MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

6.12.2006

to wind up the debate on the statement by the Commission
pursuant to Rule 103(2) of the Rules of Procedure
by Martin Schulz and Hannes Swoboda
on behalf of the PSE Group
on the Commission's legislative and work programme for 2007

B6‑0642/2006

European Parliament resolution on the Commission's legislative and work programme for 2007

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission Legislative and Work Programme 2007 (COM(2006) 629),

–  having regard to the contributions made by Parliament's committees, which have been forwarded to the Commission by the Conference of Presidents,

–  having regard to Rule 103(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas it is essential for the Commission to be able to serve the common interest in the European Union, given the challenges ahead of us, in order to make Europe a leading player on the world stage in support of peace, security, and sustainable economic and social development,

1.  Notes the new, focused structure of the Commission Work Programme; welcomes some important proposals in the fields of climate change and immigration and integration, but regrets the lack of ambition in several other fields; believes that, to overcome the current deadlock in the European Project, the Commission should have a central role in strengthening a European social market economy based on sustainable development, and promoting peace, justice and social progress;

2.  Is of the opinion that the implementation of the objectives and reforms enshrined in the Constitutional Treaty is indispensable for the smooth functioning and future development of the European Union; calls, therefore, on the Commission, in close cooperation with the EP, to contribute more effectively to moving the constitutional process forwards;

3.  Underlines once again the importance of a vigorous implementation of the Lisbon Strategy, emphasising the interdependence of economic, social and environmental progress in creating a dynamic and innovative economy and social policy reforms; warns against reducing the strategy solely to a few priorities linked to the completion of the internal market and better regulation;

4.  Supports in principle the concept of 'better regulation', but remains vigilant against any attempt to turn this concept into an instrument of deregulation or minimal regulation; in this respect, criticises the lack of legislative action in some important fields as social rights and consumer protection; remains convinced that the EU should use all available instruments in the interest of all Europeans;

5.  Welcomes the Commission' efforts to render its daily task of delivery closer to the citizen, and supports its initiative to build partnerships and listen to the people; strongly believes that far greater account should be taken of delivery and implementation of existing EU law, and calls on the Commission to cooperate with Parliament and to devote human and financial resources to better monitor the formal and substantial enforcement of EU legislation in the Member States; in this respect, asks the Commission to produce in 2007, European Year of Equal Opportunities for All, an evaluation of the actual implementation of EU legislation on the fight against all forms of discrimination;

6.  Believes that a common immigration, visa and asylum policy, as well as effective economic, social and political integration of immigrants on the basis of common principles, must be at the heart of EU action for 2007; welcomes the proposed Commission initiatives on labour immigration and on sanctions for employers of illegally resident third country nationals; calls for concrete proposals for Decent Work in Europe and in developing countries, and for European enterprises to bear responsibility in this field;

7.  Calls for the adoption of the codecision procedure and qualified majority voting in all areas related to immigration;

8.  Calls on the Member States to undertake to strengthen cooperation and mutual technical assistance between the Member States' border control services and increase the financing of FRONTEX, in order to ensure the protection of the basic rights of migrants on entry and to fight against human trafficking; requests that the conclusion of readmission agreements be fair, respect the fundamental rights of migrants and take into consideration the shared needs of EU Member States and of the countries of origin and transit;

9.  Welcomes the Commission proposals on legal migration and calls for a horizontal approach on this issue that takes into consideration the need to open legal channels of immigration, including for less skilled workers; takes due note of the Commission proposal on the conditions of entry and residence of highly skilled workers, but calls on the Commission to pay the utmost attention to the 'brain drain' problem faced by many developing countries;

10.  Considers it necessary to strike a clear balance between protecting the public and maintaining a high standard of civil liberties by placing more emphasis on and making specific proposals with regard to fighting the root causes of terrorism (including fighting poverty, radicalisation, social exclusion and lack of integration, and democratisation), and treatment of personal data (in particular in the framework of banking operations - SWIFT);

