Debašu stenogramma

Otrdiena, 2014. gada 11. marts - Strasbūra

7. ES garantijas piešķiršana EIB attiecībā uz zaudējumiem no finansēšanas darījumiem, ar kuriem atbalsta ieguldījumu projektus ārpus Savienības (debates)

  El Presidente. - El punto siguiente en el orden del día es el debate sobre el informe de Ivailo Kalfin, en nombre de la Comisión de Presupuestos, sobre la propuesta de Decisión del Parlamento Europeo y del Consejo por la que se concede al Banco Europeo de Inversiones una garantía de la UE frente a las pérdidas que se deriven de operaciones de financiación en favor de proyectos de inversión fuera de la Unión (COM(2013)0293 - C7-0145/2013 - 2013/0152(COD)) (A7-0392/2013).

  Göran Färm, deputising for the rapporteur. - Mr President, apologies from Mr Kalfin, who cannot be here, so he has asked me to step in for him. First of all, let me express the gratitude of the rapporteur over the fact that an agreement on this very important issue was actually reached in such a short time. We had worries that it might take longer, but it is now in place. This will give the European Investment Bank the possibility to continue its operations without disruption, which is of course extremely important.

The rapporteur also very much welcomes the agreement to keep the lending ceilings at current levels. That is one of the things the European Parliament has actually fought for. The use of EU funds through the EIB allows for a leverage effect of more funding, sometimes up to 25 times the amount we invest. That is a very efficient use of scarce EU resources.

The rapporteur also thanks the Council – in particular the Lithuanian Presidency, with which he has negotiated – for accepting to use external assigned revenues from the fiduciary account established for the Facility for Euro-Mediterranean Investment and Partnership, to finance the additional EUR[nbsp ]2 billion necessary for the restoration of the ceilings, as suggested by Parliament. Two billion might not sound very much, but if we consider what these funds can mobilise overall, it is very significant. From the agreement reached it is, however, clear that the decision to use reflows in this way is a one-off deal and cannot be used as a precedent in other contexts.

The rapporteur is also very satisfied with the open and constructive work he has had with civil society during the work on of this report. NGOs were particularly helpful regarding transparency and on social and environmental aspects, etc.

In accordance with the Treaty, the EIB should endeavour to support the objectives of the Union’s development cooperation policy, such as by reducing poverty through inclusive growth and sustainable economy and environmental and social development. The EIB should also always make it a priority to strengthen the local private sector in beneficiary countries.

There are a number of points which the rapporteur wants to emphasise. In the period from 2014 to 2020, the EIB is encouraged to continue pursuing its greener path, by strengthening its emissions performance standards and launching a public review of the climate impact of its lending portfolio.

The EIB should also support investment projects in sustainable energy security and energy infrastructure, including transmission infrastructure, in particular interconnections that facilitate the integration of electricity from renewable sources. He would also like to emphasise that investments in the field of renewable energy and better energy efficiency should be preferred to investments in fossil fuels.

Financial agreements with individual promoters relating to EIB operations should also include appropriate environmental, social, human rights and labour provisions. We should make an evaluation of the social impact of its operation, and human rights considerations will have a more central role in the Bank’s lending. We also emphasise increased transparency, monitoring of the Bank’s activities, democratic scrutiny and zero tolerance of tax evasion and fraud as being crucial. We emphasise dialogue with stakeholders and better alignment with the political goals of the European Union in the respective regions, and the rapporteur hopes that the EIB will continue to work successfully outside the EU as a top-rated bank and as an EU institution. We expect that the Board of the EIB will strengthen the administrative capacity of the Bank in order to be able to accomplish all the new tasks.

Finally, the rapporteur wants to thank all the shadow rapporteurs, the rapporteurs of the other committees, and the staff of the Committee on Budgets and the political groups for the excellent work on this dossier.

  Tonio Borg, Member of the Commission. - Mr President, I welcome the proposed decision, which was agreed at the trilogue meeting between Parliament and the Council on 17[nbsp ]December last year and which was subsequently endorsed by the Council and by the Parliament’s Committee on Budgets, on behalf of the Commission.

The rapid compromise which has been achieved will ensure that European Investment Bank operations outside the Union will continue smoothly following the end of the existing EU external mandate, which expires on 30[nbsp ]June this year. The proposed EU guarantee will enable the European Investment Bank to operate effectively, in line with EU external policy priorities, in pre-accession countries in the neighbourhood and also more globally.

