Index 
Texts adopted
Wednesday, 25 November 2009 - Strasbourg
2007 discharge: EU general budget – Council
 Labelling of tyres with respect to fuel efficiency ***II
 Mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund: Belgium – textile industry; Ireland – Dell
 Adaptation of the European Parliament's Rules of Procedure to the Lisbon Treaty
 Copenhagen Conference on Climate Change
 Multi-annual programme 2010-2014 regarding the area of freedom, security and justice (Stockholm programme)
 Euro-Mediterranean economic and trade partnership
 Passenger compensation in the event of airline bankruptcy
 Origin marking

2007 discharge: EU general budget – Council
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Decision
Resolution
1.European Parliament Decision of 25 November 2009 on discharge in respect of the implementation of the European Union general budget for the financial year 2007, Section II – Council (C6-0417/2008 – 2008/2277(DEC))
P7_TA(2009)0085A7-0047/2009

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the European Union general budget for the financial year 2007(1),

–   having regard to the final annual accounts of the European Communities for the financial year 2007 – Volume I (C6-0417/2008)(2),

–   having regard to the Council's annual report to the discharge authority on internal audits carried out in 2007,

–   having regard to the Annual Report of the Court of Auditors on implementation of the budget for the financial year 2007, together with the audited institutions' replies(3),

–   having regard to the statement of assurance as to the reliability of the accounts and the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions provided by the Court of Auditors pursuant to Article 248 of the EC Treaty(4),

–   having regard to its Decision of 23 April 2009(5) postponing the discharge decision for the financial year 2007, and to the accompanying resolution,

–   having regard to Articles 272(10), 274, 275 and 276 of the EC Treaty,

–   having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities(6), and in particular Articles 50, 60, 86, 145, 146 and 147 thereof,

–   having regard to Decision No 190/2003 of the Secretary-General of the Council/High-Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy concerning reimbursement of travel expenses of delegates of Council Members,

–   having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission of 17 May 2006 on budgetary discipline and sound financial management(7) (the IIA),

–   having regard to Rule 77 of, and Annex VI to, its Rules of Procedure,

–   having regard to the first report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A6-0150/2009),

–   having regard to the second report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A7-0047/2009),

1.  Grants discharge to the Secretary-General of the Council in respect of the implementation of the Council's budget for the financial year 2007;

2.  Sets out its observations in the resolution below;

3.  Instructs its President to forward this Decision and the resolution that forms an integral part of it to the Council, the Commission, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors, the European Ombudsman and the European Data Protection Supervisor, and to arrange for their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union (L series).

2.European Parliament resolution of 25 November 2009 with observations forming an integral part of the Decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the European Union general budget for the financial year 2007, Section II – Council (C6-0417/2008 – 2008/2277(DEC))

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the European Union general budget for the financial year 2007(8),

–   having regard to the final annual accounts of the European Communities for the financial year 2007 – Volume I (C6-0417/2008)(9),

–   having regard to the Council's annual report to the discharge authority on internal audits carried out in 2007,

–   having regard to the Annual Report of the Court of Auditors on implementation of the budget for the financial year 2007, together with the audited institutions' replies(10),

–   having regard to the statement of assurance as to the reliability of the accounts and the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions provided by the Court of Auditors pursuant to Article 248 of the EC Treaty(11),

–   having regard to its Decision of 23 April 2009(12) postponing the discharge decision for the financial year 2007, and to the accompanying resolution,

–   having regard to Articles 272(10), 274, 275 and 276 of the EC Treaty,

–   having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities(13), and in particular Articles 50, 60, 86, 145, 146 and 147 thereof,

–   having regard to Decision No 190/2003 of the Secretary-General of the Council/High-Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy concerning reimbursement of travel expenses of delegates of Council Members,

–   having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission of 17 May 2006 on budgetary discipline and sound financial management(14) (the IIA),

–   having regard to Rule 77 of, and Annex VI to, its Rules of Procedure,

–   having regard to the first report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A6-0150/2009),

–   having regard to the second report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A7-0047/2009),

1.  Emphasises that it has obtained satisfaction from the Council on the three most important requests it made in its resolution of 23 April 2009(15), namely:

   a) a meeting on 24 September 2009 of the Chairman, the rapporteur and the co-ordinators of Parliament's competent committee with representatives of the Swedish Presidency and of the General Secretariat of the Council to discuss the Council's budget implementation for 2007 (paragraph 21(a) of the resolution);
   b) written answers to Parliament's questions concerning the Council's budget implementation for 2007 (paragraph 22 of the resolution);
   c) publication on the Council's website of relevant documents concerning the Council's budget implementation, including the answers to Parliament's specific questions (paragraph 4 of the resolution);

2.  Considers that Parliament has carried out its duty to guarantee the maximum possible transparency and accountability concerning the use of taxpayers' money;

3.  Calls on the Council to continue to further improve cooperation with Parliament's competent committees on the basis of its recent practice;

4.  Asks for the formulation and inclusion in the IIA by the institutions of an annex specifically dealing with the discharge procedure for the Council;

5.  Calls on its competent committee, in the context of the next discharge procedure for the Council, to verify progress on the following matters:

   the closing of all the Council's extra-budgetary accounts in accordance with the recommendations of the Council's internal auditor;
   the improvement of the verification of invoices following the recommendations of the Council's internal auditor;
   the publication of all administrative decisions when they are used as the legal basis for budget items;
   the transmission to Parliament and its competent committee of the Council's annual activity report, required to be drawn up under Article 60(7) of the Financial Regulation, in accordance with the practice now adopted by all other institutions;
   a full explanation of the need to transfer money from one item to another within the Council's budget;
   the provision of written answers to relevant questions asked by Parliament's competent committee and its rapporteur;
   the availability and willingness of the Council to provide an oral explanation to Parliament's competent committee, on the basis of these written answers, should they require further clarification;

6.  Reiterates the request made in its resolution of 23 April 2009 to the European Court of Auditors to pay special attention, in its forthcoming Annual Reports, to the Council's budget implementation.

(1) OJ L 77, 16.3.2007.
(2) OJ C 287, 10.11.2008, p. 1.
(3) OJ C 286, 10.11.2008, p. 1.
(4) OJ C 287, 10.11.2008, p. 111.
(5) OJ L 255, 26.9.2009, p. 18.
(6) OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.
(7) OJ C 139, 14.6.2006, p. 1.
(8) OJ L 77, 16.3.2007.
(9) OJ C 287, 10.11.2008, p. 1.
(10) OJ C 286, 10.11.2008, p. 1.
(11) OJ C 287, 10.11.2008, p. 111.
(12) OJ L 255, 26.9.2009, p. 18.
(13) OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.
(14) OJ C 139, 14.6.2006, p. 1.
(15) OJ L 255, 26.9.2009, p. 19.


Labelling of tyres with respect to fuel efficiency ***II
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Resolution
Annex
European Parliament legislative resolution of 25 November 2009 on the Council common position for adopting a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the labelling of tyres with respect to fuel efficiency and other essential parameters (14639/6/2009 – C7-0287/2009 – 2008/0221(COD))
P7_TA(2009)0086A7-0076/2009

(Codecision procedure: second reading)

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the Council common position (14639/6/2009 – C7-0287/2009),

–   having regard to its position at first reading(1) on the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2008)0779),

–   having regard to the amended Commission proposal (COM(2009)0348),

–   having regard to Article 251(2) of the EC Treaty,

–   having regard to Rule 72 of its Rules of Procedure,

–   having regard to the recommendation for second reading of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (A7-0076/2009),

1.  Approves the common position;

2.  Takes note of the Commission statement annexed to this resolution;

3.  Notes that the act is adopted in accordance with the common position;

4.  Instructs its President to sign the act with the President of the Council pursuant to Article 254(1) of the EC Treaty;

5.  Instructs its Secretary-General to sign the act, once it has been verified that all the procedures have been duly completed, and, in agreement with the Secretary-General of the Council, to arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;

6.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and the Commission.

ANNEX

COMMISSION STATEMENT

The Commission supports the use of Community instruments such as the Intelligent Energy-Europe Programme to contribute to initiatives that raise end-users" awareness of the benefits of tyre labelling.

By June 2012, the Commission will make available, in particular to consumer organisations and tyre manufacturers on its ec.europa website, information explaining each of the components of the tyre label and a harmonised fuel savings calculator.

(1) Texts adopted, 22.4.2009, P6_TA(2009)0248.


Mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund: Belgium – textile industry; Ireland – Dell
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Resolution
Annex
European Parliament resolution of 25 November 2009 on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund, in accordance with point 28 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 17 May 2006 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and sound financial management (COM(2009)0515 – C7-0208/2009 – 2009/2135(BUD))
P7_TA(2009)0087A7-0044/2009

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the Commission proposal to the European Parliament and the Council (COM(2009)0515 – C7-0208/2009),

–   having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 17 May 2006 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and sound financial management(1) (IIA of 17 May 2006), and in particular point 28 thereof,

–   having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1927/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006 on establishing the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund(2) (EGF Regulation),

–   having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets and the opinion of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (A7-0044/2009),

A.   whereas the European Union has set up the appropriate legislative and budgetary instruments to provide additional support to workers who suffer from the consequences of major structural changes in world trade patterns and to assist their reintegration into the labour market,

B.   whereas the Union's financial assistance to workers made redundant should be dynamic and made available as quickly and efficiently as possible, in accordance with the Joint Declaration of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission adopted during the conciliation meeting on 17 July 2008, and having due regard for the IIA of 17 May 2006 in respect of the adoption of decisions to mobilise the Fund,

C.   whereas Belgium and Ireland have requested assistance in respect of cases concerning redundancies in the textiles sector in the Belgian regions of East and West Flanders(3) and Limburg(4), and in the computer manufacturing industry in the Irish counties of Limerick, Clare and North Tipperary, as well as the city of Limerick(5),

D.   whereas both applications have fulfilled the eligibility criteria set up by the EGF Regulation,

E.   whereas in the case of the Irish application, supplementary information from the Commission has been requested by the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs,

1.  Requests the institutions involved to make the necessary efforts to accelerate the mobilisation of the EGF;

2.  Recalls the institutions' commitment to ensure a smooth and rapid procedure for the adoption of the decisions on the mobilisation of the Fund, providing one-off, time-limited individual support geared to helping workers who have suffered redundancies as a result of globalisation;

3.  Stresses that the European Union should use all its means to face the consequences of the global economic and financial crisis; emphasises that in this respect the EGF can play a crucial role in the reintegration of the workers made redundant into the labour market;

4.  Stresses that, in accordance with Article 6 of the EGF Regulation, it should be ensured that the EGF supports the reintegration of the individual redundant workers into employment; reiterates that assistance from the EGF shall not replace actions which are the responsibility of companies by virtue of national law or collective agreements, nor measures restructuring companies or sectors;

5.  Reminds the Commission, in the context of mobilising the EGF, not to systematically transfer payment appropriations from the European Social Fund, since the EGF was created as a separate specific instrument with its own objectives and deadlines;

6.  Recalls that the functioning and the added value of the EGF should be evaluated in the context of the general assessment of the programmes and other various instruments created by the IIA of 17 May 2006, within the process of the 2007-2013 multiannual financial framework budget review;

7.  Notes that the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs has assessed the Commission's proposal and has no objections to raise in the case of Belgian applications, but has requested clarifications from the Commission in respect of the Irish application regarding the Dell case; draws attention, however, to paragraphs 1 to 6 of the opinion by that committee;

8.  Will evaluate the consequences of the Commission replies before taking its final decision both on the legal and budgetary instrument;

9.  Expects the Commission to take stock of the current difficulties and to present from now on its proposals for decisions on the mobilisation of the EGF in separate documents: one proposal for a decision per Member State application;

10.  Approves the decision annexed to this resolution;

11.  Instructs its President to sign the decision with the President of the Council and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;

12.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution, including its annex, to the Council and the Commission.

ANNEX

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 25 November 2009

on mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund, in accordance with point 28 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 17 May 2006 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and sound financial management

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 17 May 2006 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and sound financial management(6), and in particular point 28 thereof,

having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1927/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006 establishing the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund(7), and in particular Article 12(3) thereof,

having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas:

(1)  The European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) was established to provide additional support to redundant workers who suffer from the consequences of major structural changes in world trade patterns and to assist them with their reintegration into the labour market.

(2)  The scope of the EGF was broadened for applications submitted from 1 May 2009 to include support for workers made redundant as a result of the global financial and economic crisis.

(3)  The Interinstitutional Agreement of 17 May 2006 allows the mobilisation of the EGF within the annual ceiling of EUR 500 million.

(4)  Belgium submitted two applications to mobilise the EGF, in respect of redundancies in the textiles sector, on 5 May 2009. These applications comply with the requirements for determining the financial contributions as laid down in Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 1927/2006, therefore the Commission proposes to deploy an amount of EUR 9 198 874.

(5)  Ireland submitted an application to mobilise the EGF, in respect of redundancies in the computer manufacturing industry, on 29 June 2009. This application complies with the requirements for determining the financial contributions as laid down in Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 1927/2006, therefore the Commission proposes to deploy an amount of EUR 14 831 050.

(6)  The EGF should, therefore, be mobilised in order to provide a financial contribution for the applications submitted by Belgium and Ireland.

HAVE DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

For the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2009, the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund shall be mobilised to provide the sum of EUR 24 029 924 in commitment and payment appropriations.

Article 2

This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Done at Strasbourg, 25 November 2009

For the European Parliament For the Council

The President The President

(1) OJ C 139, 14.6.2006, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 406, 30.12.2006, p. 1.
(3) EGF/2009/004 BE/Oost en West Vlaanderen textiles.
(4) EGF/2009/005 BE/Limburg textiles.
(5) EGF/2009/008 IE/Dell.
(6) OJ C 139, 14.6.2006, p. 1.
(7) OJ L 406, 30.12.2006, p. 1.


Adaptation of the European Parliament's Rules of Procedure to the Lisbon Treaty
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European Parliament decision of 25 November 2009 on the adaptation of Parliament's Rules of Procedure to the Treaty of Lisbon (2009/2062(REG))
P7_TA(2009)0088A7-0043/2009

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to Rules 211 and 212 of its Rules of Procedure,

–   having regard to the report of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs incorporating the amendments proposed by the Committee on Budgets in its opinion of 31 March 2009 (A7-0043/2009),

