scheme will continue to apply for citizens who require urgent treatment when visiting another EU country. Patients with rare diseases can receive crossborder treatment and diagnosis if this is unavailable in their country of origin.

EP final vote: 19.1.2011

Rapporteur: Françoise Grossetête (EPP, FR)

Drivers' working time. Self-employed bus and lorry drivers must be brought under the same rules on working hours as drivers who work for companies, decided MEPs when they rejected a Commission proposal that would have excluded self-employed drivers from the 2002 Working Time Directive on the road transport industry.

Current EU law on employed drivers lays down an average limit of 48 working hours a week, which can rise to 60 hours a week provided it does not exceed the average of 48 hours a week over a four-month period. The self-employed are already covered by EU legislation on driving time (working time includes not only driving but also administrative tasks).

EP final vote: 16.6.2010

Rapporteur: Edit Bauer (EPP, SK)

Telecoms package. A major overhaul of EU telecoms rules approved by MEPs will strengthen the rights of phone users and internet surfers, boost competition among telecoms firms, protect data and modernise radio spectrum use.

EP final vote: 24.11.2009

Rapporteurs: Malcolm Harbour (ECR, UK), Catherine Trautmann (S&D, FR), Pilar del Castillo Vera (EPP, ES)

European Earth observation programme (2011–2013). Parliament gave its approval to a programme on earth observation systems used to collect information about our planet's physical, chemical and biological systems, using both satellite and ground based installations. These systems can be used for monitoring environmental damage and overfishing as well as for border surveillance, civil protection and disaster response.

EP final vote: 16.6.2010

Rapporteur: Norbert Glante (S&D, DE)

Animal testing. A new law will limit the use of animals in scientific experiments but with some flexibility so as not to hinder research in Europe into fighting diseases. National authorities will have to assess the animal welfare implications of each experiment done, with a view to promoting alternative testing methods and reducing the pain inflicted on animals. The use of animals in scientific experiments is allowed for basic research and for research into human, animal or plant diseases, drug testing and species preservation, and also for higher education and forensic investigations. The legislation broadly bans the use of great apes such as chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas and orang-utans for scientific testing. However, the use of other primates such as ouistitis and macaques is allowed, so as not to hamper scientific research into neurodegenerative illnesses such as Alzheimer's.

EP final vote: 8.9.2010

Rapporteur: Elisabeth Jeggle (EPP, DE)

Energy efficiency of buildings. The new directive on energy efficiency of buildings requires Member States from 2020 to ensure that new constructions have a "very high energy performance", with energy needs covered to a large degree by renewable sources.

EP final vote: 19.5.2010

Rapporteur: Silvia-Adriana Ţicău (S&D, RO)

Security of gas supplies. The vulnerability of EU households to disruptions of gas supplies should be reduced thanks to new legislation approved by MEPs. In the event of extremely low temperatures, European gas companies would be required to ensure supplies to households in the following cases: extreme temperatures for a seven-day peak period; any period of at least 30 days of exceptionally high demand; at least 30 days in the event of infrastructure disruption under average winter conditions.

The European Commission will also have to declare a "Union emergency" or a regional emergency if requested by at least two Member States who have declared national emergencies.

EP final vote: 21.9.2010

Rapporteur: Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP, ES)

Information on energy efficiency of consumer products. The energy label used to give an indication of the energy consumption of household appliances such as fridges, washing machines and ovens will in future be used for commercial and industrial products such as vending machines. The label will also be used for construction products that have an effect on energy savings, such as window glazing.

EP final vote: 19.5.2010

Rapporteur: Anni Podimata (S&D, EL)

Industrial emissions. The EP approved a directive to improve health and environment protection by establishing limits of pollutants for industrial installations (excluding carbon dioxide). Stricter limits on nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide and dust emissions will be introduced from 2016. However, Member States will have some flexibility to extend deadlines for power plants or waive the rules for other installations in special cases (some large combustion plants will have until 2020 to meet requirements and some older plants may not have to meet the targets, as long as they close by the end of 2023 or 17,500 operating hours after 2016, whichever happens first.).

EP final vote: 7.7.2010

Rapporteur: Holger Krahmer (ALDE, DE)

Illegal logging. MEPs approved tougher rules on timber sold in the EU, with the aim of combating illegal logging, which is the main cause of deforestation in many parts of the world.

