REPORT on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 as regards the financial allocation for certain Member States from the European Social Fund

13.11.2013 - (COM(2013)0560 – C7‑0244/2013 – 2013/0271(COD)) - ***I

Committee on Regional Development
Rapporteur: Jan Olbrycht
Rapporteur for the opinion (*):
Elisabeth Morin-Chartier, Committee on Employment and Social Affairs
(*) Associated committee – Rule 50 of the Rules of Procedure


Procedure : 2013/0271(COD)
Document stages in plenary
Document selected :  
A7-0381/2013
Texts tabled :
A7-0381/2013
Debates :
Texts adopted :

DRAFT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 as regards the financial allocation for certain Member States from the European Social Fund

(COM(2013)0560 – C7‑0244/2013 – 2013/0271(COD))

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2013)0560),

–   having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 177 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C7‑0244/2013),

–   having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–   having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 17 October 2013[1],

–   after consulting the Committee of the Regions ,

–   having regard to Rule 55 of its Rules of Procedure,

–   having regard to the report of the Committee on Regional Development and the opinions of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Committee on Budgets (A7-0381/2013),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading, taking over the Commission proposal;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it intends to amend its proposal substantially or replace it with another text;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

  • [1] 1          Not yet published in the Official Journal.

OPINION of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (*) (6.11.2013)

for the Committee on Regional Development

on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 as regards the financial allocation for certain Member States from the European Social Fund
(COM(2013)0560 – C7‑0244/2013 – 2013/0271(COD))

Rapporteur(*): Elisabeth Morin-Chartier

(*) Procedure with associated committees – Rule 50 of the Rules of Procedure.

SHORT JUSTIFICATION

The legislative proposal under examination, which amends the general regulation on the Funds for the period 2007-2013 currently in force (Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006), provides for an additional European Social Fund (ESF) envelope of EUR 150 million, made available through the flexibility instrument, to be allocated for 2013 to three Member States, notably France, Italy and Spain (receiving EUR 100 million, 30 million and 20 million respectively in current prices). In addition, in order to avoid commitment constraints, the draft regulation sets out a special derogation to the standard deadline for commitments, allowing for budget commitments under this additional allocation to be made until 30 June 2014.

These increases of the ESF national envelopes have been agreed upon at the European Council of 27 and 28 June 2013 in order to support the Member States concerned in their efforts to cope with the challenges brought by the current crisis and as a way for compensating them for the negative impact they will suffer because of the choices made in the multiannual financial framework 2014-2020.

This amending proposal needs to be adopted and enter into force before 1st January 2014, when Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 is expected to be repealed by the common provisions regulation (CPR) currently under negotiation at inter-institutional level. In addition, there is also urgency on the ground as the Member States and projects are already suffering from the lack of resources in these social areas.

It must be highlighted that there are specific reasons why the additional allocation has been made available to the Member States concerned through the ESF. Firstly, this is because these Member States are currently facing high levels of unemployment (France: 11%, Italy: 12,2% and Spain: 26,2%; above the EU28 average: 10,9%), in particular youth unemployment, as well as a growing number of people at risk of poverty and social exclusion. The increase of the allocation of the ESF will provide France, Italy and Spain with additional resources to help them cope with these problems. In light of the urgent investment needs that these Member States are experiencing in the social area, the ESF is also considered to be the instrument that can ensure a higher rate of absorption of funds in the current context.

Last but not least, the increase of the allocation of the ESF for the three above-mentioned Member States highlights the importance of this Fund in promoting employment and social inclusion and in reinforcing the social dimension of the European Union in the present economic situation, which also offers clear evidence in support of the call for a minimum share of 25% of cohesion policy resources to be devoted to the ESF in the next programming period 2014-2020.