1.  Decides to amend its Rules of Procedure as shown below;

2.  Decides that the amendments will enter into force on 1 December 2009;

3.  Instructs its President to forward this decision to the Council and the Commission, for information.

Present text   Amendment
Amendment 3
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 11 – paragraph 3 a (new)
3a.  Paragraph 1 shall apply mutatis mutandis pending the entry into force of the arrangement1 whereby a number of additional seats in Parliament are allocated to certain Member States until the end of the seventh parliamentary term. The Member States concerned shall be invited to designate observers in accordance with their national law.
____________________________
1 Pursuant to the conclusions of the European Council of 11 and 12 December 2008.
Amendment 6
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 36
Examination of respect for fundamental rights, the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, the rule of law, and financial implications
Respect for the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
During the examination of a legislative proposal, Parliament shall pay particular attention to respect for fundamental rights and in particular that the legislative act is in conformity with the European Union Charter of Fundamental Rights, the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality and the rule of law. In addition, where a proposal has financial implications, Parliament shall establish whether sufficient financial resources are provided.
1.  Parliament shall in all its activities fully respect fundamental rights as laid down in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.
Parliament shall also fully respect the rights and principles enshrined in Article 2 and in Article 6(2) and (3) of the Treaty on European Union.
2.  Where the committee responsible for the subject-matter, a political group or at least 40 Members are of the opinion that a proposal for a legislative act or parts of it do not comply with rights enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, the matter shall, at their request, be referred to the committee responsible for the interpretation of the Charter. The opinion of that committee shall be annexed to the report of the committee responsible for the subject-matter.
Amendment 7
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 38 – paragraph -1 (new)
-1.  Where a proposal for a legislative act has financial implications, Parliament shall establish whether sufficient financial resources are provided.
Amendment 8
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 38 a (new)
Rule 38a
Examination of respect for the principle of subsidiarity
1.  During the examination of a proposal for a legislative act, Parliament shall pay particular attention to respect for the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality.
2.  The committee responsible for respect of the principle of subsidiarity may decide to make recommendations for the attention of the committee responsible in respect of any proposal for a legislative act.
3.  If a national parliament sends the President a reasoned opinion in accordance with Article 3 of the Protocol on the role of national parliaments in the European Union and Article 6 of the Protocol on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, that document shall be referred to the committee responsible for the subject-matter and forwarded for information to the committee responsible for respect of the principle of subsidiarity.
4.  Except in the cases of urgency referred to in Article 4 of the Protocol on the role of national parliaments in the European Union, the committee responsible for the subject-matter shall not proceed to its final vote before the expiry of the deadline of eight weeks laid down in Article 6 of the Protocol on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality.
5.  Where reasoned opinions on the non-compliance of proposal for a legislative act with the principle of subsidiarity represent at least one third of all the votes allocated to the national parliaments or a quarter in the case of a proposal for a legislative act submitted on the basis of Article 76 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, Parliament shall not take a decision until the author of the proposal has stated how it intends to proceed.
6.  Where, under the ordinary legislative procedure, reasoned opinions on the non-compliance of a proposal for a legislative act with the principle of subsidiarity represent at least a simple majority of the votes allocated to the national parliaments, the committee responsible for the subject-matter, having considered the reasoned opinions submitted by the national parliaments and the Commission, and having heard the views of the committee responsible for respect of the principle of subsidiarity, may recommend to Parliament that it reject the proposal on the grounds of infringement of the principle of subsidiarity or submit to Parliament any other recommendation, which may include suggestions for amendments related to respect of the principle of subsidiarity. The opinion given by the committee responsible for respect of the principle of subsidiarity shall be annexed to any such recommendation.
The recommendation shall be submitted to Parliament for a debate and vote. If a recommendation to reject the proposal is adopted by a majority of the votes cast, the President shall declare the procedure closed. Where Parliament does not reject the proposal, the procedure shall continue, taking into account any recommendations approved by Parliament.
Amendment 9
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 44
Consultation on initiatives originating from a Member State
Legislative procedures on initiatives originating from Member States
1.  Initiatives originating from a Member State pursuant to Article 67(1) of the EC Treaty or Articles 34(2) and 42 of the EU Treaty shall be dealt with pursuant to this Rule and to Rules 36 to 39, 43 and 55.
1.  Initiatives originating from Member States pursuant to Article 76 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union shall be dealt with pursuant to this Rule and to Rules 36 to 39, 43 and 55.
2.  The committee responsible may invite a representative of the originating Member State to present its initiative to the committee. The representative may be accompanied by the Presidency of the Council.
2.  The committee responsible may invite representatives of the originating Member States to present their initiative to the committee. The representatives may be accompanied by the Presidency of the Council.
3.  Before the committee responsible proceeds to the vote, it shall ask the Commission whether it has prepared a position on the initiative and if so request the Commission to state its position to the committee.
3.  Before the committee responsible proceeds to the vote, it shall ask the Commission whether it has prepared a position on the initiative and if so request the Commission to state its position to the committee.
4.  When two or more proposals originating from the Commission and/or the Member States with the same legislative objective have been submitted to Parliament simultaneously or within a short period of time, Parliament shall deal with them in a single report. In its report, the committee responsible shall indicate to which text it has proposed amendments and it shall refer to all other texts in the legislative resolution.
4.  When two or more proposals originating from the Commission and/or the Member States with the same legislative objective have been submitted to Parliament simultaneously or within a short period of time, Parliament shall deal with them in a single report. In its report, the committee responsible shall indicate to which text it has proposed amendments and it shall refer to all other texts in the legislative resolution.
5.  The time period referred to in Article 39(1) of the EU Treaty shall commence when it is announced in plenary that Parliament has received, in the official languages, an initiative, together with an explanatory statement confirming the initiative's conformity with the Protocol on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality annexed to the EC Treaty.
Amendment 11
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 58 – paragraph 1
1.  In the period following the adoption by Parliament of its position on a proposal by the Commission, the chair and the rapporteur of the committee responsible shall monitor the progress of the proposal in the course of the procedure leading to its adoption by the Council, notably to ensure that the undertakings made by the Council or the Commission to Parliament with respect to its amendments are properly observed.
1.  In the period following the adoption by Parliament of its position on a proposal by the Commission, the chair and the rapporteur of the committee responsible shall monitor the progress of the proposal in the course of the procedure leading to its adoption by the Council, notably to ensure that the undertakings made by the Council or the Commission to Parliament with respect to its position are properly observed.
Amendment 12
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 59 – subheading 1
Codecision procedure
Ordinary legislative procedure
(Horizontal amendment: the words "codecision", "codecision procedure" shall be replaced throughout the entire text of the Rules of Procedure by the words "ordinary legislative procedure".)
Amendment 13
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 60
Rule 60
deleted
Conciliation procedure contained in the 1975 joint declaration
1.  Where, in the case of certain important Community decisions, the Council intends to depart from the opinion of Parliament, a procedure for conciliation with the Council, with the active participation of the Commission, may be opened by Parliament when delivering its opinion.
2.  This procedure shall be initiated by Parliament, either at its own or at the Council's initiative.
3.  For the composition and procedure of the delegation to the conciliation committee and the reporting of the results to Parliament, Rule 68 shall apply.
4.  The committee responsible shall report on the results of the conciliation. This report shall be debated and voted on by Parliament.
Amendment 14
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 61 – title
Communication of the Council's common position
Communication of the Council's position
(Horizontal amendment: the words "Council's common position", "common position of the Council" or "common position" shall be replaced throughout the entire text of the Rules of Procedure by the words "Council's position", "position of the Council" or "position".)
Amendment 15
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 62 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2
For any extension of time limits pursuant to Article 252(g) of the EC Treaty or Article 39(1) of the EU Treaty the President shall seek the agreement of the Council.
deleted
Amendment 16
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 62 – paragraph 2
2.  The President shall notify Parliament of any extension of time-limits pursuant to Article 251(7) of the EC Treaty, whether at the initiative of Parliament or of the Council.
2.  The President shall notify Parliament of any extension of time-limits pursuant to Article 294(14) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, whether at the initiative of Parliament or of the Council.
(Horizontal amendment: the numbering of Articles in the EU Treaty and the EC Treaty are adapted throughout the Rules of Procedure to the consolidated version of the Treaty on European Union and of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.)
Amendment 17
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 62 – paragraph 3
3.  The President, after consulting the chair of the committee responsible, may agree to a Council request to extend any time-limits pursuant to Article 252(g) of the EC Treaty.
deleted
Amendment 18
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 65 – paragraph 4
4.  By way of derogation from paragraph 3, if a rejection by Parliament falls under the provisions of Article 252 of the EC Treaty, the President shall request the Commission to withdraw its proposal. If the Commission does so, the President shall announce in Parliament that the legislative procedure is closed.
deleted
Amendments 73 and 88
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Title II – Chapter 6 a (new) – heading (to be introduced after Rule 74)
CHAPTER 6a
CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS
Amendment 20
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 74 a (new) (to be introduced in Chapter 6 a (new))
Rule 74a
Ordinary Treaty revision
1.  In accordance with Rules 41 and 48 the committee responsible may submit to Parliament a report containing proposals to the Council for amendment of the Treaties.
2.  If the European Council decides to convene a Convention, the representatives of Parliament shall be appointed by Parliament upon a proposal by the Conference of Presidents.
Parliament's delegation shall elect its leader and its candidates for membership of any steering group or bureau set up by the Convention.
3.  Where the European Council requests Parliament's consent in relation to a decision not to convene a Convention for the examination of proposed amendments of the Treaties, the matter shall be referred to the committee responsible in accordance with Rule 81.
Amendment 21
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 74 b (new) (to be introduced in Chapter 6 a (new))
Rule 74b
Simplified Treaty revision
In accordance with Rules 41 and 48 the committee responsible may submit to Parliament, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 48(6) of the Treaty on European Union, a report containing proposals to the European Council for revision of all or part of the provisions of Part Three of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
Amendment 22
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 74 c (new) (to be introduced in Chapter 6 a (new))
Rule 74c
Accession treaties
1.  Any application by a European State to become a member of the European Union shall be referred for consideration to the committee responsible.
2.  Parliament may decide, on a proposal from the committee responsible, a political group or at least 40 Members, to request the Commission and the Council to take part in a debate before negotiations with the applicant State commence.
3.  Throughout the negotiations the Commission and the Council shall inform the committee responsible regularly and thoroughly of the progress in the negotiations, if necessary on a confidential basis.
4.  At any stage of the negotiations Parliament may, on the basis of a report from the committee responsible, adopt recommendations and require these to be taken into account before the conclusion of a Treaty for the accession of an applicant State to the European Union.
5.  When the negotiations are completed, but before any agreement is signed, the draft agreement shall be submitted to Parliament for consent in accordance with Rule 81.
(Rule 89 is deleted.)
Amendment 23
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 74 d (new) (to be introduced in Chapter 6 a (new))
Rule 74d
Withdrawal from the Union
If a Member State decides, pursuant to Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union, to withdraw from the Union, the matter shall be referred to the committee responsible. Rule 74c shall apply mutatis mutandis. Parliament shall decide on consent to an agreement on the withdrawal by a majority of the votes cast.
Amendment 24
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 74 e (new) (to be introduced in Chapter 6 a (new))
Rule 74e
Breach by a Member State of fundamental principles
1.  Parliament may, on the basis of a specific report of the committee responsible drawn up in accordance with Rules 41 and 48:
(a) vote on a reasoned proposal calling on the Council to act pursuant to Article 7(1) of the Treaty on European Union;
(b) vote on a proposal calling on the Commission or the Member States to submit a proposal pursuant to Article 7(2) of the Treaty on European Union;
(c) vote on a proposal calling on the Council to act pursuant to Article 7(3) or, subsequently, Article 7(4) of the Treaty on European Union.
2.  Any request from the Council for consent in relation to a proposal submitted pursuant to Article 7(1) and (2) of the Treaty on European Union along with the observations submitted by the Member State in question shall be announced to Parliament and referred to the committee responsible in accordance with Rule 81. Except in urgent and justified circumstances, Parliament shall take its decision on a proposal from the committee responsible.
3.  Decisions under paragraphs 1 and 2 shall require a two-thirds majority of the votes cast, constituting a majority of Parliament's component Members.
4.  Subject to the authorisation of the Conference of Presidents, the committee responsible may submit an accompanying motion for a resolution. That motion for a resolution shall set out Parliament's views on a serious breach by a Member State, on the appropriate sanctions and on varying or revoking those sanctions.
5.  The committee responsible shall ensure that Parliament is fully informed and, where necessary, asked for its views on all follow-up measures to its consent as given pursuant to paragraph 3. The Council shall be invited to outline developments as appropriate. On a proposal from the committee responsible, drawn up with the authorisation of the Conference of Presidents, Parliament may adopt recommendations to the Council.
(Chapter 15 of Title II is deleted.)
Amendment 25
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 74 f (new) (to be introduced in Chapter 6 a (new))
Rule 74f
Composition of Parliament
In due time before the end of a parliamentary term, Parliament may, on the basis of a report drawn up by its committee responsible in accordance with Rule 41, make a proposal to modify its composition. The European Council's draft decision establishing the composition of Parliament shall be examined in accordance with Rule 81.
Amendment 26
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 82 (to be introduced as Rule 74 g in Chapter 6 a (new))
Rule 82
Rule 74g
Procedures in Parliament
Enhanced cooperation between Member States
1.  Requests by Member States or Commission proposals to introduce enhanced cooperation between Member States and consultations of Parliament pursuant to Article 40a(2) of the EU Treaty shall be referred by the President to the committee responsible for consideration. Rules 37, 38, 39, 43, 53 to 60 and 81 shall apply as appropriate.
1.  Requests to introduce enhanced cooperation between Member States pursuant to Article 20 of the Treaty on European Union shall be referred by the President to the committee responsible for consideration. Rules 37, 38, 39, 43, 53 to 59 and 81 shall apply as appropriate.
2.  The committee responsible shall verify compliance with Article 11 of the EC Treaty and Articles 27a, 27b, 40, 43, 44 and 44a of the EU Treaty.
2.  The committee responsible shall verify compliance with Article 20 of the Treaty on European Union and Articles 326 to 334 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
3.  Subsequent acts proposed under enhanced cooperation, once it is established, shall be dealt with in Parliament under the same procedures as when enhanced cooperation does not apply.
3.  Subsequent acts proposed under enhanced cooperation, once it is established, shall be dealt with in Parliament under the same procedures as when enhanced cooperation does not apply. Rule 43 shall apply.
(Chapter 10 of Title II is deleted.)
Amendments 27 and 28
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 75
General Budget
Multiannual financial framework
Implementing procedures for examination of the General Budget of the European Union and supplementary budgets, in accordance with the financial provisions of the Treaties establishing the European Communities, shall be adopted by resolution of Parliament and annexed to these Rules1.
Where the Council requests Parliament's consent concerning the proposal for a regulation laying down the multiannual financial framework, the matter shall be referred to the committee responsible in accordance with the procedure laid down in Rule 81. Parliament's consent shall require the votes of a majority of its component Members.
1 See Annex V.
(Annex V is deleted.)
Amendment 29
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 75 a (new)
Rule 75a
Working documents
1.  The following documents shall be made available to Members:
(a) the draft budget presented by the Commission;
(b) a summary by the Council of its deliberations on the draft budget;
(c) the Council's position on the draft budget drawn up pursuant to Article 314(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union;
(d) any draft decision on the provisional twelfths pursuant to Article 315 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
2.  Those documents shall be referred to the committee responsible. Any committee concerned may deliver an opinion.
3.  If other committees wish to deliver opinions, the President shall set the time limit within which these are to be communicated to the committee responsible.
(Article 1 of Annex V is deleted.)
Amendment 30
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 75 b (new)
Rule 75b
Consideration of the draft budget – first stage
1.  Subject to the conditions set out below, any Member may table and speak in support of draft amendments to the draft budget.
2.  Draft amendments shall be admissible only if they are presented in writing, bear the signatures of at least 40 Members or are tabled on behalf of a political group or committee, specify the budget heading to which they refer and ensure the maintenance of a balance between revenue and expenditure. Draft amendments shall include all relevant information on the remarks to be entered against the budget heading in question.
All draft amendments to the draft budget must be justified in writing.
3.  The President shall set the time limit for the tabling of draft amendments.
4.  The committee responsible shall deliver its opinion on the texts submitted before they are discussed in Parliament.
Draft amendments which have been rejected in the committee responsible shall not be put to the vote in Parliament unless this has been requested in writing, before a deadline to be set by the President, by a committee or at least 40 Members; that deadline may on no account be less than 24 hours before the start of the vote.
5.  Draft amendments to the estimates of Parliament which are similar to those already rejected by Parliament at the time when the estimates were drawn up shall be discussed only where the committee responsible has delivered a favourable opinion.
6.  Notwithstanding Rule 55(2) of the Rules of Procedure, Parliament shall take separate and successive votes on:
– each draft amendment,
– each section of the draft budget,
– a motion for a resolution concerning the draft budget.
However, Rule 161(4) to (8) shall apply.
7.  Articles, chapters, titles and sections of the draft budget in respect of which no draft amendments have been tabled shall be deemed adopted.
8.  Draft amendments shall require for adoption the votes of a majority of the component Members of Parliament.
9.  If Parliament has amended the draft budget, the draft budget thus amended shall be forwarded to the Council and the Commission, together with the justifications.
10.  The minutes of the sitting at which Parliament delivered its opinion on the draft budget shall be forwarded to the Council and the Commission.
(Article 3 of Annex V is deleted.)
Amendment 31
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 75 c (new)
Rule 75c
Financial trilogue
The President shall participate in regular meetings between the Presidents of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission convened, on the initiative of the Commission, under the budgetary procedures referred to in Title II of Part Six of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The President shall take all necessary steps to promote consultation and reconciliation of the positions of the institutions in order to facilitate the implementation of the procedures aforementioned.
The President of Parliament may delegate this task to a Vice-President having experience in budgetary matters or to the Chair of the committee responsible for budgetary issues.
Amendment 32
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 75 d (new)
Rule 75d
Budgetary conciliation
1.  The President shall convene the Conciliation Committee in accordance with Article 314(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
2.  The delegation representing Parliament at meetings of the Conciliation Committee in the budgetary procedure shall consist of a number of members equal to that of the Council delegation.
3.  The members of the delegation shall be appointed by the political groups each year prior to Parliament's vote on the Council's position, preferably from amongst the members of the committee responsible for budgetary issues and other committees concerned. The delegation shall be led by the President of Parliament. The President may delegate this role to a Vice-President having experience in budgetary matters or to the Chair of the committee responsible for budgetary issues.