11.  Reiterates its calls for a European agenda where prosperity and solidarity are truly mutually supportive objectives; calls on the Commission to reverse the current deadlock on social policy and create new initiatives in those areas highlighted in several EP resolutions; hopes that recent Commission initiatives, such as the Communication and Green Paper on the labour market, will pave the way, in particular, for:

• –legislative action to protect atypical workers and for social protection in new forms of employment, if Europe really intends to give a decisive input in balancing positive and chosen flexibility with security;
• –the strengthening of EU legislation on workers' involvement to promote a proactive and positive approach on industrial change, in particular the European Works Council directive and the directive on collective redundancies, and to develop social dialogue;
• –measures to combat social exclusion and discrimination at all levels, and to promote participation in an active society;
• –promoting women's access and participation in the labour market and for conciliating work and family life for women and men;
• –measures for networking the labour inspectors of Member States in order to ensure effective enforcement of labour law;

12.  Regrets the lack of proposals on economic governance; insists that the reforms that Europe needs can only be achieved in a contest of sustained growth, ambitious welfare state conditions and protection of citizens rights; calls on the Commission, as a matter of urgency, to start a process of coordinating economic policies and improving economic governance by proposing concrete initiatives in particular on:

• –coordinated national and European investment activities in infrastructure, research, new technologies and skills,
• –coordinated measures regarding a new quality of public spending,
• –a coordinated approach regarding national budgetary procedures and the quality of statistics;

13.  Insists on the need to take full account of the quality of public services in completing the internal market; reiterates its calls for more legal certainty throughout appropriate horizontal and sectoral legislative initiatives on services of general interest, in particular a Framework Directive on Services of General interest;

14.  Notes the Commission initiative to launch a review of the single market strategy; insists that the single market can only be developed in a context of fair competition, fighting tax and social dumping and promoting cohesion and a high level of consumer protection; draws attention to the need to maintain the principle of harmonisation as the core of the single market achievement, and to develop a proactive and sectoral European industrial policy in sectors in difficulty, such as the automotive sector;

15.  Regrets the lack of ambition in the field of financial services, in particular on post-trading activities and the consequences of leveraged buyouts (LBO); urges the Commission to make sure that the European legislation on financial services is fully respected by our international partners; furthermore, is deeply concerned at the consequences, in terms of financial stability, economic performance and employment levels, of the growing activities of private equity funds and hedge funds and the absence of appropriate responses and of Commission proposals to improve transparency and establish more effective supervisory rules;

16.  Welcomes the proposals in the energy field and on climate change, tackling the completion of the internal market for electricity and gas, but also ensuring greater use of renewables in the market; asks the Commission to better develop the synergies between employment/industrial development on the one hand and development/use of clean technologies on the other, as complementarities are strong and a potential source for increased competitiveness;

17.  Regrets the lack of ambition in the field of transport policy, which is reflected in the many non-legislative proposals in this area;

18.  Calls on the Commission to support a strong role for the EU in the devising of post-Kyoto policies and new targets; while taking note of the fact that the Commission proposes greater use of instruments other than legislation in the environmental and transport fields, believes that an in-depth reflection is needed on the real effectiveness of non-legislative approaches in these policy areas;

19.  Asks the Commission for a new impetus in the field of consumer protection, in particular with regard to:

• –aiming at consolidating and reviewing the consumer acquis to reinforce the effectiveness of consumer protection policy and consumer rights,
• –ensuring protection of vulnerable consumers,
• –strengthening consumer information and awareness on rights and redress, e.g. by means of an EU-wide information campaign,
• –protecting consumer interests in all EU policy areas;

20.  Regrets that the Commission has not taken into account Parliament's objections and has withdrawn the proposals on the Statute for a European Association (1991/0386/COD) and the Statute for a European Mutual Society (1991/0390/COD); insists that the Commission should come forward with new proposals in these areas;

21.  Deplores the fact that other initiatives are missing in the Commission Work Programme 2007 regarding European Contract Law, protection periods in copyright law, patent law and the application of EU law in the area of sport;

22.  Calls on the Commission to propose a legal base to fight against violence;

23.  Reiterates its call to improve framework conditions for research and innovation, including financing, and for a better intellectual property policy; reminds the Commission that the EU must, as a matter of urgency, take the lead in important technologies such as Mobile TV, where quick and effective policies in setting open and interoperable standards are crucial;