The total size of the EU guarantee offered to the European Investment Bank for the period 2014-2020 will be EUR[nbsp ]27 billion, plus an optional mandate of EUR[nbsp ]3 billion that could be activated following a mid-term review. This is similar in size to the current mandate of EUR[nbsp ]29.5 billion. The guarantee is EUR[nbsp ]2 billion more than was proposed by the Commission and has only been made possible following an agreement to assign additional budgetary funds of EUR[nbsp ]110 million to the EU Guarantee Fund.

Mr President, I would like to highlight that this is a cost-effective way of promoting EU external policies. Owing to the leverage effect of the Guarantee Mechanism, the total cost to the EU budget for providing the EUR[nbsp ]27 billion guarantee for EIB external operations is EUR[nbsp ]1.3 billion over the period 2014-2020.

In more concrete terms, what does this mean? It means that the guarantee will allow the European Investment Bank to scale up EU investment in Ukraine, for example, to invest in critical infrastructure. It will allow the European Investment Bank to continue investing in North Africa following the Arab Spring, including investment to promote growth and create jobs. The European Union guarantee will also allow the European Investment Bank to continue complementing other EU operations more globally in pre-accession countries in the neighbourhood area and also in Asia and Latin America.

Moreover, the proposed decision reinforces the cooperation between the Bank, the Commission and the European External Action Service and further enhances transparency and promotes broad stakeholder consultation on European Investment Bank operations. The EIB will promote EU policies whilst managing its operations in accordance with the principles of sound banking practices. The EU guarantee will complement the EIB’s own risk operations and will add value by supporting local private sector development, in particular by providing support to SMEs through the development of social and economic infrastructure, including transport, energy and environmental infrastructure and information and communication technology, and through investment in climate change mitigation and adaptation.

  Jacek Protasiewicz, sprawozdawca komisji opiniodawczej AFET. - W imieniu Komisji Spraw Zagranicznych Parlamentu Europejskiego chciałbym powiedzieć, że udało się nam osiągnąć w tym sprawozdaniu dwa bardzo istotne cele: po pierwsze, zaleciłem, aby gwarancja Unii Europejskiej dla pożyczek zewnętrznych udzielanych przez Europejski Bank Inwestycyjny została utrzymana na poziomie 30 mld euro. I to udało nam się osiągnąć – co oznacza, że udało się nam, Parlamentowi, zwiększyć tę kwotę o 2 mld euro, co w czasach kryzysu, niełatwych czasach budżetowych, ma ogromne znaczenie. Chciałbym również podziękować Komisji za to, że przychyliła się do tego wniosku Parlamentu.

Istotny jest również fakt, że wzrost o 2 mld euro nie będzie finansowany z przydzielonych już funduszy na politykę zagraniczną, ale będzie pochodził z niewykorzystanych funduszy na inne cele. A więc nasze możliwości w polityce zagranicznej zwiększą się dzięki temu. Natomiast w odniesieniu do projektów regionalnych uzgodniliśmy, że skoncentrujemy się na krajach przedakcesyjnych i na krajach objętych polityką sąsiedztwa i partnerstwa. Te gwarancje udało nam się zwiększyć o 2 mld, w tym 833 mln dla krajów Europy Wschodniej, Zakaukazia i Rosji, co, jak widać na przykładzie Ukrainy, będzie miało istotne znaczenie, ażeby móc te kraje przyciągać do Unii Europejskiej, pomagać im się modernizować i zmieniać na lepsze.

  Hans-Peter Martin, Verfasser der Stellungnahme des mitberatenden Ausschusses für Wirtschaft und Währung. - Herr Präsident! Zunächst möchte ich mich für die kooperative Zusammenarbeit in unserem Ausschuss bedanken. Ich freue mich auch, dass das, was wir erarbeitet haben, für den Hauptbericht in weitesten Bereichen übernommen worden ist.

Wichtig war uns ganz sicher eine größere Klarheit über die ausgezahlten Beträge, die Anzahl der gewährten Darlehen, die betreffenden Regionen und die Branchen, sodass deutlicher wird, in welchen Bereichen diese Gelder tatsächlich investiert werden, sowie als Kernpunkt der gesamten Problematik herauszustellen, dass Kosten und Nutzen in Bezug auf eine nachhaltige Entwicklung tatsächlich besser evaluiert werden, als das bislang der Fall ist.