4.  Rule 68(2), (4), (5), (7) and (8) shall apply.
5.  Where agreement on a joint text is reached within the Conciliation Committee, the matter shall be placed on the agenda of a sitting of Parliament to be held within 14 days from the date of that agreement. The joint text shall be made available to all Members. Rule 69(2) and (3) shall apply.
6.  The joint text as a whole shall be subject to a single vote. The vote shall be taken by a roll-call vote. The joint text shall be deemed to be approved unless it is rejected by a majority of the component Members of the Parliament.
7.  If Parliament approves the joint text whilst the Council rejects it, the committee responsible may table all or some of Parliament's amendments to the Council's position for a confirmation in accordance with point (d) of Article 314(7) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
The vote on the confirmation shall be placed on the agenda of a sitting of Parliament to be held within 14 days from the date of the communication by the Council of its rejection of the joint text.
The amendments shall be deemed to be confirmed if they are approved by a majority of the component Members of Parliament and three fifths of the votes cast.
Amendment 33
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 75 e (new)
Rule 75e
Definitive adoption of the budget
Where the President is satisfied that the budget has been adopted in accordance with the provisions of Article 314 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, he shall declare in Parliament that the budget has been definitively adopted. He shall arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
(Article 4 of Annex V is deleted.)
Amendment 34
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 75 f (new)
Rule 75f
Provisional twelfths system
1.  Any decision by the Council authorising expenditure in excess of the provisional one twelfth for expenditure shall be referred to the committee responsible.
2.  The committee responsible may table a draft decision to reduce the expenditure referred to in paragraph 1. Parliament shall decide on it within 30 days after the adoption of the Council's decision.
3.  Parliament shall act by a majority of its component Members.
(Article 7 of Annex V is deleted.)
Amendment 35
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 79 a (new)
Rule 79a
Procedure to be applied when drawing up Parliament's estimates
1.  As regards Parliament's budget, the Bureau and the committee responsible for budgetary issues shall take decisions in successive stages on:
(a) the establishment plan;
(b) the preliminary draft and the draft estimates.
2.  The decisions concerning the establishment plan will be taken in accordance with the following procedure:
(a) the Bureau shall draw up the establishment plan for each financial year;
(b) a conciliation procedure between the Bureau and the committee responsible for budgetary issues shall be opened in cases where the opinion of the latter diverges from the initial decisions taken by the Bureau;
(c) at the end of the procedure, the Bureau shall take the final decision on the estimates for the establishment plan, in accordance with Rule 207(3), without prejudice to decisions taken pursuant to Article 314 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
3.  As regards the estimates proper, the procedure for drawing up the estimates will begin as soon as the Bureau has taken a final decision on the establishment plan. The stages of that procedure will be those laid down in Rule 79. A conciliation procedure shall be opened in cases where the positions of the committee responsible for budgetary issues and of the Bureau are widely divergent.
(Rule 79(7) and Article 8 of Annex V are deleted.)
Amendment 37
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 81 – paragraph 1
1.  Where Parliament is requested to give its assent to a proposed act, it shall take a decision on the basis of a recommendation from the committee responsible to approve or reject the act.
1.  Where Parliament is requested to give its consent to a proposed act, it shall take a decision on the basis of a recommendation from the committee responsible to approve or reject the act.
Parliament shall take a decision on the act requiring its assent under the EC or EU Treaty by means of a single vote, and no amendments may be tabled. The majority required for the adoption of the assent shall be the majority indicated in the article of the EC Treaty or of the EU Treaty that constitutes the legal basis for the proposed act.
Parliament shall take a decision on the act requiring its consent under the Treaty on European Union or the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union by means of a single vote, and no amendments may be tabled. The majority required for the adoption of the consent shall be the majority indicated in the article of the Treaty on European Union or of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union that constitutes the legal basis for the proposed act.
Amendment 38
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 81 – paragraph 2
2.  For accession treaties and international agreements and determination of a serious and persistent breach of common principles by a Member State, Rules 89, 90 and 102 shall apply respectively. For an enhanced cooperation procedure in an area covered by the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the EC Treaty, Rule 82 shall apply.
2.  For accession treaties and international agreements and determination of a serious and persistent breach of common principles by a Member State, Rules 74c, 74e and 90 shall apply respectively. For an enhanced cooperation procedure in an area covered by the ordinary legislative procedure, Rule 74g shall apply.
(Horizontal amendment: the words "procedure laid down in Article 251 of the EC Treaty" shall be replaced throughout the entire text of the Rules of Procedure by the words "ordinary legislative procedure".)
Amendment 39
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 81 – paragraph 3
3.  Where Parliament's assent is required for a legislative proposal, the committee responsible may decide, in order to facilitate a positive outcome of the procedure, to present an interim report on the Commission proposal to Parliament with a motion for a resolution containing recommendations for modification or implementation of the proposal.
3.  Where Parliament's consent is required for a proposed legislative act or an envisaged international agreement, the committee responsible may decide, in order to facilitate a positive outcome of the procedure, to present an interim report on the proposal to Parliament with a motion for a resolution containing recommendations for modification or implementation of the proposed act.
If Parliament approves at least one recommendation the President shall request further discussion with the Council.
The committee responsible shall make its final recommendation for the assent of Parliament in the light of the outcome of the discussion with the Council.
(Horizontal amendment: with the exception of Rules 56 and 57, the words "Commission proposal" and "legislative proposal" shall be replaced throughout the entire text of the Rules of Procedure by the words "proposal for a legislative act" or "proposed legislative act" as grammatically appropriate.)
Amendment 76
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 87 a (new)
Rule 87a
Delegated acts
Where a legislative act delegates to the Commission the power to supplement or amend certain non-essential elements of a legislative act, the committee responsible:
– shall examine any draft delegated act where it is transmitted to Parliament for scrutiny;
– may submit to Parliament in a motion for a resolution any appropriate proposal in accordance with the provisions of the legislative act.
The provisions of Rule 88(1), (2) and (3) shall apply mutatis mutandis.
Amendment 41
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Title II a (new) (to be introduced before Chapter 12)
TITLE IIa
EXTERNAL RELATIONS
Amendment 42
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Chapter 12 – title
TREATIES AND INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS
INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS
Amendment 43
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 92
Rule 92
deleted
Appointment of the High Representative for the common foreign and security policy
1.  Prior to the appointment of a High Representative for the common foreign and security policy, the President shall invite the President-in-Office of the Council to make a statement to Parliament, pursuant to Article 21 of the EU Treaty. The President shall invite the President of the Commission to make a statement at the same time.
2.  Upon the appointment of the new High Representative for the common foreign and security policy, pursuant to Article 207(2) of the EC Treaty, and before officially taking office, the High Representative shall be invited by the President to make a statement to, and answer questions from, the committee responsible.
3.  Following the statements and answers referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 and at the initiative of the committee responsible, or in accordance with Rule 121, Parliament may make a recommendation.
Amendment 44
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 93 – title
Appointment of special representatives for the purposes of the common foreign and security policy
Special representatives
Amendment 45
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 93 – paragraph 4 a (new)
4a.  A special representative appointed by the Council with a mandate in relation to particular policy issues may be invited by Parliament, or may ask to be invited, to make a statement to the committee responsible.
(Rule 94(3) is deleted.)
Amendment 46
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 94
Rule 94
deleted
Statements by the High Representative for the common foreign and security policy and by other special representatives
1.  The High Representative shall be invited to make statements in Parliament at least four times a year. Rule 110 shall apply.
2.  The High Representative shall be invited at least four times a year to attend meetings of the committee responsible in order to make a statement and answer questions. The High Representative may also be invited, or may ask to be invited, on other occasions, whenever the committee considers this to be necessary.
3.  Whenever a special representative is appointed by the Council with a mandate in relation to particular policy issues, that special representative may be invited by Parliament, or may ask to be invited, to make a statement to the committee responsible.
Amendment 47
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 96 – paragraph 2
2.  The committees concerned shall seek to ensure that the High Representative for the common foreign and security policy, the Council and the Commission provide them with regular and timely information on the development and implementation of the Union's common foreign and security policy, on the costs envisaged each time that a decision entailing expenditure is adopted under that policy and on any other financial considerations relating to the implementation of actions under that policy. Exceptionally, at the request of the Commission, the Council or the High Representative, a committee may decide to hold its proceedings in camera.
2.  The committees concerned shall seek to ensure that the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the Council and the Commission provide them with regular and timely information on the development and implementation of the Union's common foreign and security policy, on the costs envisaged each time that a decision entailing expenditure is adopted under that policy and on any other financial considerations relating to the implementation of actions under that policy. Exceptionally, at the request of the Commission, the Council or the High Representative, a committee may decide to hold its proceedings in camera.
(Horizontal amendment: "High Representative for the common foreign and security policy" shall be replaced throughout the entire text of the Rules of Procedure by "Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy".)
Amendment 48
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 96 – paragraph 3
3.  An annual debate shall be held on the consultative document established by the Council on the main aspects and basic choices of the common foreign and security policy, including the financial implications for the Union budget. The procedures laid down in Rule 110 shall apply.
3.  Twice a year, a debate shall be held on the consultative document established by the Vice-President/High Representative on the main aspects and basic choices of the common foreign and security policy, including the common security and defence policy and the financial implications for the Union budget. The procedures laid down in Rule 110 shall apply.
Amendment 49
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Chapter 14 – title
POLICE AND JUDICIAL COOPERATION IN CRIMINAL MATTERS
deleted
Amendment 50
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 99
Rule 99
deleted
Provision of information to Parliament in the fields of police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters
1.  The committee responsible shall ensure that Parliament is fully and regularly informed on the activities covered by police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters and that its opinions are duly taken into consideration when the Council adopts common positions defining the approach of the Union to a particular matter pursuant to Article 34(2)(a) of the EU Treaty.
2.  Exceptionally, at the request of the Commission or the Council, a committee may decide to hold its proceedings in camera.
3.  The debate referred to in Article 39(3) of the EU Treaty shall be held in accordance with the arrangements laid down in Rule 110(2), (3) and (4).
Amendment 51
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 100
Rule 100
deleted
Consultation of Parliament in the fields of police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters
Consultation of Parliament pursuant to Article 34(2)(b), (c) and (d) of the EU Treaty shall be dealt with pursuant to Rules 36 to 39, 43, 44 and 55.
Where applicable, consideration of the proposal shall then be placed, at the latest, on the agenda of the last sitting to be held before expiry of the time-limit laid down in accordance with Article 39(1) of the EU Treaty.
When Parliament is consulted on the draft Council decision appointing the Director and Board members of Europol, Rule 108 shall apply mutatis mutandis.
Amendment 52
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 101
Rule 101
deleted
Recommendations in the fields of police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters
1.  The committee responsible for matters relating to police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters may draw up recommendations to the Council in the field covered by Title VI of the EU Treaty after obtaining authorisation from the Conference of Presidents or on a proposal within the meaning of Rule 121.
2.  In urgent cases the authorisation referred to in paragraph 1 may be granted by the President, who may likewise authorise an emergency meeting of the committee concerned.
3.  Recommendations drawn up in this way shall be included on the agenda for the next part-session. Rule 97(4) shall apply mutatis mutandis.
(See also interpretation under Rule 121.)
Amendment 53
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 105
1.  When the Council has agreed on a nomination for President of the Commission, the President shall request the nominee to make a statement and present his or her political guidelines to Parliament. The statement shall be followed by a debate.
1.  When the European Council proposes a candidate for President of the Commission, the President shall request the candidate to make a statement and present his or her political guidelines to Parliament. The statement shall be followed by a debate.
The Council shall be invited to take part in the debate.
The European Council shall be invited to take part in the debate.
2.  Parliament shall approve or reject the nomination by a majority of the votes cast.
2.  Parliament shall elect the President of the Commission by a majority of its component Members.
The vote shall be taken by secret ballot.
The vote shall be taken by secret ballot.
3.  If the nominee is elected, the President shall inform the Council accordingly, requesting it and the President-elect of the Commission to propose by common accord the nominees for the various posts of Commissioners.
3.  If the candidate is elected, the President shall inform the Council accordingly, requesting it and the President-elect of the Commission to propose by common accord the nominees for the various posts of Commissioners.
4.  If Parliament does not approve the nomination, the President shall request the Council to nominate a new candidate.
4.  If the candidate does not obtain the required majority, the President shall invite the European Council to propose a new candidate within one month for election in accordance with the same procedure.
Amendment 54
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 107 a (new)
Rule 107a
Nomination of Judges and Advocates-General at the Court of Justice of the European Union
On a proposal of its committee responsible, Parliament shall appoint its nominee to the panel of seven persons charged with scrutinising the suitability of candidates to hold the office of Judge or Advocate-General of the Court of Justice and the General Court.
Amendment 55
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 121 – paragraph 1
1.  A political group or at least forty Members may table a proposal for a recommendation to the Council concerning subjects under Titles V and VI of the EU Treaty, or where Parliament has not been consulted on an international agreement within the scope of Rule 90 or 91.
1.  A political group or at least forty Members may table a proposal for a recommendation to the Council concerning subjects under Title V of the Treaty on European Union, or where Parliament has not been consulted on an international agreement within the scope of Rule 90 or 91.
Amendment 56
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 124 – paragraph -1 (new)
-1.  Where the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union provides for consultation of the Economic and Social Committee, the President shall initiate the consultation procedure and inform Parliament thereof.
Amendment 57
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 124 – paragraph 2 a (new)
2a.  Opinions forwarded by the Economic and Social Committee shall be referred to the committee responsible.
Amendment 58
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 125 – paragraph -1 (new)
-1.  Where the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union provides for consultation of the Committee of the Regions, the President shall initiate the consultation procedure and inform Parliament thereof.
Amendment 59
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 125 – paragraph 2 a (new)
2a.  Opinions forwarded by the Committee of the Regions shall be referred to the committee responsible.
Amendment 91
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 129
Rule 129
deleted
Consequences of the Council failing to act following approval of its common position under the cooperation procedure
If, within three or, with the agreement of the Council, four months of the communication of the common position pursuant to Article 252 of the EC Treaty, Parliament has neither rejected nor amended the position, and the Council fails to adopt the proposed legislation in accordance with the common position, the President may, on behalf of Parliament and after consulting the committee responsible for legal affairs, bring an action against the Council in the Court of Justice under Article 232 of the EC Treaty.
Amendment 61
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 132
The Conference of Presidents shall designate members of Parliament's delegation to any convention, conference or similar body involving representatives of parliaments and confer a mandate upon it that conforms to any relevant Parliament resolutions. The delegation shall elect its chair and, where appropriate, one or more vice-chairs.
The Conference of Presidents shall designate members of Parliament's delegation to any conference or similar body involving representatives of parliaments and confer a mandate upon it that conforms to any relevant Parliament resolutions. The delegation shall elect its chair and, where appropriate, one or more vice-chairs.
Amendment 65
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 149 – paragraph 12
12.  Without prejudice to Article 197 of the EC Treaty, the President shall seek to reach an understanding with the Commission and Council on appropriate allocation of speaking time for them.
12.  Without prejudice to Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the President shall seek to reach an understanding with the Commission, the Council and the President of the European Council on appropriate allocation of speaking time for them.
(This paragraph shall become the last paragraph of Rule 149.)
Amendment 67
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 204 – title
Appointment of the Ombudsman
Election of the Ombudsman
Amendment 68
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Rule 204 – paragraph 7
7.  The person appointed shall immediately be called upon to take an oath before the Court of Justice.
7.  The person elected shall immediately be called upon to take an oath before the Court of Justice.
Amendment 69
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Annex V – Article 2
Article 2
deleted
Rate
1.  Subject to the conditions set out below, any Member may table and speak in support of proposals for decisions fixing a new maximum rate.
2.  Such proposals shall be admissible only if they are tabled in writing and bear the signatures of at least forty Members or are tabled on behalf of a political group or committee.
3.  The President shall set the time limit for the tabling of such proposals.
4.  The committee responsible shall report on these proposals before they are discussed in Parliament.
5.  Parliament shall then vote on the proposals.
Parliament shall act by a majority of its component Members and three fifths of the votes cast.
Where the Council has informed Parliament of its agreement to the fixing of a new rate, the President shall declare in Parliament that the amended rate has been adopted.
If this is not the case, the Council's position shall be referred to the committee responsible.
Amendment 70
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Annex V – Article 5
Article 5
deleted
Consideration of the Council's deliberations – second stage
1.  If the Council has modified one or more of the amendments adopted by Parliament, the text thus modified by the Council shall be referred to the committee responsible.
2.  Subject to the conditions set out below, any Member may table and speak in support of draft amendments to the texts modified by the Council.
3.  Such draft amendments shall be admissible only if they are presented in writing, bear the signature of at least forty Members or are tabled on behalf of a committee and ensure the maintenance of a balance between revenue and expenditure. Rule 49(5) shall not apply.
Draft amendments shall be admissible only if they refer to the texts modified by the Council.
4.  The President shall set the time limit for the tabling of draft amendments.
5.  The committee responsible shall pronounce on the texts modified by the Council and deliver its opinion on the draft amendments to the modified texts.
6.  Draft amendments to the texts modified by the Council shall be put to the vote in Parliament without prejudice to the provisions of Article 3(4) second subparagraph. Parliament shall act by a majority of its component Members and three fifths of the votes cast. If the draft amendments are adopted, the texts modified by the Council shall be deemed rejected. If they are rejected, the texts modified by the Council shall be deemed adopted.
7.  The Council's summary of the results of its deliberations on the proposed modifications adopted by Parliament shall be debated and a motion for a resolution may then be put to the vote.
8.  Upon completion of the procedure provided for in this Article, and subject to the provisions of Article 6, the President shall declare in Parliament that the budget has been finally adopted and shall arrange for its publication in the Official Journal.
Amendment 71
Parliament's Rules of Procedure
Annex V – Article 6
Article 6
deleted
Total rejection
1.  A committee or at least forty Members may, for important reasons, table a proposal to reject the draft budget as a whole. Such a proposal shall be admissible only if it is accompanied by a written justification and tabled within the time limit set by the President. The reasons for rejection may not be contradictory.
2.  The committee responsible shall deliver its opinion on such a proposal before it is put to the vote in Parliament.
Parliament shall act by a majority of its component Members and two thirds of the votes cast. If the proposal is adopted, the draft budget as a whole shall be referred back to the Council.