24.  Calls on the Commission to engage in an early dialogue with Parliament on the crucial revision of the EU budgetary framework and the financial perspective, the mid-term review of the CAP, and the discussion on new mechanisms in respect of own resources;

25.  Is expecting the Commission's proposal on the simplification of the CAP as well as the one concerning a single common market organisation (CMO), in line with the objectives of simplification and transparency; stresses that, in view of the mid-term review of the Community's budget in 2008, the regional, social and environmental role of the CAP should be enhanced together with the stabilisation of the Community agricultural funds;

26.  Is disappointed to see that, despite the importance of the cohesion policy as an instrument of solidarity, economic growth and added value of Community policy, every year there is a partial return from the budget to the Member States; asks the Commission to ensure, facilitate and encourage the total implementation of the Community budget, in particular in the new Member States, given that 2007 will be a crucial year for the implementation of the new structural policy; asks the Commission to apply all the necessary measures in order to ensure that the operational programmes for the new financing period, in accordance with the strategic guidelines for cohesion, are ready and start to be implemented on time for all Member States;

27.  Underlines the importance it attaches to the reform agenda, in particular in the field of the fight against fraud and mismanagement, as any such cases contribute to increase EU scepticism; deplores that the Commission seems to have downgraded its original reform programme; in this context, calls on the Commission to continue its work on the Action Plan for an Integrated Internal Control Framework and the Transparency Initiative;

28  Welcomes the commitment by the Commission to giving priority to strengthening the European Neighbourhood Policy, but believes that concrete proposals and steps are needed to give content to this commitment; warns against the risk that the European Neighbourhood Policy may limit itself to bilateral and administrative or 'bureaucratic' relations with the countries concerned; calls on the Commission to engage in a dialogue with Parliament to better define the aspects to be strengthened and the objectives to be reached in the different geopolitical areas; stresses the importance of the regional dimension of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, as a fundamental aspect of the Barcelona Process;

29.  Reminds the Commission that the current Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with Russia will run out in 2007; calls on the Commission to define the strategic content of EU's relations with Russia, also bearing in mind that this is a priority for the upcoming German Presidency;

30.  Reiterates its call on the Commission regarding the strengthening of democracy and respect for human rights and the rule of law in its European Foreign Policy, and its undertaking to contribute to resolution of conflicts; calls on the Commission to promote a 'democratic clause' in all external policies, in particular in agreements with third countries, including sectoral agreements; recalls that the political dialogue on human rights must be developed, mostly in the framework of association agreements with neighbour countries;

31.  Welcomes the Commission's proposals in the area of development, particularly on Africa; calls on the Commission to place more emphasis on complementarity, in order to improve the effectiveness of aid; on generalised tariff preferences, expects clarifications from the Commission on how the GSP will work for EPA (Economic Partnership Agreement) regions; on EPAs, considers that the Commission should attach more importance to a good development result than to a fixed time limit; considers that a procedure to simplify Rules of Origin will also help developing countries involved in the GSP and EPAs but, again, believes that the relationship between these arrangements must be clarified; urges the Commission to prioritise the implementation of the Development Cooperation Instrument (DCI), including the explicit consultation on the Country Strategy Papers, and to streamline the implementation of the European Development Fund (EDF) on the basis of the same priorities and procedures;

32.  On external trade, notes that implementation of October's Communication on trade policy ('Global Europe') is highlighted as a key priority; insists that it must not become an alternative for finalising the Doha Round and gives priority to the WTO multilateral framework; positively views the need for greater cohesion between internal and external policies in order to strengthen the European model of economic and social development; further notes that some of its elements may give rise to concern and need further clarification, e.g. the Commission's stance on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and the opening of service markets; is concerned that this new strategy fails to embrace promotion of labour and environmental standards, such as the Decent Work agenda, as trade policy objectives; requests the Commission to explain, in the light of the adopted policy recommendations, how it intends to ensure that trade remains in the service of development; opposes a shift of emphasis from multilateral to bilateral trade negotiations;

33.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the parliaments of the Member States.