Herausgearbeitet haben wir auch, dass die von der EIB unterstützten ausländischen Direktinvestitionen von in der Union ansässigen Unternehmen tatsächlich zur wirtschaftlichen Integration zwischen den sogenannten Heranführungsländern und Nachbarschaftsländern und der Union beitragen.

Abschließend möchte ich bemerken, dass dies ein weiterer Beleg dafür ist, dass man als fraktionsfreies Mitglied, wenn man sich hier engagiert, sehr wohl konstruktiv im Sinne des großen gemeinsamen Ideals arbeiten kann, und dass es keineswegs so ist, dass man dazu einer Fraktion angehören muss, wie das manche jetzt im Wahlkampf fälschlicherweise behaupten.

  Andrej Plenković, u ime kluba PPE. – Gospodine predsjedniče, pozdravljam povjerenika Borga i kao izvjestitelj u sjeni u ime Europske pučke stranke još jednom zahvaljujem kolegi Ivailu Kalfinu i drugim izvjestiteljima u sjeni na uloženom trudu u izradi ove značajne odluke koja jamstvima iz proračuna Europske unije daje mogućnost Europskoj investicijskoj banci da plasira zajmove u treće zemlje.

Europska investicijska banka je snažan komplementarni instrument za vanjsko djelovanje Europske unije i promicanje i naših vrijednosti i interesa u svijetu. Zato mi se čini da su ciljevi koje smo ovdje definirali, a to su prije svega potpora regijama i drugim zemljama u pogledu razvoja lokalnog privatnog sektora radi potpore malim i srednjim poduzećima, socijalnoj i gospodarskoj infrastrukturi, ublažavanju klimatskih promjena te nadogradnji svih komparativnih prednosti na kojima se EIB već do sada dokazala, vrlo konstruktivan prilog našem vanjskom djelovanju.

U tom pogledu smatram, da će i regionalna gospodarska integracija osobito susjednih zemalja, zemalja u pretpristupnom procesu temeljem zajmova Europske investicijske banke biti potpomognuta. Činjenica da smo u pregovorima uspjeli imati jamstvo koje na 30 milijardi eura, umjesto 28, koristeći povratne tokove iz Svemip-a pokazalo je kreativnost u pregovaračkom procesu. Revizija 30. lipnja 2016. omogućuje nam fleksibilnost da vidimo kako ćemo prioritete stavljati tijekom druge polovice ovog višegodišnjeg financijskog okvira, a posebno mi je drago da smo stavili veća sredstva za zemlju u pretpristupnom procesu, zemlje Istočnog partnerstva i zemlje Sredozemlja.

Posebno se želim osvrnuti u tom kontekstu i na Ukrajinu s obzirom na okolnosti koje su danas trenutno tamo pa i pozitivnu najavu prošlog tjedna o paketu EIB-a o dodatne 3 milijarde u prve 3 godine. To bi bio važan politički signal Europske unije prema Ukrajini u kontekstu ovih zajmova.

  Claudette Abela Baldacchino, f'isem il-grupp S&D. –

Il-ġrajjiet ta' dawn l-aħħar jiem ikomplu jikkonfermaw kemm huwa essenzjali li l-Unjoni Ewropea, imbeżża u forsi wkoll dipressa mid-diffikultajiet ekonomiċi kbar li tinsab għaddejja minnhom, ma taqax fin-nasba li tagħti daharha lil dawk il-pajjiżi u popli ġirien tagħha. Sħaqt u nibqa' nisħaq li jkun żball kbir jekk l-Unjoni Ewropea tnaqqas l-involviment tagħha, anki dak finanzjarju, fir-reġjun tal-Mediterran. Ilkoll nafu xi jfisser dan ir-reġjun fl-istorja tal-umanità; ilkoll nafu kemm il-Mediterran huwa reġjun sensittiv: partijiet kbar minnu għadhom għaddejjin minn perjodi ta' instabilità u anki aġġustament.

Dan il-Parlament huwa msejjaħ sabiex jagħti sinjal. Irridu nuru li ftehemna u li fhimna li l-prosperità interna tiddependi wkoll mill-istabilità esterna. Għalhekk huwa essenzjali li l-Unjoni Ewropea tinvolvi ruħha b'mod sħiħ u qawwi fl-iżvilupp tar-reġjuni ta' madwarha. Jekk l-Unjoni Ewropea trid tassew tkun rilevanti, ma tistax tabbanduna, billi tnaqqas il-livell ta' parteċipazzjoni attiva tagħha, lil dawn il-popli. Jekk nagħmlu hekk, nemmen li l-istorja għad tiġġudikana u anki tikkundannana.