Copenhagen Conference on Climate Change
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European Parliament resolution of 25 November 2009 on the EU strategy for the Copenhagen Conference on Climate Change (COP 15)
P7_TA(2009)0089B7-0141/2009

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and to the Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC,

–   having regard to the Bali Action Plan (Decision 1/COP 13),

–   having regard to the forthcoming fifteenth Conference of the Parties (COP 15) to the UNFCCC and the fifth Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (COP/MOP 5) to be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, from 7 to 18 December 2009,

–   having regard to the climate and energy package adopted by Parliament on 17 December 2008, in particular Directive 2009/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 amending Directive 2003/87/EC so as to improve and extend the greenhouse gas emission allowance trading scheme of the Community(1) and Decision No 406/2009/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the effort of Member States to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to meet the Community's greenhouse gas emission reduction commitments up to 2020(2),

–   having regard to Directive 2008/101/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 2008 amending Directive 2003/87/EC so as to include aviation activities in the scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community(3),

–   having regard to the Commission Communication of 10 September 2009 entitled "Stepping up international climate finance: A European blueprint for the Copenhagen deal" (COM(2009)0475),

–   having regard to its previous resolutions relating to climate change, and in particular those of 4 February 2009 on "2050: The future begins today – recommendations for the EU's future integrated policy on climate change"(4) and of 11 March 2009 on "an EU strategy for a comprehensive climate change agreement in Copenhagen and the adequate provision of financing for climate change policy"(5),

–   having regard to the joint statement of 20 December 2005 by the Council and the representatives of the governments of the Member States meeting within the Council, the European Parliament and the Commission on European Union Development Policy: "The European Consensus"(6), and in particular points 22, 38, 75, 76 and 105 thereof,

–   having regard to the Conclusions of the European Council of 29-30 October 2009,

–   having regard to its resolution of 21 October 2008 entitled "Building a Global Climate Change Alliance (GCCA) between the European Union and poor developing countries most vulnerable to climate change"(7),

–   having regard to Rule 110(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.   whereas negotiations on a comprehensive international post-2012 agreement on climate change are due to be concluded in Copenhagen in December 2009; whereas that agreement should be legally binding and consistent with the latest scientific evidence, which indicates that climate change is happening faster and more aggressively than previously estimated, and with the objective of limiting the overall global annual mean surface temperature increase to 2ºC above pre-industrial levels ("the 2ºC objective"),

B.   whereas in order to meet the 2ºC objective it is necessary for developed countries to take the lead in significantly reducing their emissions, and for developing countries also to contribute to the attainment of that objective,

C.   whereas developing countries have contributed least to climate change but are facing its severest consequences, and whereas climate change is placing 40 % of international poverty reduction investment at risk, thus threatening the efficacy and sustainability of development work; whereas there is a clear need for greater coordination, complementarity and coherence between climate change and development initiatives,

D.   whereas climate change may exacerbate the potential for conflicts over natural resources owing to shrinking arable land, growing water scarcity or deforestation, or due to climate-induced migration; whereas the potential impact on public health should also be taken into account,

E.   whereas deforestation accounts for some 20 % of global greenhouse gas emissions, is a major driver of biodiversity loss and constitutes a serious threat to development and, in particular, to the livelihoods of the poor,

F.   whereas significantly increased financial resources are needed to enable the necessary mitigation and adaptation actions to be taken in developing countries, and therefore resources should be made available to tackle climate change with a commitment similar to the commitment that was needed to tackle the current financial crisis,

G.   whereas most of the money promised for climate change comes from Official Development Assistance (ODA) budgets, thus diverting funds from development assistance and posing a serious threat to poverty reduction and the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),

H.   whereas a binding international framework leading to emission reductions on the necessary scale will also produce large, immediate co-benefits for global health, and whereas without such a framework progress towards meeting the MDGs is at risk and could be reversed,

I.   whereas the EU is the only regional entity in the world to have accepted binding objectives for the achievement of greenhouse gas emissions reductions by adopting the above-mentioned climate and energy package consisting of legislative measures to implement a unilateral 20 % reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to 1990 levels by 2020, with the commitment to move to a 30 % reduction or more, in line with the latest developments in science, if a sufficiently ambitious and binding international agreement is reached in Copenhagen, which requires a similar effort from other developed countries and appropriate contributions from economically more advanced developing countries which are commensurate with their responsibility and abilities,

J.   whereas a global transformation in technology and technological cooperation is necessary to accelerate the pace of innovation and increase the scale of demonstration and deployment so that all countries have access to affordable sustainable technologies,

K.   whereas energy efficiency plays a crucial role in limiting CO2 emissions, in particular the recent initiatives on the energy performance of buildings and energy labelling rules,

L.   whereas ambitious climate measures would contribute to solving the current economic crisis through job creation and increased economic activity, and whereas the International Energy Agency considers an ambitious agreement in Copenhagen to be necessary to channel investments delayed by the crisis to environmentally sustainable investments,

M.   whereas a number of third countries have taken measures to combat climate change, such as emission reduction targets,

N.   whereas a comprehensive agreement in Copenhagen is necessary in order to tackle carbon leakage and create a level playing field in the context of the move to a 30 % reduction in greenhouse gas emissions,

O.   whereas an effective reduction of greenhouse gas emissions requires a holistic approach which covers all emitting sectors of production and mobility and should be considered in the framework of the successful transition towards a sustainable economic model, which provides for environmental quality to go hand in hand with economic growth, wealth creation and technological advancement;

Aim

1.  Urges the EU to continue to develop an external climate policy and to speak with one voice to maintain its leading role in the negotiations at COP 15, and to maintain a high level of ambition in discussions with its international partners, in order to achieve an ambitious and legally binding international agreement in Copenhagen, in line with the latest developments in science and consistent with the 2ºC objective;

2.  Emphasises that by the end of this year in Copenhagen, the Parties need to reach a legally binding agreement on industrialised-country mitigation targets and financing and to establish a formal process to achieve a legally binding comprehensive climate agreement in the first few months of 2010, coming into force on 1 January 2013;

3.  Calls on the Heads of State or Government of all COP 15 members to give this matter the highest priority and to demonstrate political leadership and stresses the importance of those Heads of State or Government making themselves available to attend the high-level segment of COP 15 to avoid any possibility of an agreement involving significant and long-term national commitments failing to be secured because the negotiators present do not have the political mandate or authority required;

4.  Stresses that, in order to secure continuing commitments after the Kyoto Protocol first commitment period expires, it is vital for the negotiations on a post-2012 agreement in Copenhagen to be concluded, and points out that further delays in global action might lead to a situation whereby future generations will no longer be able to control climate change;

Reduction commitments

5.  Stresses that the international agreement should be based on the principle of a "common but differentiated responsibility", with the industrialised countries taking the lead in reducing their domestic emissions; takes the view, however, given their economic weight, that China, India and Brazil should commit themselves to targets similar to those of the industrialised countries, whereas other emerging countries should, in accordance with the Bali Action Plan, take nationally appropriate mitigation actions in the context of sustainable development, supported and enabled, in a measurable, reportable and verifiable manner, by technology, financing and capacity-building from developed countries, having due regard, in technology transfers, to the protection of industrial property rights and to the special needs of the least developed countries;

6.  Believes the Copenhagen agreement should bind the parties to mandatory reductions and provide for sanctions at international level for non-compliance, their form remaining to be defined;

7.  Recalls that the international agreement should ensure collective reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in the developed countries at the high end of the 25-40 % range for 2020 compared to 1990 levels, as recommended by the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC 4AR), and that recent scientific data indicates that an emission reduction of at least 40 % is required; calls for those reductions to be domestic; recalls that a long-term reduction target should be set for the EU and the other developed countries of at least 80 % by 2050 compared to 1990 levels; recalls that global greenhouse gas emissions should start falling by 2015 at the latest; emphasises the need for the reduction targets agreed in the international agreement to be in line with the 2°C objective and with the latest developments in science; calls, therefore, for regular reviews in the agreement every five years to make sure that the reduction targets are ambitious enough to meet the 2°C objective and that those targets continue to be in line with the latest developments in science; calls for the establishment of a global carbon accounting mechanism;

8.  Invites the EU to clarify under which conditions it would increase its reduction commitment, taking into account the fact that the latest scientific recommendations call for a commitment to a 40 % reduction in emissions;

9.  Calls for the inclusion of reporting requirements in the Copenhagen agreement under which Annex 1 Parties will have to establish action plans for achieving emission reductions in the period up to 2050 consistent with the 2°C limit;

10.  Recognises Japan's commitment to reduce its emissions by 25 % by 2020 and welcomes the positive signals from China; urges, in the light of these developments, the USA to make binding the goals set during the election campaign, thereby giving a strong signal of the resolve of the leading developed countries to take up the fight against climate change; stresses in this regard that it is also extremely important for India to make a contribution;

11.  Welcomes the above-mentioned Commission Communication of 10 September 2009 as an important step in the discussion, and especially underlines the role of Parliament as a budgetary authority;

12.  Recalls that the international agreement should also ensure that developing countries as a group limit the growth of their emissions to 15 to 30 % below "business as usual" in order to ensure that the 2ºC objective is achieved;

13.  Stresses that the Non-Annex-I countries cannot be treated as a block, because their capacities to invest in mitigation and adaptation of climate change, as well as their capacities to adjust to climate change, are not the same;

14.  Calls on the EU to invite the members of the COP 15 to develop a common vision for the year 2050 and beyond;

15.  Furthermore recalls its recommendation that certain principles adopted in the climate and energy package be used as a blueprint for the international agreement, in particular the binding linear pathway for developed country commitments, differentiation on the basis of verified emissions and gross domestic product (GDP), and a strengthened compliance regime with an annual abatement factor;

Financing

16.  Emphasises that an agreement in Copenhagen could provide the necessary stimulus for a "Sustainable New Deal" boosting sustainable social and economic growth, promoting environmentally sustainable technologies, renewable energy and energy efficiency, reducing energy consumption and securing new jobs and social cohesion in both developed and developing countries; notes also that due consideration needs to be given to the public health aspects of climate change; recalls the Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, which demonstrates clear economic incentives for the international community to act as soon as possible to tackle climate change; recognises that upfront investments by the public sector in a sustainable energy infrastructure, and in complementary research and development, will reduce the social costs of climate change;

17.  Emphasises that the active participation of all countries in tackling the climate challenge will only come about if developing countries and emerging economies can maintain sustainable economic growth; calls, therefore, for more truly integrated policy responses to development and climate challenges;

18.  Notes that climate change is a challenge to which there is no single political solution, but that the combination of existing opportunities and a dramatic increase in efficiency in all areas of the economy and society in developed and developing countries would contribute to resolving the problem of resources and distribution and pave the way for a third industrial revolution;

19.  Stresses that people in developing countries will be even worse affected by the consequences of climate change and that it is therefore also in the interests of those countries to contribute to the successful conclusion of a climate change convention;

20.  Emphasises the responsibility of developed countries to provide sufficient, sustainable and predictable financial and technical support to the developing countries to allow them to commit themselves to the reduction of their greenhouse gas emissions, to adapt to the consequences of climate change and to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, as well as to enhance capacity-building in order to comply with obligations under the future international agreement on climate change;

21.  Insists that such commitments to provide for the required predictable financial support for climate change mitigation and adaptation in the context of the UNFCCC must be new and additional to ODA and independent from annual budgetary procedures in the Member States; recalls that the resources should be distributed not as concessional loans, but as grants; recalls the already-existing commitments, aimed at achieving ODA levels of 0,7 % of GDP by 2015;

22.  Stresses the need for "fast-start" international public support in order to reach an ambitious Copenhagen agreement, and calls upon the EU to commit at least to the Commission's estimate of overall financing of EUR 5-7 billion annually for the period 2010-2012;

23.  Recalls that the collective contribution by the EU towards developing countries' mitigation efforts and adaptation needs should not be less than EUR 30 000 million per annum by 2020, a figure that may increase as new knowledge is acquired concerning the severity of climate change and the scale of its costs;

24.  Invites the international community to increase significantly its financial support for adaptation to and mitigation of climate change for developing countries by exploring other innovative financial mechanisms (for example debt-for-nature swaps);

25.  Underlines that a substantial part of the revenues generated by the auctioning of certificates in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS), including auctioning for aviation and maritime transport, should be earmarked for enabling developing countries to fight and adapt to climate change; stresses, however, that more than 50 % of EU emissions are not covered by the EU ETS that started in 2005; recalls, therefore, that it is necessary to develop alternative strategies so that every part of the economy, not only industry, and especially all the Member States, bear the burden of reducing emissions and assume their responsibilities;

26.  Emphasises that the upcoming EU budget review needs to focus on providing sufficient resources for measures for protection against, and adaptation to, climate change;

27.  Recommends that the developed countries envisage earmarking a percentage of their GDP for the creation of a cooperation fund for the realisation of clean energy technologies, independently of existing development aid funds;

28.  Supports Norway's proposal for Assigned Amount Units and the proposals from Denmark and Mexico;

29.  Calls for the governing structures established in relation to climate financing under the Copenhagen agreement to ensure equal representation of developed and developing countries; stresses, furthermore, that, in order to guarantee that financial transfers are being used in a sustainable manner, experience from development policy and established principles such as "good governance" should be applied; points out that donor countries need to invest in increasing the "absorptive capacity" in developing countries, so that the latter are able to use the resources effectively;

Cooperation with developing countries

30.  Calls on the EU and its Member States to strengthen their existing climate partnerships with developing countries, and to enter into new partnerships where they do not currently exist, providing significantly increased financial support for technology development and transfer, agreement on intellectual property rights and institutional capacity-building, including for National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPAs) as important instruments for adaptation to climate change, promoting ownership;

31.  Insists that the post-2012 international climate change agreement should take into account the existing development processes both at international and national levels; calls on the Commission and the Member States to build the necessary links between climate change and the MDGs by incorporating adaptation to and mitigation of climate change into projects and programmes aimed at achieving the MDGs and into all poverty reduction strategies;

32.  Calls on the Commission and the Member States to increase substantially the budget for the GCCA and suggests that one source of funding could be obtained from the expected revenues from auctioning within the EU ETS; urges the Commission to ensure that the GCCA becomes a clearing house for adaptation funding in developing countries, thus avoiding the creation of new bilateral EU initiatives;