EP final vote: 7.7.2010

Rapporteur: Satu Hassi (Greens/EFA, FI)

CO2 emissions of light vehicles and vans. A new regulation will cut emissions from new light commercial vehicles (vans weighing up to 3.5 tonnes when loaded). The main points of this legislation are:

• 147g CO2/km for the 2020 target;

• Short-term target of 175g/km in 2014;

• 70% of vehicles to meet the target in 2014, 75% in 2015, 80% in 2016 and all from 2017 onwards;

• more generous "super credits" than proposed by the EC. Cars emitting less than e.g. 50g/km count for 3.5 vehicles towards the average in 2014-15, scheme ends 2018;

• penalties of €95 per gram over the limit (the same as in cars legislation).

EP final vote: 15.2.2011

Rapporteur: Martin Callanan (ECR, UK)

Fish-friendly laundry powder and dishwasher tabs. Washing powders and dishwasher detergents will have to be almost phosphorus-free in future, under new EU rules to protect fish and other aquatic life in Europe's waterways and seas. Phosphorus helps wash clothes and dishes, especially in hard water, but if released into rivers, lakes or seawater it can cause algal blooms that stifle marine life. Dishwasher products were included in the legislation at the insistence of MEPs.

EP final vote: 14.12.2011

Rapporteur: Bill Newton Dunn (ALDE, UK)

Human trafficking and protection of victims. A new EU law provides a broader definition of human trafficking (including sexual exploitation, forced labour, begging, removal of organs, illegal adoption and forced marriages), lays down minimum rules for defining penalties for traffickers and introduces EU-wide rules to strengthen crime prevention and improve protection for victims.

EP final vote: 14.12.2010

Rapporteurs: Anna Hedh (S&D, SE), Edit Bauer (EPP, SK)

Combating child sex abuse and child pornography. This update of existing legislation seeks to combat sexual abuse and exploitation of children as well as child pornography. The new rules, which cover child pornography on the web and child sex tourism, state that child pornography websites must be removed at source in all EU countries. Where removal is impossible, e.g. because pages are hosted outside the EU, Member States may still decide to block access within their territory. Also, under the new rules, "child sex tourism" would be a crime, as well as other new forms of abuse, such as on-line "grooming".

EP final vote: 27.10.2011

Rapporteur: Roberta Angelilli (EPP, IT)

EU-wide protection for crime victims. Victims of crime who are granted protection from their aggressors in one EU state will in future be able to get similar protection if they move to another EU country, by applying for a European Protection Order. The EPO is designed to protect victims of harassment, abduction, gender violence, stalking or attempted murder.  Thanks to MEPs, an order may also be requested to safeguard relatives of someone who has obtained an EPO.

EP final vote: 13.12.2011

Rapporteurs: Carmen Romero López (S&D, ES), Teresa Jiménez-Becerril Barrio (EPP, ES)

Standard rights and a simpler work and residence permit for non-EU workers. Non-EU migrants working legally within the EU are set to enjoy standard basic rights, similar to those of EU nationals, regarding working conditions, pensions, social security and access to public services. The new "single permit" directive will also enable foreign workers to obtain work and residence permits under a single procedure.

EP final vote: 13.12.2011

Rapporteur: Véronique Mathieu (EPP, FR)

Housing upgrades. Money from the EU's regional fund can already be used to renovate social housing in urban areas in the new Member States. Parliament voted in favour of extending this option to all Member States, to fund housing for marginalised communities and also to apply it to rural areas.

EP final vote: 10.2.2010

Rapporteur: Lambert van Nistelrooij (EPP, NL)

EU diplomatic service. MEPs gave the green light for the new European External Action Service (EEAS) but made recommendations about its organisation and working methods, including steps to strengthen its "Community identity".

EP final vote: 8.7.2010

Rapporteurs: Elmar Brok (EPP, DE); Guy Verhofstadt (ALDE, BE)

SWIFT accord: protection of bank data. A new version of the SWIFT anti-terrorist agreement on bank data transfers to the USA was approved by Parliament in July 2010. MEPs had rejected the agreement in its previous form four months earlier but then negotiated certain safeguards for Europe's citizens, in particular regarding the ultimate elimination of "bulk" data transfers.

Rapporteur: Alexander Alvaro (ALDE, DE)

Citizens' initiative.  The European Commission will have to consider drafting a new EU law if so requested by at least one million EU citizens, under a new procedure introduced by the Lisbon Treaty. Signatures can be gathered on paper or online. Any proposed law must fall within the EU's powers and be compatible with EU values. Parliament managed to make the procedure more user-friendly than was initially the case and ensured that all initiatives backed by a million signatures will get a proper follow-up, including a public hearing.

EP final vote: 15.12.2010

Rapporteurs: Alain Lamassoure (EPP, FR) and Zita Gurmai (S&D, HU)