  Jan Mulder, namens de ALDE-Fractie. – Dank u wel, Voorzitter, voor uw vriendelijke inleiding.

Gisteren hebben wij in dit Huis reeds uitvoerig gesproken over de rol van de Europese Investeringsbank. De situatie in Europa is dat wij voor de eerste keer een meerjarenbegroting voor de komende zeven jaar hebben die lager is dan de meerjarenbegroting daarvoor.

Dat betekent dat de rol van de Europese Investeringsbank aanzienlijk groter wordt. De filosofie is – en dat is in de praktijk ook al in verschillende omstandigheden duidelijk geworden – dat als je één euro uitgeeft via de Europese begroting, dan is die euro weg. Als je diezelfde euro als garantiekapitaal aan de Europese Investeringsbank geeft, dan is de consequentie daarvan dat hij twintig tot dertig keer gebruikt wordt. Daarom wordt in een nieuwe meerjarenbegroting veel aandacht gegeven aan de nieuwe instrumenten die de Europese Investeringsbank zou kunnen hanteren, aan project bonds enzovoort.

Dat is een uitstekende zaak. Ook daarom is het voorliggende verslag een goede ontwikkeling. Wij verhogen het garantiekapitaal van de Europese Investeringsbank en dat betekent dat de Europese Investeringsbank meer geld kan uitlenen. Want de Europese Investeringsbank is een bijzondere bank. De garanties worden gegeven door de overheden en het is uitsluitend daaraan te danken dat de Europese Investeringsbank goedkoop geld kan lenen en ook tegen een lagere rente geld kan uitlenen. Die rol moeten wij behouden en wij denken dat dit verslag daartoe een belangrijke bijdrage kan leveren.

Vooral ook omdat het in de eerste plaats de buurlanden van Europa betreft. Met de ontwikkelingen in de Oekraïne weten we eens te meer dat het essentieel is dat Europa niet de indruk geeft dat het deze landen op dit moment in de steek laat. Dit verslag kan hiertoe bijdragen.

  Helga Trüpel, im Namen der Verts/ALE-Fraktion. – Herr Präsident, Herr Kommissar! Ich begrüße den Abschluss der Europäischen Investitionsbank. Das externe Engagement der Europäischen Investitionsbank ist ein wichtiges Instrument der EU-Außenpolitik. Daher begrüße ich die Erhöhung der Garantiezusage für die Europäische Investitionsbank auf 30[nbsp ]Milliarden Euro aus dem EU-Haushalt . Das ermöglicht ihr nämlich, ihr Engagement zu verstärken. Der Verweis auf die Ukraine ist eben schon gefallen.

Die Gelder sind umso wichtiger, als es der Union und den Mitgliedstaaten nicht gelingt, andere Instrumente der auswärtigen Politik mit ausreichenden Finanzmitteln auszustatten. Es ist ein Skandal, dass die humanitäre Hilfe völlig unterfinanziert ist. Sie kann wegen Unterfinanzierung kaum noch tätig werden. Noch größer sind die Lücken beim Instrument für Stabilität und Frieden.

Das Engagement der EIB muss an harte Konditionen gebunden sein, vor allem beim Schutz der Demokratie, bei den Menschenrechten und bei der nachhaltigen wirtschaftlichen Entwicklung. Die Ausrichtung an diesen Prinzipien muss überprüfbar sein. Deswegen ist es auch richtig, dass es jetzt mehr Berichtspflichten der EIB gibt.

Womit wir nicht zufrieden sind, ist der Abschluss im Bereich Umweltschutz und Kampf gegen den Klimawandel. Der ist schwach, da hätten wir uns einfach mehr gewünscht. Deswegen erheben wir jetzt die Forderung, dass Maßnahmen mit positiven umweltpolitischen Effekten bei der Finanzierung Vorrang gegeben werden muss.

  Nikola Vuljanić, u ime kluba GUE/NGL. – Gospodine predsjedniče, jamstvo za gubitke je po definiciji socijalizacija gubitaka. Ako se socijalizira potencijalni gubitak, logično je da se socijalizira i dobitak. S druge strane Europska investicijska banka u zemljama izvan Unije treba služiti, a valjda i služi, poticanju rasta u tim zemljama.