33.  Considers that climate change causes displacement of people and therefore creates new forced migration which has to be adequately addressed by the international community; calls on the international community to identify and address the legal shortfalls that exist in respect of the protection of climate refugees, and to initiate a specific assistance and protection system;

34.  Underlines the necessity for institutional accountability and trust to be ensured by establishing a fair representation of donor and recipient countries in the management body of adaptation funding institutions;

Energy and energy efficiency

35.  Considers that the global transformation to an efficient sustainable economy is not only necessary to pre-empt dangerous climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but that it also has the potential to increase investment, employment, economic growth, competitiveness and to improve quality of life without compromising the objective of ensuring access to modern energy services for all; stresses, therefore, the urgent need to improve energy efficiency on a global scale and to increase the share of renewable energy resources;

36.  Stresses that an international shift towards a low-carbon economy will consider nuclear energy as an important part of the energy mix in the medium term; points out, however, that the issue of safety and security of the nuclear fuel cycle must be addressed in an appropriate manner at international level in order to ensure the highest possible level of safety;

37.  Urges all governments, including those of the EU's Member States, and the EU, to stimulate energy efficiency; urges EU Member States to step up their ambition on the energy efficiency package, notably on the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive recast which is currently being discussed (COM(2008)0780), to enable a dynamic and cohesive agreement with the Council to be reached, thereby sending a strong message as to the EU's commitment in view of the Copenhagen agreement and facilitating the move to a 30 % reduction in greenhouse gas emissions;

38.  Stresses that the large-scale use of fossil fuels in power generation is a major source of CO2 emissions worldwide; acknowledges that in the medium term fossil fuels will continue to play an important role in energy supply; calls on the negotiating parties to attach high importance to the further development and use of sustainable, fuel-efficient and emission-reducing fossil fuel technologies for the production of electricity;

39.  Considers that both emissions reduction targets and financing commitments need to be subject to a strengthened compliance regime, including an early warning mechanism and penalties, such as withdrawal of future Assigned Amount Units;

Adaptation

40.  Stresses the historical responsibility of developed countries for irreversible climate change and recalls the obligation to assist developing countries and least developed countries in adapting to these changes;

41.  Calls, therefore, on the EU and its Member States to assist developing countries in capacity building in order to adapt to climate change and to provide sufficient technological support for those countries most affected by a changing environment;

42.  Recognises the importance of proactive adaptation to unavoidable climate change, in particular in the most vulnerable regions and groups within societies, and stresses the importance of awareness-raising as a means of addressing adaptation to climate change in the most effective way;

43.  Stresses that the EU and its Member States must also enhance action to support the urgent implementation of adaptation actions within the EU in order to save resources for future international action;

Technological cooperation and research

44.  Believes that a new approach to technology cooperation is needed to achieve the necessary acceleration in the pace of innovation and the scale of deployment to allow all countries access to affordable climate-friendly technologies, while respecting intellectual property rights concerns;

45.  Considers that the Copenhagen agreement should provide for Technology Action Programmes for key adaptation and mitigation technologies to provide support throughout the entire technology chain with objectives such as to considerably increase financing for mitigation and adaptation-related research, development and demonstration (RD&D); in this context supports the Commission assessment that, globally, energy-related RD&D should at least double by 2012 and be increased to four times its current level by 2020;

46.  Urges developed countries to invest more in research on novel and advanced technologies for sustainable and energy-efficient production processes; considers it essential to improve funding for international cooperation on climate change within the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7);

A global carbon market

47.  Emphasises that, although market solutions, including the development of a global carbon market, through "cap and trade" mechanisms or taxation schemes in developed countries, are not the solution for developing countries in the near future, this must remain the long-term goal for all negotiations; calls on the EU and its partners in the world to find, in the immediate future, the most effective way of promoting links between the EU ETS and regional or federal trading schemes in the USA and elsewhere, which in turn would promise greater diversity of abatement options, improved market size and liquidity, and ultimately a more efficient allocation of resources;

48.  Points out that a functioning global carbon market is essential for the EU economy in order to cope with the ambitious EU commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2020; stresses the need for a comprehensive international post-2012 agreement stipulating comparable efforts to be made by other developed countries in order to overcome the risk of carbon leakage in particular, with a view to long-term greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets; emphasises in this regard the key role of close cooperation between the emerging economies and the developed economies;

49.  Welcomes the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) as a possible way to enable developing countries to participate in the carbon market and to provide them with modern and efficient technologies; underlines, however, that the use of offsets to meet emission reduction targets by developed countries cannot be counted as part of the responsibility of developing countries to mitigate their greenhouse gas emissions in an international agreement on climate change, and is not a substitute for financial and technological support to developing countries for their mitigation action;

50.  Insists, furthermore, that stringent project quality standards must be part of future offsetting mechanisms, in order to prevent developed countries taking away the low-cost reduction options from developing countries, and to guarantee the high standard of such projects, with reliable, verifiable and real additional emission reductions that also support sustainable development in such countries;

51.  Takes the view that CDM and Joint Implementation (JI) should be reformed, taking into account those project quality standards; endorses, moreover, the Commission's view that sectoral mechanisms for economically more advanced developing countries should be agreed for the period beyond 2012, thereby making them an effective tool for climate protection and sustainable development in developing countries;

52.  Insists that the EU and its Member States need to fulfil mitigation commitments primarily within the EU and reminds all parties that the use of flexible mechanisms should be kept to a minimum;

Land use change, deforestation, forest and natural resources degradation

53.  Considers that significant financial support, as well as technical and administrative assistance, must be provided to developing countries to halt gross tropical deforestation by 2020 at the latest, and that demonstration of commitment to this will be decisive in the international negotiations for a comprehensive global post-2012 climate agreement;

54.  Emphasises that conserving natural carbon sinks constitutes the most efficient and effective means of climate change mitigation and entails no known negative side-effects; takes the view, moreover, that the development of a comprehensive forestation policy is invaluable in tackling climate change;

55.  Calls upon the EU to commit to financing international efforts to halt deforestation and promote global non-commercial afforestation;

56.  Emphasises that the protection of forests is essential for successful global climate protection and urges the EU and the Member States to recognise the need to preserve forests and to integrate this aspect into an international agreement;

57.  Supports the Commission's view that public funding is the most realistic tool with which to provide incentives for combating deforestation over the period 2013 to 2020; calls, furthermore, on the EU and its Member States to provide funding for the period 2010-2012 for early action in developing countries and supports the Commission's proposal to create a Global Forest Carbon Mechanism (GFCM) under the UNFCCC framework, based on a permanent-financing scheme; calls on Member States to support their commitment to halting global deforestation and forest and land degradation, as well as desertification, by earmarking a significant part of the auctioning revenues from the EU ETS to reduce deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries; calls on Member States to support the Commission's proposal to embrace the funding proposal made by Norway and to allocate part of future revenues from auctioning of Assigned Amount Units to the GFCM;

58.  Stresses that the future GFCM must be linked to the decisions and contribute to the goals of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and that impacts on biodiversity must be explicitly considered by activities, rules and modalities under the UN programme "Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation" (REDD); considers that the GFCM must first and foremost ensure that old-growth forests are protected; emphasises that industrial forestry activities which have low climate mitigation potential and may pose a threat to biodiversity must not be eligible for funding through the GFCM;

59.  Emphasises that any future GFCM must respect the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities, including their right to collective property and to autonomous indigenous territories, and provide for their full and effective participation and decision-making power at all levels, including in the development and implementation of national REDD plans, and allocation or distribution of financing;

60.  Calls on the EU to promote strong social and environmental standards for REDD; calls on the EU to advocate REDD mechanisms that go beyond the current project approach of CDM and that address underlying causes of deforestation, such as poor governance, poverty, corruption and lack of law enforcement, by supporting policy and institutional reform at local, regional and national levels;

61.  Calls for the environmental effectiveness of Annex I emissions reduction targets to be the guiding principle as regards the EU approach to international accounting rules for forest management and LULUCF in general;

62.  Highlights that practices followed in several sectors, including water management, ecosystem preservation, agricultural production, soil conditions, land use change, health, food security and disaster risk, have led to the causation and aggravation of climate change, but at the same time that those sectors have also suffered severe consequences due to the negative effects of climate change; considers that both of those dimensions should be included in the Copenhagen agreement along with targeted measures in order to secure a high degree of those sectors' mitigation and adaptation to climate change;

International aviation and maritime transport

63.  Recalls that aviation has a range of non-CO2 impacts which roughly double its global warming potential; calls on the EU to ensure those impacts are accounted for in the Copenhagen agreement;

64.  Insists that – in the light of the failure of the negotiations involving the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) – international aviation and shipping be incorporated into an agreement under the UNFCCC;

65.  Urges that international agreements in the aviation and maritime sectors set the same binding targets as for other industry sectors; urges further that in a global framework at least 50 % of the allowances in this area be auctioned;

Civil society involvement

66.  Stresses the great importance of local citizens receiving comprehensive information and consultation and taking part in decision-making processes, and particularly encourages urban centres, regions and conurbations to launch their own information campaigns, with government support, which might be linked to specific reduction targets;

67.  Recognises, given the fact that by 2030 two thirds of humanity will live in urban centres, that cities, local and regional authorities have a crucial role in implementing practical climate actions; welcomes the commitment demonstrated by the World Mayors and Local Governments Climate Protection Agreement, and calls for the EU to promote the engagement of cities, local and regional authorities in the development and implementation of national climate change strategies, including Mitigation Action Plans and Adaptation Programmes of Action;

European Parliament Delegation

68.  Believes that the EU delegation plays an important role in these negotiations on climate change, and therefore finds it unacceptable that the Members of the European Parliament that are part of that delegation were unable to attend the EU coordination meetings at the previous Conference of the Parties; expects the European Parliament participants to have access to such meetings in Copenhagen on the basis of observer status at least, with or without speaking rights;

o
o   o

69.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States and the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, with the request that it be circulated to all non-EU contracting parties.

(1) OJ L 140, 5.6.2009, p. 63.
(2) OJ L 140, 5.6.2009, p. 136.
(3) OJ L 8, 13.1.2009, p. 3.
(4) Texts adopted, P6_TA(2009)0042.
(5) Texts adopted, P6_TA(2009)0121.
(6) OJ C 46, 24.2.2006, p. 1.
(7) Texts adopted, P6_TA(2008)0491.


Multi-annual programme 2010-2014 regarding the area of freedom, security and justice (Stockholm programme)
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European Parliament resolution of 25 November 2009 on the Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council – An area of freedom, security and justice serving the citizen – Stockholm programme
P7_TA(2009)0090B7-0155/2009

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the Treaty of Lisbon, in particular its provisions dealing with the area of freedom, security and justice ("the AFSJ") and its new legal framework for the protection of fundamental rights and the strengthening of Union citizenship, Articles 2, 6 and 7 of the Treaty on European Union as modified by the Treaty of Lisbon, Protocol No 8 to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) as inserted by the Treaty of Lisbon, relating to the accession of the Union to the European Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms ("the ECHR"), and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union ("the Charter"), which has the same legal value as the Treaties,

–   having regard to the Communication from the Commission of 10 June 2009 entitled "An area of freedom, security and justice serving the citizen" (COM(2009)0262), which outlines its priorities in the AFSJ for 2010-2014, together with its evaluation of the Hague Programme and Action Plan (COM(2009)0263) and the associated implementation scoreboard (SEC(2009)0765), as well as to the contributions made by national parliaments, civil society and EU agencies and bodies,

–   having regard to the Council Presidency's draft document of 16 October 2009 entitled 'The Stockholm Programme – An open and secure Europe serving the citizen' (14449/09),

–   having regard to the joint deliberations of the Committee on Legal Affairs, the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs and the Committee on Constitutional Affairs pursuant to Rule 51 of the Rules of Procedure,

–   having regard to Rule 110(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.   whereas ever since the entry into force of the Amsterdam Treaty, the AFSJ has been an essential objective of the European Union; whereas it is essential to return to the original spirit of the Tampere Programme, which embraced aspects of criminal and civil law, focusing on the rule of law, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms,

B.   whereas globalisation affects not only the financial sector but increasingly the AFSJ; whereas it necessitates a more holistic policy approach together with measures to tackle the urgent questions of migration and asylum, and calls especially for deeper exchanges and cooperation between those involved in the policies of justice and home affairs, development, international trade and social affairs,

C.   whereas the Treaty of Lisbon, recently approved either through parliamentary vote or a referendum procedure, will reshape the legal bases, objectives, instruments and decision-making methods of AFSJ-related policies,

D.   whereas the rights and institutional role assigned to national parliaments for the first time by the Treaty of Lisbon will have a positive impact on the development and functioning of the AFSJ in particular, not least because it will provide a better guarantee that the subsidiarity principle will be respected,

E.   whereas, in many areas of justice and home affairs policy, national solutions are no longer adequate and there is thus a need to develop European responses to the international challenges of migration, security and technology, including information and communications technology,

F.   whereas the dismantling of the EU's internal border controls is one of the greatest achievements of European integration,

G.   whereas citizens are directly represented at Union level in the European Parliament and the Member States are represented in the Council by their respective governments, which themselves are democratically accountable to their national parliaments; whereas, consequently, the necessary parliamentarisation of the European Union must rely, on the one hand, on broadening the European Parliament's powers vis-à-vis all the Union's decision-making and, on the other hand, on greater control of the national governments by their respective parliaments,

H.   whereas joint measures must be confined to the Community's area of competence, and whereas European approaches should be adopted only when they promise to be more successful than national actions,

I.   whereas EU citizens" rights and rights of protection, especially data protection, must be preserved, and whereas the common justice and home affairs policy must remain subject to parliamentary supervision,

J.   whereas transparency in the law-making process must be paramount and whereas national parliaments and citizens should be able to follow and monitor the definition and implementation of AFSJ-related policies,

K.   whereas the accession of the Union to the ECHR, provided for by the Treaty of Lisbon, will not affect the protection of fundamental rights in the Union based on the Charter and the case-law of the Court of Justice, and will constitute a precious element of supplementary protection, while bearing in mind that a clear distinction between the jurisdictions of the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice will have to be established,

L.   whereas it is necessary, in the interests of combating organised crime, fraud and corruption in a robust and timely manner, and of protecting the financial interests of the EU, to strengthen police and judicial cooperation, to involve Europol and Eurojust more systematically in investigations, to create the office of European Prosecutor, and to achieve effective and measurable results, and whereas EU citizens want the EU to play an enhanced role in combating corruption,

M.   whereas in the field of civil justice the priorities for the next five years must reflect the needs expressed by individual citizens and business,

N.   whereas mutual recognition, as the cornerstone of the AFSJ, requires mutual trust and confidence in other countries' legal systems, and whereas those values can be secured only through mutual knowledge and understanding, thus creating a European judicial culture,

O.   whereas the European judicial area must be built on a European judicial culture among practitioners, the judiciary and prosecutors which is not only based on Union law but developed through mutual knowledge and understanding of the national judicial systems, a root-and-branch revamping of university curricula, exchanges, study visits and common training with the active support of the European Judicial Training Network and the Academy of European Law,

P.   whereas mutual trust also depends on an ongoing valuation of the effectiveness and results of the various national systems, conducted at both the national and the European levels; whereas in this connection reference must be made to the invaluable work of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice at the Council of Europe,

Q.   whereas the European networks in the various sectors of the judicial system (the European Judicial Training Network, the European Network of Councils for the Judiciary, the Network of the Presidents of the Supreme Courts of the European Union, the Eurojustice network of European Prosecutors-General, the European Judicial Network in civil and commercial matters, and networks of practitioners) must play an active role in the further realisation of a European judicial culture, and having regard to its resolution of 10 September 1991 on the establishment of a European Law Academy(1), its position of 24 September 2002 on the adoption of a Council decision setting up a European judicial training network(2), its resolution of 9 July 2008 on the role of the national judge in the European judicial system(3), and its recommendation of 7 May 2009 to the Council on development of an EU criminal justice area(4),

R.   whereas cybercrime has been significantly increasing over the past years, leading to more complex judicial challenges and placing a burden on the capacities of courts; whereas, on account of these developments, it is necessary to examine the setting-up of a European Court of Cyber Affairs specialising in matters related to cybercrime,