The European Social Fund is the main EU tool for social inclusion through integration into the labour market and an essential lever in times of crisis for the benefit of both jobseekers and employees. Since 2008, the crisis has been emphasising the need for the type of interventions supported by the ESF. More than ever, those three Member States: France, Italy and Spain should be able to benefit from the increase of their ESF allocation by supporting employment for all through:

- facilitating access to employment,

- promoting return into employment after a work interruption,

- supporting workers' employability (training of employees to adapt to new working methods and/or new jobs).

For all these reasons, your rapporteur for opinion recommends that the proposal be adopted without any amendments and in the speediest possible way.

PROCEDURE

Title

Financial allocation for certain Member States from the European Social Fund

References

COM(2013)0560 – C7-0244/2013 – 2013/0271(COD)

Committee responsible

       Date announced in plenary

REGI

10.9.2013

 

 

 

Opinion by

       Date announced in plenary

EMPL

10.9.2013

Rapporteur

       Date appointed

Elisabeth Morin-Chartier

11.9.2013

Discussed in committee

17.10.2013

 

 

 

Date adopted

5.11.2013

 

 

 

Result of final vote

+:

–:

0:

41

1

3

Members present for the final vote

Regina Bastos, Edit Bauer, Heinz K. Becker, Phil Bennion, Pervenche Berès, Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, Philippe Boulland, Milan Cabrnoch, Alejandro Cercas, Ole Christensen, Derek Roland Clark, Minodora Cliveti, Marije Cornelissen, Emer Costello, Andrea Cozzolino, Frédéric Daerden, Karima Delli, Sari Essayah, Richard Falbr, Thomas Händel, Nadja Hirsch, Stephen Hughes, Danuta Jazłowiecka, Jean Lambert, Patrick Le Hyaric, Verónica Lope Fontagné, Olle Ludvigsson, Thomas Mann, Elisabeth Morin-Chartier, Csaba Őry, Siiri Oviir, Konstantinos Poupakis, Sylvana Rapti, Licia Ronzulli, Joanna Katarzyna Skrzydlewska, Jutta Steinruck, Traian Ungureanu, Inês Cristina Zuber

Substitute(s) present for the final vote

Georges Bach, Jürgen Creutzmann, Jelko Kacin, Martin Kastler, Anthea McIntyre, Ria Oomen-Ruijten, Tatjana Ždanoka

OPINION of the Committee on Budgets (18.10.2013)

for the Committee on Regional Development

on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 as regards the financial allocation for certain Member States from the European Social Fund
(COM(2013)0560 – C7‑0244/2013 – 2013/0271(COD))

Rapporteur: Reimer Böge

SHORT JUSTIFICATION

On 25 July 2013 the Commission adopted a proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and the Council amending the general Regulation for Structural and Cohesion Funds which modifies the financial allocation for France, Italy and Spain from the ESF. This is with the aim of addressing certain issues resulting from the final outcome of the negotiations of the MFF for the years 2014-2020, affecting these Member States.

An appropriation of EUR 150 million is proposed to be added to the ESF 2013 commitments for France, Italy and Spain, in order to address the specific issue of unemployment, in particular of young people, and of social exclusion. To ensure the effectiveness of the increase of appropriations and facilitate the implementation of the programmes, the Commission has taken into account the absorption capacity of the Member States concerned for the two objectives of the Funds: ‘Convergence objective’ and ‘Regional competitiveness and employment objective’.

The compensation shall be provided from the 2007-2013 period with the amounts being made available through the flexibility instrument and the margin left under 2013 budget[1].

The Rapporteur’s recommendations relating to the mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument will be presented in his draft report on the Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument, drafted in parallel to this opinion.

The current proposal translates this increase of appropriations into the legal basis by modifying Articles 18 - global resources, Article 19 - resources available for the Convergence objective, Article 20 - resources available for the Regional competitiveness and employment objective, and Article 75 on budget commitments, as well as Annex I - annual breakdown of commitment appropriations and Annex II - criteria and methodology for the allocation of the resources.