Na taj način profitira i Europska unija. Barem djelomično se ublažavaju problemi ekonomske imigracije, istovremeno te zemlje postaju bolji i vjerodostojniji partneri. Već smo danas pričali o nadzoru. No, još jednom bih naglasio važnost nadzora apsorpcije kreditnih sredstava i korupcije u zemljama u koje banka ulazi. Primjedbe da ulaganje u druge zemlje šteti zapošljivosti u Europi, jednostavno nisu ozbiljne i ne stoje.

Nećemo mi postati bogatiji, ako su oni oko nas siromašniji. Ima drugih koje trebamo gledati sa sumnjom. Krivci za krizu nisu među siromašnima.

  Claudio Morganti, a nome del gruppo EFD. – Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, credo che la BEI farebbe bene a concentrare maggiormente le proprie attività in Europa, invece che cercare garanzie per i suoi investimenti oltreconfine. Non dobbiamo dimenticare che i soldi della BEI sono degli Stati membri, sono soldi nostri e l'Italia è il principale azionista. Gradirei quindi che il nostro denaro, fosse usato nel miglior modo e soprattutto che non vada disperso in giro per il mondo.

Vorrei che qualcuno mi spiegasse come mai la BEI abbia investito 600 milioni di euro per la linea ad alta velocità Ankara-Istanbul, 650 milioni per il tunnel del Bosforo, 500 milioni per il rinnovamento della Turkish Airlines, oggi una delle migliori compagnie al mondo alla faccia della nostra Alitalia che naviga in cattive acque.

I nostri soldi finiscono in progetti come questi, oltre i nostri confini, mentre da noi le infrastrutture sono ferme agli anni '60. Considerando solo la Turchia potremmo continuare con i miliardi, negli anni destinati alle loro piccole e medie imprese, che oggi stanno scalzando le nostre in diversi settori strategici. Aiutiamo la concorrenza, invece delle nostre imprese: una follia! La BEI dovrebbe tornare a concentrarsi e concentrare i suoi sforzi in Europa, non agevolando altri paesi nostri diretti concorrenti!

  Andreas Mölzer (NI). - Herr Präsident! Mit der nunmehrigen Kapitalerhöhung um 10[nbsp ]Milliarden Euro wird die Europäische Investitionsbank ihre Bedeutung als Wachstumsmotor sicher weiter ausbauen. Bislang wurden die strengen Darlehenskriterien der Europäischen Investitionsbank auf dem Markt mit einem Zinssatz von rund 2[nbsp ]% für zehnjährige Triple-A-Anleihen belohnt. Und gerade weil die EIB all ihr Geld am Finanzmarkt besorgen muss, bevor sie es in Form von Krediten zu günstigen Konditionen an Unternehmen weitergibt, ist das richtige Portfolio zweifellos wichtig.

Das macht einen stärkeren Fokus auf die Tätigkeiten innerhalb Europas wünschenswert. Auf diese Art lässt sich außerdem die Gefahr von Doppelgleisigkeiten und Interessenskonflikten mit der Europäischen Bank für Wiederaufbau und Entwicklung vermeiden. Insbesondere die Vergabe von Krediten an Klein- und mittlere Unternehmen, die ja unter der Kreditknappheit besonders leiden, sollte meines Erachtens weiterhin eine der Hauptprioritäten bleiben. Nachdem die EIB-Darlehen häufig EU-Förderungen unterstützen, ist es meines Erachtens umso wichtiger, den Zugang von KMU zu EU-Förderungen zu erleichtern.

  Oleg Valjalo (S&D). - Gospodine predsjedavajući, Europska investicijska banka važan je instrument kojim se podupiru i dodatno osnažuju vanjske aktivnosti Europske unije, i to osobito one aktivnosti koje su u skladu s našim općim razvojnim načelima. Pri tome, uz gospodarski i društveni razvoj, posebno mislim na unapređivanje zaštite okoliša te iskorjenjivanje siromaštva i poboljšanje ljudskih prava.

I upravo zbog važnosti Europske investicijske banke u ostvarivanju navedenih ciljeva naše vanjske politike, moram izraziti žaljenje što sredstva koja su alocirana u novom višegodišnjem financijskom okviru nisu još i veća. Ipak naglašavajući žaljenje zbog te činjenice, želim posebno naglasiti dvije stvari koje su ključne da bi se sredstva dodijeljena Europskoj investicijskoj banci na koncu utrošila na najbolji mogući način. Prije svega u našim je vanjskim aktivnostima potrebna bolja i učinkovitija suradnja između Europske komisije, Europske službe za vanjsko djelovanje i Europske investicijske banke. To je nedvojbeno jedan od preduvjeta za sprječavanje nepotrebnog raspršivanja sredstava i za njihovu optimalnu upotrebu. S druge strane, ključno je da Europska investicijska banka poveća svoju transparentnost, osobito kad se radi o krajnjim korisnicima naših sredstava.