Looking ahead to the AFSJ under the Treaty of Lisbon

1.  Notes that the new multiannual programme in the AFSJ is likely to be adopted and implemented under the new legal framework defined by the Treaty of Lisbon, so that it must already embody all the innovations therein according to which:

   Schengen cooperation, which enshrines the freedom of movement of persons within the EU, is confirmed as the core of the AFSJ and the Schengen area should be further enlarged;
   the protection and promotion of every person's fundamental rights and the building of a Europe of rights, justice, solidarity and diversity are undivided core values of European policies; they are at the top of the European agenda, and the EU institutions will be called upon to respect the principle of equal rights for all people;
   the decision-making process will be strengthened by the use of the ordinary legislative procedure, all under the judicial supervision of the Court of Justice;
   additional safeguards will secure strict respect for the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality in the AFSJ by ensuring that a number of national parliaments can launch an "alert procedure" as well as by conferring on a single Member State the right to make use of an "emergency brake" when it considers that a draft legal instrument in the field of judicial cooperation in criminal matters is liable to affect essential elements of its internal national order; the use of the emergency brake will normally lead to enhanced cooperation among a core group of States that wish to integrate their policies;

2.  Observes that EU action will become more credible as it will be founded on a new or reshaped legal framework, including new provisions on the protection of fundamental rights, including rights of national minorities, new provisions for the prevention of any form of inequality, especially between men and women (Article 8 TFEU), or any form of discrimination (Article 10 TFEU), provisions promoting transparency in all the EU institutions, bodies, offices and agencies (Article 15 TFEU), provisions on the protection of personal data from the abuses of private or public entities (Article 16 TFEU), on consular and diplomatic protection (Article 23 TFEU), on common policies in the fields of asylum and immigration (Article 77 et seq. TFEU), on enhancing the integration of third-country nationals (Article 79(4) TFEU), and on improving good administration (Article 298 TFEU);

3.  Emphasises the importance of extending without restriction the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice, both in order to deliver preliminary rulings on any question arising from the AFSJ and in order to allow the Commission to launch infringement proceedings(5);

4.  Points out that access to justice for citizens and enterprises across Europe's AFSJ is rendered more complicated and less transparent by the existence of national opt-outs, and that accordingly, in the interests of fairness, coherence and simplicity, these should be avoided wherever possible;

5.  Welcomes the fact that the Treaty of Lisbon provides for the codecision procedure to be the ordinary legislative procedure for aspects of the AFSJ where it has not been applied to date, thus ensuring that the various facets of European justice and home affairs policy, and measures taken in pursuit of it, will come under parliamentary supervision; considers that involving the European Parliament in the ratification of international agreements is no more than the necessary complement to the powers and responsibilities that will be conferred on it at an internal level, particularly as regards matters covered by the current third pillar;

6.  Considers that the principle of solidarity between Member States, and between Member States and the Union, takes on particular significance in the AFSJ and must be converted into active, compulsory solidarity particularly as regards border control, immigration, civil protection and the solidarity clause;

7.  Stresses that the EU is rooted in the principle of freedom; points out that, in support of that freedom, security must be pursued in accordance with the rule of law and subject to fundamental rights obligations; states that the balance between security and freedom must be seen from this perspective;

A more coherent, transparent and democratic multiannual programme

8.  Considers that the Stockholm programme should in particular:

   address the problems of migration in solidarity;
   strike a better balance between the security of citizens (e.g. protection of external borders, prosecution of trans-border crime) and the protection of their individual rights;
   provide citizens with fair access to justice; and
   settle the practical problems which citizens face in the European Union in matters subject to different legal orders;

9.  Considers that, in the implementation of this programme, a priority objective should be to ensure, in a spirit of loyal cooperation, that citizens benefit from an equivalent level of protection of their fundamental rights wherever they are, whether they are faced with public power exercised by the Union, including agencies and other bodies, and Member States, and that no-one should suffer disadvantages in exercising fundamental freedoms conferred upon Union citizens in accordance with the tradition of human rights and the rule of law common to the Member States;

Interparliamentary cooperation

10.  Points out that in the new legal and institutional framework created by the Treaty of Lisbon further action in the AFSJ can be developed only by duly associating the European Parliament and national parliaments and civil society in an appropriate manner, with a view to building an open and continuous debate;

11.  Calls for a more transparent law-making process at EU and national level and welcomes the use of the ordinary legislative procedure, which will allow for the widest application of the right of access to documents and information in the decision-making process, especially in cases where a proposal could affect the rights of the individual and of the citizen, regardless of whether the initiative is submitted by the Commission or by a group of Member States;

12.  Announces – in the interests of transparent law-making at an international level where the Commission has gained Community competence, leaving Parliament merely with the right of assent, as is particularly evidenced by the developments in connection with the Hague Conference on Private International Law – that it is committed to following developments at the Hague Conference on Private International Law closely; undertakes to sponsor the creation of a Parliamentary Forum, open to interested MEPs and members of national parliaments, with a view to providing a means of informing parliamentarians about developments in the Conference and its work and achievements and allowing the various issues to be debated in a public forum;

13.  Welcomes the creation by the Treaty of Lisbon of a framework for the evaluation of AFSJ policies and calls for the establishment of a concrete monitoring and evaluation system, notably in the area of justice, which focuses on the quality, efficiency and fairness of existing legal instruments, of the administration of justice and of the protection of fundamental rights, closely involving the European Parliament and national parliaments; therefore:

   notes that there are currently several evaluation systems in place in the AFSJ and that these need to be consolidated into a single and coherent framework, covering all aspects from ex-ante evaluations to the evaluation of the implementation of legislation,
   considers that evaluations carried out by different EU bodies should be better coordinated,
   calls for the creation of the evaluation system to give Parliament and national parliaments access to information related to the policies (Article 70 of the TFEU) and activities of the internal security committee (Article 71 of the TFEU) as well as of EUROPOL (Article 88 of the TFEU) and Eurojust (Article 85 of the TFEU), together with the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union (Frontex), the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) and the Schengen system; considers, in this framework, that Parliament should be granted the right to deliver a binding opinion on the appointment of the agencies' directors (as Parliament is also the budgetary authority),
   considers further that, in order to frame Parliament's cooperation with national parliaments within the AFSJ, it would be worth creating a permanent forum of representatives at political level (two per Chamber + two substitutes) meeting twice a year and sharing a common workspace where all the information dealing with the AFSJ, including that of a restricted nature, could be shared in real time); considers also that the representatives of the national parliaments should be allowed to attend Parliament's proceedings at committee level and during Parliament's annual debate on the progress of the AFSJ;

14.  Considers that priority should be given to narrowing the wide gap between the rules and policies approved at European level and their implementation at national level;

15.  Calls for a periodic assessment of the results achieved within the multiannual programme to be the subject of an annual debate in the European Parliament, which should involve civil society and focus on the protection of fundamental rights in the EU and which should be based on reports from the Council, the Commission, the European Data Protection Supervisor and the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), as well as assessments and studies by independent experts, input from civil society organisations and Parliament's resolutions;

A Europe of rights

16.  Considers that effective protection and promotion of fundamental rights form the basis of democracy in Europe and are prerequisites for the consolidation of the AFSJ; therefore firmly believes that the Council and the Commission have a responsibility actively to propose measures to promote fundamental rights;

17.  Recalls also that the Union is acceding to the ECHR, and that, consequently, negotiations with a view to the Union's accession to the ECHR should start immediately;

18.  Calls on the Commission further to develop the interinstitutional agreement in the light of the Treaty of Lisbon and the consequences of the link between the ECHR, the European Court of Human Rights and the EU institutions;

19.  Demands a clear and comprehensive proposal on the rights to be secured to defendants in order to ensure that they receive a fair trial, and rejects the incremental approach currently adopted;

20.  Recalls that, with the Treaty of Lisbon, the Charter will become binding, on the same footing as the Treaties, and entirely applicable to all measures taken under the AFSJ, and that compliance with the Charter will be monitored by the Court of Justice; deplores, however, the introduction of the protocol limiting the effect of the Charter on the domestic law of two Member States and reiterates its concerns about the inequality among people this may produce;

21.  Calls for a thorough and impartial review of the necessity, proportionality and effectiveness of existing measures in the area of freedom and justice, including their impact on the protection and promotion of EU values and principles and of fundamental rights of citizens; calls for an impact assessment in respect of fundamental rights and EU values for every new policy, legislative proposal and programme, which assessment should clearly state what fundamental rights may be affected and what measures are envisaged to safeguard them in accordance with principles of proportionality and necessity; considers that the FRA should be consulted throughout the policy cycle of legislative proposals which have fundamental and human rights implications and requests the Commission to issue a formal reply to each of the FRA reports, including a list of proposed actions to address the issues raised by the FRA;

22.  Calls for promotion of the EU's values, including mainstreaming of human rights, to be permanently embedded as a fundamental aim of EU agreements with third countries, and of the whole external dimension of the AFSJ, especially in view of the new tools provided for this purpose by the Lisbon Treaty; recognises the importance of an adequate and consistent internal human rights policy in order to acquire and retain the necessary external credibility;

23.  Considers the death penalty to be a cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment and urges the Union and its Member States vigorously to work for its abolition in all countries of the world;

24.  Calls for the external dimension of the AFSJ policies to respect, protect and promote human rights and fundamental freedoms and urges that international cooperation should be based on those values, that torture should not be condoned, that extraordinary renditions should be definitively abandoned and that a proper enquiry into such practices should be held with a view to ensuring that they are not resumed in the future;

Fighting discrimination and promoting integration

25.  Calls for action to be taken fully to inform EU citizens and residents of their fundamental rights, including awareness-raising campaigns targeting both the general public and vulnerable groups, non-formal education initiatives and non-discrimination and equality mainstreaming in formal education curricula, as well as to make EU and Member States' institutions active in the AFSJ more aware of the core importance of fundamental rights, and to identify ways of seeking redress, either at national or European level, in cases where those rights are violated;

26.  Stresses that the growing intolerance within the EU needs to be tackled not only through full implementation of Council Framework Decision 2008/913/JHA of 28 November 2008 on combating certain forms and expressions of racism and xenophobia by means of criminal law(6), but also through further European-level legislation on hate crime;

27.  Considers that diversity enriches the Union and that the Union must be a safe environment where differences and national sensitivities are respected and the most vulnerable, such as the Roma, are protected; therefore insists that a priority in the Stockholm programme should be actively to increase awareness of anti-discrimination legislation and gender equality and to fight poverty, discrimination on grounds of gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, religious affiliation or belief, colour, descent, national or ethnic origin, racism, anti-Semitism, xenophobia and homophobia and to protect children and minorities; considers that the full use of the existing instruments and measures to tackle violence against women should be vigorously pursued and applied; calls, therefore, on the Spanish Presidency and the following Presidencies to make progress during their terms of office on the European protection order so as to ensure that victims of such crimes enjoy the same level of protection in all the Member States;

28.  Recalls that, from the viewpoint of an ordinary citizen, one of the biggest threats to internal security is social exclusion; points out that unemployment and other income problems, such as over-indebtedness, aggravated by the global financial crisis, increase the risk of exclusion and that ethnic minorities are extensively vulnerable, as they also face the risk of becoming victims of discrimination and racist crime;

29.  Calls for the collection and compilation by the FRA of reliable, comparable statistics on all grounds of discrimination, including discrimination against national minorities, and for the equal treatment of those different grounds, including comparative data on violence against women within the EU, and their publication in readily understandable form, and shares the view of the Trio Council Presidencies (Spanish, Belgian and Hungarian) that a possible review of the mandate of the FRA should be undertaken as soon as possible and that such a review will afford an opportunity to deepen cooperation with the Council of Europe and scope for consideration of a possible extension of the mandate of the FRA, which currently requires it to examine the situation of fundamental rights within the European Union;

30.  Reaffirms that the Union and the Member States must make a concerted effort to integrate vulnerable groups, in particular the Roma community, fully into society by promoting their inclusion in the education system and labour market and by taking action to prevent violence against them;

31.  Stresses that, while EU law and policy-makers have adopted an extensive body of law to combat the multiple discrimination suffered by women from minority backgrounds, especially Roma women, no significant progress can be demonstrated; therefore calls on the Member States to review the implementation of all policies related to the phenomenon of multiple discrimination;

32.  Considers it essential that the EU bring forward the issuing of a directive and a European action plan on violence against women, aimed at preventing violence, protecting victims and prosecuting perpetrators; considers it necessary for the EU to set up mechanisms to ensure that all policies designed to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings incorporate the gender dimension and analysis of such trafficking;

Stronger rights linked to Union citizenship

33.  Points out that, by the introduction of the "citizens initiative" into the Treaty of Lisbon, citizens will play a direct role in the exercise of the Union's sovereign power by being, for the first time, directly involved in the initiation of European legislative proposals; strongly requests that this new instrument be implemented in a way that really encourages people to use it and calls on the Commission to take duly into account all the initiatives that fulfil the legal criteria;

34.  Welcomes the provision in the Lisbon Treaty for a citizens' initiative and urges the Commission to take due account of the role of Parliament and the existing right of petition when presenting a proposal for the practical modalities for its implementation;

35.  Intends to initiate a new proposal for fundamental reform of the law governing elections to the European Parliament; reiterates its position that, in order to encourage European citizens to take part in European elections in their place of residence, the Council, under arrangements that it has already been called on to establish, should act to facilitate the right to vote and to stand as a candidate;

36.  Calls on the Member States fully to implement the rights linked to Union citizenship, so that Union citizens can exercise their right to free movement together with members of their family, thus enabling them to travel, work, study, retire, participate in politics and democratic life, and have a family life without restriction anywhere in the Union, making sure that they retain the right to all social benefits regardless of where they live; considers that Member States should ensure that EU citizens can easily exercise their right to vote in municipal elections;

37.  Calls on Member States, without prejudice to national legislation on family law, to ensure freedom of movement for EU citizens and their families, including both registered partnerships and marriages, in accordance with Articles 2 and 3 of Directive 2004/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the right of citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely within the territory of the Member States(7), and to avoid all kinds of discrimination on any ground, including sexual orientation;

38.  Calls on the Commission and the Member States to explore ways in which the free movement of EU citizens can be facilitated by helping EU citizens who choose to make use of that right to integrate and participate in the host country to which they choose to migrate in the exercise of their right to freedom of movement within the European Union;

39.  Considers that the exercise of these freedoms must be secured beyond national borders, and that EU citizens must be able to fully exercise their specific rights, even outside the Union; therefore emphasises the importance of strengthening the coordination and cooperation of consular protection;

40.  Calls on the Member States to implement in a fair and consistent way their obligation to ensure consular and diplomatic protection for Union citizens through the implementation of an agreement on the minimum amount of consular assistance offered to EU citizens outside EU territory;

41.  Calls on the Council and the Commission to give priority to improving transparency and access to documents, as these are essential for the purposes of achieving a citizen-oriented EU;

42.  Welcomes the reference made in the Stockholm programme to participation in the democratic life of the European Union; urges the Council to include in the Stockholm programme a specific section on the appropriate measures needed to empower women's participation in electoral campaigns and political life in general, with a view to thereby eliminating the democratic deficit that still exists due to the limited presence of women in municipal, national and European elections;

Migration

43.  Considers that any comprehensive approach to immigration must take account of the "push factors" that lead people to leave their countries in the first place, and necessitates clear plans for development and investment in the countries of origin and transit, in particular by facilitating money transfers from migrants to their countries of origin or by putting in place trade and agricultural policies that promote economic opportunities, as well as through the development of democracy, the rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms;

44.  Stresses the need for the continued development of adequately funded and ambitious regional protection programmes in close cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the third countries involved;

45.  Urges that Community integration, immigration and asylum policies be built on full respect of fundamental rights and the ECHR, so as to ensure effective protection of the human rights of third country nationals as well as full compliance with the principle of non-refoulement; points out that immigration and asylum policies should also address the needs of the most vulnerable groups, such as refugees and asylum seekers, and particularly minors and unaccompanied minors; calls for the establishment of a consistent and comprehensive legal framework facilitating legal migration;

46.  Urges the formulation of a stronger immigration policy closely connected with other Community policies, especially with employment policy, so as to constitute legal immigration as an alternative to illegal immigration and maximise the positive effect both for the Member States and for the well-being of the immigrants themselves;

47.  Insists on the need to consolidate the EU's global approach to migration in such a way as to offer the possibility of new ways of engaging in political dialogue and cooperation with third countries, in order to improve migratory flows, to prevent humanitarian tragedies;