Having regard to the special efforts needed to tackle unemployment, in particular youth unemployment, and of poverty and social exclusion in the Member States concerned, notably in the context of the current economic crisis, your Rapporteur endorses the Commission proposal and recommends its approval.

Given that those commitment appropriations refer to the year 2013 and that the existing allocation for France, Italy and Spain from the ESF has been fully committed in the EU budget, your Rapporteur stresses that this Regulation should enter into force as a matter of urgency.

******

The Committee on Budgets calls on the Committee on Regional development, as committee responsible, to propose that Parliament adopts its position at first reading, taking over the Commission proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 as regards the financial allocation for certain Member States from the European Social Fund.

PROCEDURE

Title

Financial allocation for certain Member States from the European Social Fund

References

COM(2013)0560 – C7-0244/2013 – 2013/0271(COD)

Committee responsible

       Date announced in plenary

REGI

10.9.2013

 

 

 

Opinion by

       Date announced in plenary

BUDG

10.9.2013

Rapporteur

       Date appointed

Reimer Böge

5.9.2013

Date adopted

17.10.2013

 

 

 

Result of final vote

+:

–:

0:

20

1

0

Members present for the final vote

Zuzana Brzobohatá, José Manuel Fernandes, Eider Gardiazábal Rubial, Lucas Hartong, Jutta Haug, Anne E. Jensen, Ivailo Kalfin, Sergej Kozlík, Jan Kozłowski, Alain Lamassoure, Giovanni La Via, Jan Mulder, Vojtěch Mynář, Juan Andrés Naranjo Escobar, Nadezhda Neynsky, Andrej Plenković, Alda Sousa, Oleg Valjalo

Substitute(s) present for the final vote

Maria Da Graça Carvalho, Paul Rübig, Georgios Stavrakakis

  • [1]  Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument, COM(2013) 559 and the Draft Amending Budget n° 7 to the general budget 2013 COM(2013) 557.

PROCEDURE

Title

Financial allocation for certain Member States from the European Social Fund

References

COM(2013)0560 – C7-0244/2013 – 2013/0271(COD)

Date submitted to Parliament

25.7.2013

 

 

 

Committee responsible

       Date announced in plenary

REGI

10.9.2013

 

 

 

Committee(s) asked for opinion(s)

       Date announced in plenary

BUDG

10.9.2013

CONT

10.9.2013

EMPL

10.9.2013

 

Not delivering opinions

       Date of decision

CONT

2.9.2013

 

 

 

Rapporteur(s)

       Date appointed

Jan Olbrycht

24.9.2013

 

 

 

Discussed in committee

14.10.2013

 

 

 

Date adopted

7.11.2013

 

 

 

Result of final vote

+:

–:

0:

39

0

0

Members present for the final vote

Luís Paulo Alves, Jean-Jacob Bicep, Victor Boştinaru, Nikos Chrysogelos, Danuta Maria Hübner, Filiz Hakaeva Hyusmenova, Vincenzo Iovine, Iñaki Irazabalbeitia Fernández, María Irigoyen Pérez, Constanze Angela Krehl, Petru Constantin Luhan, Iosif Matula, Erminia Mazzoni, Jens Nilsson, Younous Omarjee, Markus Pieper, Ovidiu Ioan Silaghi, Georgios Stavrakakis, Nuno Teixeira, Lambert van Nistelrooij, Oldřich Vlasák, Kerstin Westphal, Elżbieta Katarzyna Łukacijewska

Substitute(s) present for the final vote

Joseph Cuschieri, Cornelia Ernst, Jens Geier, Ivars Godmanis, Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou, James Nicholson, Ivari Padar, Elisabeth Schroedter, Giommaria Uggias, Iuliu Winkler

Substitute(s) under Rule 187(2) present for the final vote

Zuzana Brzobohatá, Matthias Groote, Krzysztof Lisek, Marian-Jean Marinescu, Ria Oomen-Ruijten, Eleni Theocharous

Date tabled

13.11.2013