U tom smislu u potpunosti podržavam prijedlog izvjestitelja da se Europsku investicijsku banku obveže na javno objavljivanje registara svih krajnjih korisnika. To će povećati transparentnost kojoj težimo i osigurati da se sredstva europskih poreznih obveznika u zemljama koje nisu članice naše Zajednice koriste na odgovoran i svrsishodan način.

Intervenciones con arreglo al procedimiento de solicitud incidental de uso de la palabra («catch the eye»)

  Ivana Maletić (PPE). - Gospodine predsjedniče, zahvaljujem izvjestitelju i posebna je čast za mene i za sve naše zastupnike iz Republike Hrvatske što je naš kolega, gospodin Plenković, bio izvjestitelj u sjeni za ovo izvješće koje je izvrsno pripremljeno. Aktivnosti EIB-a u državama izvan Europske unije izuzetno su važne, jer se reforme i usklađivanja tih država potiču kroz osiguranje povoljnih instrumenata financiranja.

Upravo je zato važno podržati i potaknuti EIB na što veću prisutnost i djelovanje u državama izvan Europske unije. Potrebno je i u perspektivi 2014.-2020. nastaviti s konkretnom financijskom podrškom koja se daje kroz garanciju EIB-u u slučaju gubitaka prilikom financiranja investicijskih i razvojnih projekata izvan Unije. Podržavam izmjene koje se u izvješću predlažu, a to su usmjeravanje garancija na manje kreditno sposobne korisnike, snažnije financiranje projekata vezano uz klimatske promjene i konkretnije povezivanje financiranja EIB-a s politikama Europske unije.

  Andrew Henry William Brons (NI). - Mr President, I am not an EU enthusiast at all, and I can see even less justification for the EU to facilitate investment in countries beyond its borders. In the case of countries in Eastern Europe, I suppose it can be seen as a bribe to lure them into becoming candidate countries and surrendering their sovereignty. North African countries, of course, are not eligible to be members, at least under present rules, but their receipt of investment is a sign that the EU is not so much a European Union as a global union in waiting.

There will undoubtedly be people in the still-crisis-ridden states of the South who wonder why all such available money is not being invested there. The answer might be that investment will be less effective in those countries when expansion is constrained by a currency that is overvalued for their economies. Indeed, withdrawal from the eurozone for those countries would be a prerequisite for effective investment.

IN THE CHAIR: EDWARD McMILLAN-SCOTT
Vice-President

(End of catch-the-eye procedure)

  Paul Rübig (PPE). - Herr Präsident! Ich glaube, dass die Europäische Investitionsbank große Aufgaben vor sich hat, gerade wenn es um Beschäftigung geht. Wir sollten auch jenen Unterstützung bieten, die sich selbständig machen wollen, und vor allem den kleinen und mittleren Betrieben.

Durch das Internet ist es heute möglich geworden, international Geschäftstätigkeiten aufzunehmen, sei es im Import, sei es im Export. Und wir wissen, dass Beschäftigung gerade in Betrieben entsteht, die nicht älter als fünf Jahre sind! 80[nbsp ]% der neuen Beschäftigung entsteht in Betrieben, die nicht älter als fünf Jahre sind. Und hier hat die EIB, glaube ich, eine große Verantwortung. Derzeit exportieren unsere Betriebe nur 13[nbsp ]% des Bruttonationalprodukts in Länder außerhalb der Europäischen Union, dort befinden sich aber die großen Wachstumsmärkte. Ich glaube, dass wir gerade die Geschäftsbeziehungen zwischen kleinen und mittleren Betrieben in diesen großen Wachstumsmärkten fördern sollten, weil genau hier die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit, das Eingehen der Personen aufeinander weit besser funktioniert als in großen internationalen Konzernen, die wir natürlich auch brauchen, weil die Wertschöpfungskette von den Kleinbetrieben, den Selbständigen natürlich zu den internationalen Leitbetrieben geht. Und nur eine vernünftige Bildung der Wertschöpfungskette beinhaltet dann natürlich auch qualifizierte und gute Arbeitsplätze.