48.  Highlights the need to achieve a close fit between migration and development policies and to step up the dialogue with countries of origin and transit, notably with a view to averting the problem of illegal migration; stresses in this regard that effective joint action against illegal migration will put the Member States in a better position to make provisions for legal migration;

Asylum

49.  Calls for the further development of the Common European Asylum System so as to establish a "Europe of asylum" as envisaged in the European Pact on Immigration and Asylum; considers that a common procedure should ensure greater consistency and better quality of asylum decision-making across Member States in order to close the protection gap in Europe;

50.  Urges the Council and the Member States to respect the legal definition of a refugee as enshrined in the United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees;

51.  Considers that, whereas solidarity must remain at the centre of a common immigration and asylum policy, it must also include solidarity with Member States that comply with their international obligations concerning the protection of refugees and asylum seekers, and must therefore ensure that no Member State fails to do so;

52.  Recalls that asylum is a right to be guaranteed to all people fleeing from conflicts and violence; condemns refoulement and collective expulsions to countries where human rights are not respected or which have not signed the United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees;

53.  Encourages negotiations on pending and forthcoming legislative proposals on European asylum instruments, in order to achieve improved standards and to address gaps in the existing legal framework;

54.  Calls, moreover, for solidarity between Member States on the one hand, and asylum seekers and other refugees on the other;

55.  Calls on Member States actively to engage and show their full commitment to solidarity mechanisms such as the pilot project for internal reallocation of beneficiaries of international protection envisaged by the Commission, as well as other initiatives which lead to the establishment of true long-term solidarity amongst Member States, and to promote regional protection programmes; takes the view, in that connection, that a transparent system for assessing Member States' respective reception capacities should be introduced and the role of the EASO in that regard clarified; on that basis, calls for an open debate on the various options available with a view to the establishment of a compulsory mechanism to provide for effective solidarity, in particular by means of internal reallocation;

56.  Calls in this regard for the prompt formalisation of the principle of solidarity and fair sharing of responsibility as provided for in Article 80 of the TFEU, which should involve a system of "compulsory and irrevocable solidarity" together with greater cooperation with third countries and notably neighbouring countries, designed to help develop their asylum and protection systems in a manner which respects fundamental rights and international protection norms, sets realistic expectations, and does not undermine or seek to replace access to protection in the EU;

57.  Believes that a partnership approach with the countries of origin and transit is needed in order to ensure that they play an active part in helping to manage migration flows, to prevent irregular immigration by informing potential migrants of the risks involved and to set up effective information campaigns on the possibilities for entering and/or working legally in the EU Member States;

58.  Stresses that all agreements with countries of origin and transit, such as Turkey and Libya, should include chapters on cooperation on immigration, taking due account of the situation of Member States most exposed to migratory flows and with an emphasis on fighting irregular immigration and trafficking in human beings by facilitating the work of Frontex;

59.  Calls for further cooperation on the strengthening of measures to ensure the effective and rapid return of illegally staying migrants who are not in need of protection, giving priority to voluntary returns;

60.  Calls for the adoption of measures to address the obstacles to the exercise of the right to family reunification by third-country nationals residing lawfully in Member States;

61.  Stresses the importance of granting migrants access to justice, housing, education and health care, in accordance with, inter alia, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families;

62.  Calls on the Commission to put forward practical proposals for effective action against the abuse of asylum procedures;

63.  Points out that circular migration should be promoted, but recalls that this approach must not amount to wage and social dumping and must not ignore the need for integration measures;

Borders and visas

64.  Calls for the adoption of a comprehensive blueprint setting out the overall objectives and architecture of the Union's integrated border management strategy, in order genuinely to implement a common policy on asylum, immigration and external border control, pursuant to Article 67(2) of the TFEU;

65.  Calls for a strategic approach in the field of visa policy in order to preserve the coherence of actions, internal regulations and external commitments, including the safeguarding of equal treatment of Member States by third countries;

66.  Calls on the Commission to draw the appropriate conclusions from the implementation of the visa and readmission agreements and bilateral local border traffic agreements already in place between the European Union and its eastern neighbours, along with the visa liberalisation process in the western Balkans, with a view to establishing a set of clear criteria and benchmarks on a case-by-case basis in order to evaluate and improve existing visa facilitation agreements and work towards a visa-free travel area aimed at increasing the level of people-to-people contact;

67.  Urges the Commission, so as to execute more effectively the visa reciprocity principle with third countries and thereby ensure equal treatment of all EU citizens in this regard, to reinvent its strategy by using all the tools at its disposal, such as sanctions, and linking this issue to its negotiations with the third countries concerned;

68.  Considers that Frontex, as an essential instrument in the Union's global strategy on immigration, must fully respect the human rights of migrants; calls for greater parliamentary scrutiny of its activities and supports the review of its mandate – including a clear framework for return operations meeting international human rights standards and the establishment of regional and specialised offices – in order to strengthen its role;

69.  Recalls the absolute necessity for Frontex to be able to count on the availability of the resources placed at its disposal by the Member States, both for its coordination of the individual joint operations and for its permanent missions;

70.  Calls on all Member States concerned to solve potential practical and/or legal problems with regard to the use of the resources of the respective Member States involved in joint operations;

71.  Recalls the absolute necessity for the Schengen Information System II (SIS II) and the Visa Information System (VIS) to be able to start operations as soon as possible; considers that SIS II will bring considerable improvements and new functionalities, such as the introduction of biometric data and the interlinking of alerts, that will contribute to better control of external borders and strengthened security;

72.  Insists that new border management instruments or large-scale data storage systems should not be launched until the existing tools are fully operational, safe and reliable, and calls for a thorough assessment of the necessity and proportionality of new instruments relating to matters such as entry/exit, the registered traveller programme, Passenger Name Record and the system of prior travel authorisation;

Protecting children

73.  Stresses the importance of the Treaty of Lisbon, which gives legally binding force to the Charter, Article 24 of which specifically regulates the rights of the child and provides, inter alia, that "[in] all actions relating to children, whether taken by public authorities or private institutions, the child's best interests shall be a primary consideration";

74.  Considers it essential that all EU measures in this field respect and promote children's rights as set out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and recognised in the Charter, and calls for enhanced EU action on child protection throughout the AFSJ;

75.  Calls on the Member States to respect and implement the rights of the child as enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child;

76.  Urges the EU to tackle more vigorously any abuses committed against children, such as violence, discrimination, social exclusion and racism, child labour, prostitution and trafficking, and to stimulate a coordinated effort to protect them and to uphold their rights, using the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as a guide for EU action and serving as a basis for amending existing legislation;

77.  Considers that there is an urgent need to address the question of protection of unaccompanied and separated children, given the special risks to which they are exposed;

78.  Underlines the importance of taking into consideration the rights of the child and paying special attention to children in particularly vulnerable situations in the context of immigration policy; considers that an ambitious European strategy must be developed in this field;

79.  Urges Member States to ensure that EU asylum, migration and trafficking policies in this field treat migrant children as children first and foremost, and to ensure that they benefit from their rights as children without discrimination, especially the right to family reunification; therefore insists that any EU action plan on unaccompanied minors of third country origin must ensure that:

   (a) all unaccompanied children receive special protection and assistance whilst in the EU;
   (b) the EU identifies actions which will support Member States in finding a secure, concrete and durable solution for each child in the child's best interests;
   (c) where return to a third country is in the best interests of the child, a proper return and reintegration process is put in place in cooperation with the country of return; and
   (d) the EU cooperates with third countries to prevent unsafe migration and to provide opportunities for children in the countries concerned;

80.  Calls for special attention to be paid to minors, whether accompanied or not, in order to ensure that they are not held in any form of detention;

81.  Points out that children of third-country origin can find themselves particularly vulnerable to exploitative labour situations, especially in countries where they are not provided with adequate assistance and protection because of their undocumented status; insists that EU policies in the fields of labour, asylum, migration and human trafficking must recognise and address these realities;

Data protection and security

82.  Notes the growing importance of the internet, and observes that the global and open nature of the internet requires global standards for data protection, security and freedom of speech; calls on the Council and the Commission to take the initiative in establishing a global platform for the elaboration of such standards; considers it extremely important strictly to limit, define and regulate the cases in which a private internet company may be required to disclose data to government authorities, and to ensure that the use of those data by government authorities is subject to the strictest data protection standards;

83.  Insists on the guarantee that the fundamental rights dimension of data protection and the right to privacy will be respected in all the Union's policies;

84.  Stresses the need to mainstream protection of personal data and privacy in the light of developing technologies and the creation of large-scale information systems;

85.  Considers that a "privacy by design" approach must be an essential feature of any development which risks jeopardising the security of personal information relating to individuals and the public's trust and confidence in those who hold information about them;

86.  Points out that the principle of availability is liable to allow the exchange of personal data that have not been collected legitimately and lawfully, and that it must be underpinned by common rules; expresses doubts with regard to the facilitation of operational activities that do not include a European definition and common standards concerning covert investigations, surveillance of citizens, etc.;

87.  Believes that, before EU action is envisaged in this field, clear criteria should be laid down for assessing the proportionality and necessity of limitations to fundamental rights; considers, furthermore, that the consequences of any proposal should always be carefully analysed before a decision is taken;

88.  Expresses its concern about the increasingly widespread practice of profiling, based on the use of data-mining techniques and the generalised collection of innocent citizens' data, for preventive and policing purposes; recalls the importance of the fact that law-enforcement actions must be based on respect for human rights, from the principle of the presumption of innocence to the right to privacy and data protection;

89.  Welcomes the proposal for international standards in data protection; emphasises that data protection agreements with third countries should be conducted in full transparency, with democratic scrutiny by Parliament, and that European level data protection standards in the third country are a minimum prerequisite for data exchange to take place;

90.  Welcomes the proposal for a comprehensive data protection scheme in the EU and with third countries; calls for a thorough evaluation of all relevant legislation (concerning counter-terrorism, police and judicial cooperation, immigration, transatlantic agreements, etc.) in the area of privacy and data protection;

91.  Welcomes the emphasis given to the importance of technology in the Stockholm programme in the context of effective protection of personal data and privacy;

92.  Urges the European Union to show its determination to take into account, in all its policies, the special needs of vulnerable people;

93.  Stresses the need for clearer and tighter limits on exchanges of information between Member States and the use of common EU registers; takes the view that, otherwise, building up large registers at EU level is liable to threaten personal integrity and registers may become ineffective whilst the risk of leaks and corruption will increase;

94.  Calls on Member States to reinforce mutual trust and confidence in each other's capability to strengthen security; considers that mutual trust also depends upon an efficient and rigorous ongoing evaluation of the effectiveness and results of the actions of various Member States;

Civil and commercial justice for families, citizens and business
Greater access to civil justice for citizens and business

95.  Considers that the priorities in the field of civil justice must first and foremost meet the needs expressed by individual citizens and business whilst constantly simplifying the machinery of justice and creating simpler, clearer and more accessible procedures in order to guarantee the proper enforcement of fundamental rights and consumer protection; to this end, while commending the Commission's decisions to present a proposal on wills and successions and a Green Paper on matrimonial property regimes in connection with separation and divorce, calls for:

   further efforts to promote alternative dispute resolution aiming in particular at improving access to justice for consumers; the introduction of collective redress mechanisms at Community level so as to grant citizens and businesses greater access to justice, whilst noting that this must not lead to unnecessary fragmentation of national procedural law;
   proposals for a simple and autonomous European system for the attachment of bank accounts and the temporary freezing of bank deposits, the abolition of requirements for legalisation of documents, provisions to fill the gaps left in the Rome II Regulation(8) concerning rights of the personality and defamation, a definitive solution to the problem of bilateral agreements dealing with jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments, if necessary by means of a Protocol to the next accession Treaty to be concluded; consideration to be given in addition to a proposal for an international instrument permitting a thorough check of all judgments from third countries before they may be recognised and enforced in a Member State; and provisions to fill the lacuna highlighted by the Court of Justice in the field of company law, a proposal on the protection of vulnerable adults, and a proposal for a regulation, for adoption if necessary by recourse to enhanced cooperation, on the law applicable in matrimonial matters and parental responsibility, based on the best interests of children and non-discrimination between partners;
   detailed consideration to be given to a form of Community provisional measure additional to those which may be ordered by national courts, to the divergent national legal approaches to retention of title and other similar mechanisms, to the recognition of international adoptions, and to the whole question of the mutual recognition of national civil status documents;
   a Community Conflicts Code bringing together in one instrument all the regulations adopted in this area by the Community legislator by 2013 to mark the 45th anniversary of the Brussels Convention, the conclusion of which was a milestone in private international law;
   the practical application of the large amount of innovative legislation adopted to date in the field of European civil procedure, to be studied with a view to simplifying it where possible and codifying it into a single instrument bringing together all the Community legislation adopted in this area;

96.  Insists that the abolition of exequatur in the context of the Brussels I Regulation(9) should not be rushed and should be accompanied by appropriate safeguards;

97.  Would be keen to examine proposals to draw up an optional 28th scheme for civil-law issues with cross-border aspects in areas affecting family law, the rights of individuals and property law;

98.  Underlines the need to further promote the international presence of the EU in the legal field by way of global solutions and multilateral instruments; believes that close cooperation with international organisations, such as the Hague Conference on Private International Law and the Council of Europe, is of particular importance; believes further that the EU should encourage and support the accession of third countries, especially those neighbouring the EU, to international judicial agreements, and that this is of key importance, especially in the field of family law and child protection;

Reaping the full benefits of the single market through European contract law

99.  Calls on the Commission to boost its work on European contract law on the basis of the academic Draft Common Frame of Reference (DCFR), as well as other academic works in the field of European contract law, and to involve Parliament fully in the open and democratic process which must lead to the adoption of a political Common Frame of Reference (CFR); emphasises that the political CFR should result in an optional and directly applicable instrument enabling parties to a contract, inter alia companies and consumers, freely to choose European contract law as the law governing their transaction;

100.  Reiterates that the DCFR should be made available by the Commission in the greatest possible number of relevant languages along with other scientific works in order to ensure their accessibility for all interested stakeholders and should already be used as a non-binding legal tool for European and national legislators; insists that already now the relevant provisions of the DCFR be given systematic and detailed consideration in all forthcoming Commission proposals and impact assessments affecting contract law;

101.  Encourages the Commission to pursue its recent idea of proposing standard contracts for voluntary use in specific sectors on the basis of the CFR;

Better legislation in the field of justice

102.  Stresses the need for European legislation in the area of judicial cooperation to be of the highest possible quality and based on properly conducted impact assessments, in order to provide citizens and business with effective instruments; deplores the fact that, in the past, proper impact assessments were not conducted in this area; notes a recent improvement and undertakes to subject one Commission impact assessment to critical analysis in the coming period;

103.  Strongly believes that, in order to guarantee a minimum level of independent scrutiny in the drafting of impact assessments, an independent panel of experts should be set up to monitor, by means of spot checks, the quality of opinions delivered by the Impact Assessment Board, and that representatives of interested parties should also be allowed to assist in conducting them;

104.  Considers that legal cooperation is the key to bringing not only the civil, but also the criminal procedures of different Member States closer to each other; considers therefore, that the approximation of procedural rights of citizens between the Member States should be promoted equally in civil and criminal proceedings;

Building a European judicial culture

105.  Calls for the creation of a European judicial culture embracing all aspects of the law; to this end, points out that:

   the Network of the Presidents of the Supreme Judicial Courts, the European Network of the Councils for the Judiciary, the Association of the Councils of State and Supreme Administrative Jurisdictions and the Eurojustice network of European Prosecutors-General, court officers and legal practitioners have a huge amount to offer by coordinating and promoting professional training for the judiciary and mutual understanding of other Member States" legal systems and making it easier to resolve cross-border disputes and problems, and their activities must be facilitated and receive sufficient funding; this must lead to a fully-funded plan for European judicial training drawn up in liaison with the above-mentioned judicial networks, avoiding unnecessary duplication of programmes and structures and leading to the creation of a European Judicial Academy composed of the European Judicial Training Network and the Academy of European Law;
   there must be active policies designed to foster mutual knowledge and understanding of foreign law and so achieve greater legal certainty and foster the mutual trust essential for mutual recognition; these policies must provide for exchanges of experiences, exchanges, visits and information and courses for practitioners and the judiciary, as well as coordination of existing national regimes for legal training across the EU and provision of familiarisation courses in national law for legal practitioners and judges;