Deshalb ist das Europäische Parlament der Meinung, dass wir hier so schnell wie möglich diese Maßnahmen setzen sollten. Das ist für unsere Zukunft ein ganz wesentlicher Faktor, um hier erfolgreich international tätig zu sein, und vor allem in jenen Ländern, die eine sehr geringe Industriequote haben und in denen die Arbeitslosigkeit am größten ist, damit wir unser Ziel der 20[nbsp ]% Reindustrialisierung dementsprechend wieder erreichen können. Und das sollte sofort beginnen, da wir bis zum Jahr 2020 nicht mehr viel Zeit haben!

  Tonio Borg, Member of the Commission. - Mr President, I would like to thank all those who have participated in this debate, but I would like first of all to reply to some of the criticisms regarding the EIB investing in projects outside the European Union. First of all, we are not an inward-looking European Union. It is true that there is that English proverb which says ‘charity begins at home’, which is the most abused proverb in the English language. It does begin at home, because 90[nbsp ]% of all the funds of the European Investment Bank go to projects within the European Union, so let us not run away with this idea that the EIB is squandering money on projects outside the European Union.

So there is 10[nbsp ]% – and here we are dealing with 10[nbsp ]% of the funding as regards guarantees – that goes to projects outside the European Union. Since these are long-term projects, it is important, if the bank is to retain its AAA grading, that we give this guarantee to the European Investment Bank. But to say – because the criticism leads to this conclusion – that we should reduce that 10[nbsp ]% in funding for projects outside the European Union would mean that we would create a European ghetto where we only do things for ourselves, and this would weaken our external action and foreign policy.

Let us take Ukraine, for instance. Right now we have this country, Ukraine, which has a strong European perspective. While we have some Euro-scepticism within the European Union, we have people in Ukraine who have died while waving European flags. Should we abandon Ukraine, particularly at this moment in time, when part of its territory has been invaded by another country?

So what are we doing for Ukraine? First of all, Ukraine is one of the eligible countries under the proposed decision, so if we vote in favour of this decision today, we are indirectly also helping Ukraine. The Bank already has a priority project pipeline in Ukraine of up to EUR[nbsp ]1.5 billion for the next three years and could significantly scale this up if adequate guarantee provisions are granted and if the political and operational conditions allow it.

Should we diminish the 10[nbsp ]% and exclude Ukraine? Of course not. The Bank could just provide finance in Ukraine for long-term investments of up to EUR[nbsp ]3 billion for 2014-2016 in support of both the local private sector and economic and social infrastructure. I disagree with those who have asked if we are doing this to bribe Eastern European countries to join the European Union. First of all, I take pride in the fact that there is a long waiting list of countries who want to join. If they want to join something, they must see something very good in the organisation they want to join. Until now, there is no waiting list of countries which want to leave the European Union, only of countries that want to join, but to say that we are bribing them – it is not bribing them, it is assisting them to fulfil the European dream for which some of them have died.

The European Union’s EUR[nbsp ]4.8 billion ceiling for the Eastern Neighbourhood in the proposed decision is sufficient to cover this increase of EIB operations in Ukraine in the short term, and there is scope to increase this further under the flexibility to reallocate across regions. Following the mid-term review, as I said in my opening speech, there is also the option to activate the optional mandate of EUR[nbsp ]3 billion.

My friend Ms Abela Baldacchino, from Malta, mentioned the Mediterranean. The European Union and the West invested so much, in the so-called Arab Spring, in the revolutions in three countries – Egypt, Libya and Tunisia – where, for the first time, we have had democratic elections, in spite of the turbulence and vicissitudes of these revolutions. But we have had free elections for the first time in decades in these three countries. We have invested so much politically in North Africa that we cannot abandon them to their fate, and the projects financed by the European Investment Bank in North Africa are a way of doing politics, of doing foreign policy in our neighbourhood.

In conclusion, I recommend that we adopt this decision. I would like to reiterate the Commission’s support for this proposal for a decision and underline once again the value of this tool to the European Union in supporting the promotion and implementation of the EU’s external policies in our partner countries.

  Göran Färm, deputising for the rapporteur. - Mr President, on behalf of the rapporteur Mr Kalfin (I am just replacing him), let me make a few comments. First of all, thanks to the Commissioner, because what he said on the external mandate makes it possible for me to be much shorter. I completely agree with his arguments when it comes to investments outside Europe.

Just think: is it good or bad for Europe to have a more stable environment in Ukraine, in North Africa, etc.? Of course it is good for Europe. If we do not do it for humanitarian reasons or solidarity reasons, we should do it anyway for economic reasons, because they would be stable partners for us in trade and investments, etc. It is good for Europe to help stability through investments in our neighbouring countries, that is for sure. That is my first point.

Secondly, one of the things we have tried to do with the European Parliament report here is to improve the operations of the European Investment Bank (EIB) through increased transparency, better monitoring, more impact assessments and really establishing the zero tolerance principle when it comes to tax evasion and fraud, etc. That would also be important for the future: to enhance credibility in those instruments.

Finally, my third point. It has been said now, when the Financial Framework and the EU budget has been cut, ‘let us put more emphasis on these instruments’. Yes, but they cannot really replace the budget instruments. They are always a complement. They are a good, strong complement, but we really need to fight for the European Union budget as well, which for the moment has big problems – as has been pointed out by Helga Trüpel and others – when it comes to payments for humanitarian aid, etc. We need to have both inside the Union – I am the rapporteur in Parliament for project bonds and I know their importance, but they cannot replace grants and investments directly from the budget. Let us have both, because these can also be very useful.

  Paul Rübig (PPE). - Herr Präsident! Wir haben jetzt eine Dreiviertelstunde Zeit bis zur Abstimmung. Wir haben einen Initiativbericht des ITRE-Ausschusses, der sich mit den zehn Gesetzgebungsakten der Europäischen Union beschäftigt, die Beschäftigung in Europa verhindern, die das Geschäftsklima verschlechtern. Und es ist jetzt die zweite Plenartagung, wo dieser Bericht nicht auf die Tagesordnung kommt.

Ich möchte feststellen, dass es für die Länder, die heute unter großer Arbeitslosigkeit leiden, wichtig ist, dass wir auf europäischer Ebene jene zehn Gesetzgebungsakte, die Beschäftigung verhindern, die in Wahrheit Beschäftigung in Europa vernichten, die Industrie aus Europa hinausdrängen, dass wir das hier im Plenum diskutieren. Wir brauchen hier Initiativen. Wir wissen, das durchschnittliche BIP, das die Industrie derzeit herstellt, ist 15[nbsp ]% – wir wollen 20[nbsp ]%. Hier muss die europäische Gesetzgebung dramatisch verbessert werden. Wir müssen den Mut haben, jene Gesetzgebung, die uns bei der Schaffung von neuen Arbeitsplätzen behindert, zu diskutieren und entsprechend Arbeitsplätze zu schaffen.

  President. - The debate is closed.

The vote will take place shortly.

The debate has finished but the agenda has also been adopted for the plenary sitting this session. We cannot change the agenda now, so I am going to suspend the sitting until 12.00 when we have the vote, but I note your point, Mr[nbsp ]Rübig.

Written statements (Rule 149)

  Cristian Dan Preda (PPE), în scris. – Ca raportor al Comisiei pentru dezvoltare pe subiectul mandatului extern al BEI, salut discuția noastră de astăzi asupra Raportului Kalfin. Îmi exprim speranța că acordul realizat cu Consiliul va permite BEI să continue să fie una din cele mai active instituții financiare în sfera proiectelor de dezvoltare. Salut, în special, menținerea garanției UE la nivelul pe care l-a avut anterior, adică 30 de miliarde. Cele două miliarde adiționale, provenite din fondurile neutilizate în cadrul FEMIP, reprezintă un aport substanțial pentru activitățile băncii în sprijinul obiectivelor noastre din sfera relațiilor externe.

Mă bucură, de asemenea, că acordul realizat include multe dintre ideile pe care le-am susținut în cadrul Comisiei pentru dezvoltare, de exemplu, alinierea față de prioritățile țărilor beneficiare, susținerea directă, și nu numai indirectă, a activităților Uniunii în sfera cooperării pentru dezvoltare, o transparență sporită în cazurile în care finanțarea se operează prin intermediari, ca și mai multă claritate în privința utilizării garanției UE de către BEI. În fine, chiar dacă textul agreat nu este atât de ambițios în această privință ca avizul Comisiei DEVE, salut referințele clare la dezvoltarea parametrilor pentru monitorizarea felului în care proiectele finanțate de BEI contribuie la realizarea obiectivelor prevăzute în articolul 21 din tratat.

(The sitting was suspended at 11.15 and resumed at 12.00)

VORSITZ: MARTIN SCHULZ
Präsident