106.  Calls on the Commission, therefore, to promote the creation by universities, other specialised institutes of higher education and competent professional organisations of a common system of training points/credits for judges and legal practitioners; calls on the Commission to create a network of legal training bodies across the Union accredited to provide familiarisation courses in national, comparative and European law for practitioners and judges on a stable, ongoing basis;

E-justice: a facility for citizens, practitioners and the judiciary

107.  Calls for a greater effort to promote and develop e-justice at Community level, in the interests of access to justice for citizens and business, and considers that:

   Member States cooperating on bilateral projects should ensure that their work is designed in a way that is transferable to the Community level, in order to avoid unnecessary duplication;
   the existing body of Community law in the field of civil law, in particular procedural law, should be made more compatible with the use of information technology, especially as regards the European payment order and the small claims procedure, the Civil Evidence Regulation(10) and alternative dispute resolution, and action should be taken in the areas of electronic acts and transparency of debtors" assets; the aim should be to bring about simpler, cheaper and faster civil proceedings in cross-border cases;
   electronic tools such as the European Criminal Records Information System (ECRIS) and the Schengen Information System should be further developed;

108.  Considers that e-justice should simplify citizens" access to legal assistance, shorten judicial procedures and improve the efficiency of the judicial process, and therefore calls on the future multilingual e-justice portal to incorporate access to legal databases, electronic judicial and non-judicial remedies, intelligent systems designed to help citizens find out how to deal with legal problems, and comprehensive registers, directories of legal professionals and plain guides to the legal system of each Member State;

109.  Considers that the portal should also be designed for use as a tool by judges, court officials, officials of the national Ministries of Justice and practising lawyers, all of whom would be entitled to secure access to the relevant part of the portal; calls on this part of the portal to permit secure communication, video-conferencing and document exchange between courts and between courts and parties to proceedings (dematerialisation of proceedings), to allow for verification of electronic signatures and make provision for appropriate verification systems, and to afford a means of exchanging information;

110.  Calls on the Commission to ensure that all future legislation in the field of civil law is designed in such a way that it can be used in on-line applications requiring a minimal amount of free text to be filled in; calls on action to ensure that, where necessary, on-line help is provided in all official languages and on-line electronic translation services are available; by the same token, where there is a need to provide for service of documents, provision should be made to ensure that documents can be served and communications effected by electronic mail and signatures provided electronically and, where there is a need for oral testimony, the use of video-conferencing should be encouraged; considers, furthermore, that all future proposals should include a reasoned statement by the Commission that an audit of e-justice-friendliness has been carried out;

111.  Calls for the ECRIS to give a prominent place to records of gender violence;

Priorities in criminal justice

112.  Calls for the construction of an EU criminal justice area based on respect for fundamental rights, the principle of mutual recognition, and the need to maintain the coherence of national systems of criminal law, to be developed through:

   an ambitious legal instrument on procedural safeguards in criminal proceedings, based on the presumption of innocence, which gives full effect to the rights of the defence,
   a sound legal framework ensuring the basic principle of ne bis in idem and facilitating the transfer of criminal proceedings between Member States and the resolution of conflicts of jurisdiction, with a high level of guarantees and defence rights, and ensuring effective access to these rights and to legal redress mechanisms,
   a comprehensive legal framework offering victims of crime and in particular victims of terrorism, organised crime, trafficking in human beings and gender violence, the widest possible protection, including adequate compensation, to be provided for at Member State level,
   a common legal framework offering witnesses the widest protection,
   minimum standards for prison and detention conditions and a common set of prisoners" rights in the EU, including appropriate compensation rules for persons unjustly detained or convicted, bolstered by the conclusion of agreements between the EU and third countries for the return of their convicted nationals, the full implementation of Council Framework Decision 2008/909/JHA of 27 November 2008 on the application of the principle of mutual recognition to judgments in criminal matters imposing custodial sentences or measures involving deprivation of liberty for the purpose of their enforcement in the European Union(11) and the provision of sufficient EU funding for both the construction, in the context of regional security plans, of new detention facilities in Member States affected by prison overcrowding and the implementation of social resettlement programmes,
   the adoption of a European legislative instrument to enable the profits and assets of international criminal organisations to be confiscated and reused for social purposes,
   a comprehensive legal instrument on the taking and admissibility of evidence in criminal proceedings,
   measures to ensure legal aid through sufficient budgetary allocations, and
   measures to combat violence, particularly violence against women and children;

113.  Stresses that work on illegal immigration must take into account efforts to combat trafficking in persons and must not in any way be allowed to penalise particularly vulnerable crime victims, especially women and children, or to jeopardise their rights;

114.  Stresses that one out of four women in Europe has been or is subjected to male violence; therefore calls on the Commission to consolidate the legal base within the current EU structure so as to ensure that all forms of violence against women are addressed through a broad and gender-based definition of violence against women; requests that, based on this legal base, a directive and a European action plan on violence against women, ensuring the prevention of violence, the protection of victims and the prosecution of perpetrators, be brought forward; calls on the Member States to take due account of the special circumstances of female immigrants, particularly young girls who are well integrated in the EU (often with dual nationality) and who, in parental or intimate relationships, are victims of abduction, illegal confinement, physical violence and psychological abuse on religious, cultural or traditional grounds, and to ensure that measures providing effective access to assistance and protection mechanisms are adopted;

115.  Insists that the gender issue be taken into account at all stages of development of the policy against human trafficking;

A coherent multi-layered security strategy: a Europe which protects its citizens (fighting crime whilst guaranteeing citizens" rights)

116.  Criticises the lack of a comprehensive master plan setting out the overall objectives and architecture of the EU's security and border management strategy as well as the absence of details showing how all related programmes and schemes (whether already in place, in the course of preparation or at the stage of policy development) are supposed to function together and how relationships between them can be optimised; takes the view that, when considering the architecture of the EU's security and border management strategy, the Commission should analyse first of all the effectiveness of the existing legislation, in order to bring about the optimal synergies between them;

117.  Urges the Commission and the Member States to ensure that future EU action in this field fully respects the core importance of fundamental rights and freedoms and strikes the right balance between security and freedom, and that this objective is adequately monitored and streamlined; strongly believes in the primacy of the rule of law, effective judicial review and accountability;

118.  Is committed, within the new institutional framework defined by the Treaty of Lisbon, to working with the Commission and the Council to focus on promoting the freedom of EU citizens while developing the EU legal framework in criminal matters; considers, indeed, that the imperative of protecting citizens against terrorism and organised crime should be supported by effective legislative and operational tools, taking into account the global dimension of these phenomena, and framed in clear legislation which affords EU citizens full enjoyment of their rights, including the right to challenge disproportionate or unclear rules and the inappropriate implementation of rules;

119.  Considers that Member States should examine to what extent the creation of an EU legal framework in criminal matters can be achieved;

120.  Calls on the EU to recognise the dignity, courage and suffering of indirect victims of terrorism and stresses that defending and promoting the rights of victims of terrorism and subsequently providing economic compensation for them should be a priority; recognises the extreme vulnerability of women as indirect victims of terrorism;

121.  Calls for the adoption of a comprehensive legal framework offering victims adequate protection and compensation, namely through the adoption of a draft framework decision amending the existing instruments on the protection of victims; considers that it is fundamentally important to develop a joint approach with a consistent and strengthened response to the needs and rights of all victims, ensuring that victims are treated as such rather than as criminals;

122.  Welcomes support to victims of crime, including women subjected to violence and sexual harassment, as a priority issue for the Swedish Presidency; urges the Council to include in the Stockholm programme a comprehensive European strategy aimed at eradicating violence against women, comprising prevention measures (such as awareness-raising concerning male violence against women), policies on the protection of victims including a specific section on the rights of victims of crime, and strengthening support to victims of crime, in particular young girls, who are increasingly the victims of significant crimes, and concrete measures to prosecute perpetrators; calls on the Spanish Presidency, during its term in office, to fully implement the action plan laid down in the Stockholm programme and to report to Parliament every month on the progress made;

123.  Considers the objective of a secure Europe to be legitimate and agrees that it is important continuously to develop and strengthen the EU's common policy on the fight against terrorism, organised crime, illegal immigration, human trafficking and sexual exploitation;

124.  Calls for the development of a comprehensive, cross-European strategy on the fight against organised crime, combining efforts and resources at the disposal of Member States, European institutions, specialised EU agencies and information exchange networks; stresses at this time that organised economic crime, such as tobacco smuggling, results in revenue losses that add to the already serious public finance situation of many EU Member States, and calls for the urgent adoption of effective preventive measures;

125.  Believes that further action against organised crime and terrorism should be oriented more towards the protection of fundamental rights and should provide for adequate protection of witnesses, incentives for those who cooperate in dismantling terrorist networks, and prevention and integration policies addressing in particular individuals belonging to high-risk categories, with priority in all circumstances for ethical prevention measures at the economic and social level and compensatory and reparatory measures for the victims of terrorism;

126.  Considers it particularly important that the EU should make a serious effort to tackle trafficking in persons, which is a constantly growing problem, that trafficking must be combated both outside and inside the EU and that a gender analysis should be made of all proposals for measures; considers that the EU and Member States should particularly tackle demand for services from victims of trafficking in persons by introducing penalties, educational measures and campaigns to raise awareness; considers that, since trafficking in persons for sexual purposes constitutes the bulk of this crime in absolute terms (79% according to UN data), the relationship between demand for the purchase of such services and trafficking in persons must be made clear and recognised and that, if demand for the purchase of sexual services is controlled, trafficking in persons will also be reduced;

127.  Calls for the promotion of transparency and integrity and for a more robust fight against corruption based on an objectives-oriented plan and on a periodic evaluation of the anti-corruption measures taken by the Member States, in particular the enforcement of instruments which have been developed by the EU itself, with a special focus on trans-border corruption; and for the development of a comprehensive anti-corruption policy and the periodical review of its enforcement;

128.  Calls for active support for civil society anti-corruption and integrity monitoring, as well as citizens" engagement against corruption, not only by opening up policy consultations and establishing direct channels of communication but also by dedicating resources and programmes so as to ensure that citizens can easily use the spaces provided to them;

129.  Highlights the increase in identity theft and urges the creation of a comprehensive EU strategy for combating cybercrime in this field to be developed in cooperation with internet providers and user organisations as well as the creation of an EU desk offering assistance to victims of identity theft and identity fraud;

130.  Calls for clarification of the rules on jurisdiction and the legal framework applicable to cyberspace in order to promote cross-border investigations and cooperation agreements between law enforcement authorities and operators, in particular for the purposes of combating child pornography on the internet;

131.  Calls for more effective and results-oriented policies to further implement police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters, by associating Europol and Eurojust more systematically in investigations, particularly in cases of organised crime, fraud, corruption and other serious crimes which gravely endanger the security of the citizens and the financial interests of the EU;

132.  Calls for the annual publication of a comprehensive report on crime in the EU, consolidating reports relating to specific areas such as assessment of the threat of organised crime and the Eurojust annual report, and stresses the need for an interdisciplinary approach and a comprehensive strategy for the prevention of, and fight against, terrorism and cross-border crimes such as trafficking in human beings and cybercrime;

133.  Calls on the Commission and Member States to cooperate closely in order to exchange best practice and lessons learned in the area of counter-radicalisation policies; considers in this regard that local and regional authorities are well placed to share best practice in tackling radicalisation and polarisation and therefore calls for their involvement in devising counter-terrorism strategies;

134.  Calls for the encouragement of police cooperation between Member States through the promotion of mutual knowledge and trust, common training and the creation of joint teams of police cooperation and of a student exchange programme in cooperation with the European Police College;

135.  Calls on the Commission and the European Council to urgently remedy the legal situation that has arisen as a result of the rulings of the Court of Justice in the respective cases with regard to blacklisting, in particular the Kadi case(12), and in doing so to take full account of the fundamental rights of those concerned, including the right to due process and redress;

136.  Calls for enhancement of the ECRIS, in order to make it possible to prevent reoffending in different Member States, in particular with regard to offences against children;

137.  Calls in particular on the Commission to begin early discussions and consultations with interested stakeholders, including civil society, on all aspects related to the creation of the European Prosecutor's Office for combating crimes affecting the financial interests of the Union, as provided for in Article 86 of the TFEU;

138.  Emphasises the need for the development of a comprehensive European security strategy, based on the Member States' security plans, a stronger solidarity principle and an objective evaluation of the added value of the EU agencies, networks and information exchanges; intends to follow closely, together with national parliaments, all the activities carried out by the Council in the context of operational cooperation on EU internal security;

139.  Urges the Council and the Commission to develop security strategies that cater for both the internal and the external aspects of international organised crime and terrorism; insists that the EU adopt a more integrated approach to European Security and Defence Policy and to justice and home affairs;

140.  Calls on the Council, the Commission and Member States to evaluate and review current international, European and national laws and policies on drugs and to promote harm reduction, prevention and recovery policies, notably with a view to the conferences on those issues held at UN level;

Operational bodies and agencies and technical tools

141.  Attaches great importance to strengthening Eurojust and Europol and is committed to participating fully alongside national parliaments in defining, evaluating and controlling their activity, in particular with the aim of exploring the possibilities of making progress on the creation of the office of European Public Prosecutor;

142.  States that efforts to fight financial and economic crime should be continued and even stepped up; states that, in this context, it is particularly important to protect the euro as a symbol of the Union; states that combating counterfeiting and consolidating and strengthening the Pericles Programme should be among the EU's principal aims;

143.  Calls for the revision of Council Framework Decision 2008/977/JHA of 27 November 2008 on the protection of personal data processed in the framework of police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters(13) as well as of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data(14) and Article 13 of Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data(15);

144.  Calls for closer and more in-depth cooperation between national administrations, European agencies and joint operative teams via specialised networks (such as theSIS II, the VIS, the Customs Information System, Eurodac – a system for the comparison of fingerprints for the effective application of the Dublin Convention – and the judicial networks) and for specific cooperation between intelligence and police services at national and European level in the fight against terrorism and organised crime; considers that more effective European police cooperation should be guaranteed among all third countries and Member States of the European Union with appropriate safeguards ensuring an adequate level of protection of personal data;

145.  Deplores the lack of progress in implementing the upgraded SIS II and the new VIS, and urges the Commission and the Member States to ensure that all preparations at their respective levels are reinforced so as to avoid further delays;

146.  Stresses the need to develop efficient, sustainable and secure administrative arrangements for major European IT systems such as SIS II, VIS and Eurodac, thereby ensuring that all the rules applicable to such systems, with regard to purpose and rights of access as well as security and data-protection provisions, are implemented in full; emphasises in this regard that it is essential for the EU to have a comprehensive, uniform set of rules on the protection of personal data;

147.  Recalls that in certain areas the creation of agencies, for instance the FRA, Eurojust, Europol, Frontex and the EASO, has been very useful for the establishment of an AFSJ; considers that, given that Schengen is the core of the AFSJ, it is fundamental and vital to create an European agency for the management of substantial information systems in this area, namely SIS II, VIS and Eurodac, because this is the most reliable solution;

148.  Deplores the fact that the Lisbon Treaty will enter into force without the Council and the Commission having adequately prepared the measures needed for a 'new start' in the AFSJ; points out that, contrary to what has been done in the European Security and Defence Policy area, notably for the External Action Service, no preparatory work has been carried out with a view to implementing the legal bases on transparency (Article 15 TFEU), data protection (Article 16 TFEU) and non-discrimination (Article 18 TFEU), and that the outcome of this situation could be a long period of legal uncertainty which will affect the AFSJ in particular; asks the Commission, in view of the above and with reference to Article 265 of the TFEU, to submit the following under the ordinary legislative procedure before 1 September 2010:

   a framework legislative proposal outlining the involvement of the European Parliament and national parliaments in the evaluation of AFSJ policies and of the agencies involved at European level (including the Schengen authorities, Europol, Eurojust, Frontex and the EASO);
   a revised mandate for the FRA, covering, among other things, judicial and police cooperation in criminal matters;
   a legislative proposal implementing Article 16 of the TFEU and Article 39 of the TEU, in particular as regards the protection of data when security issues are at stake, and, at the same time, broadening the scope of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 as regards data protection by the EU institutions;
   a revised legal framework for Europol and Eurojust, to bring them into line with the new EU legal framework;

Urgent matters

149.  Calls on the Commission to propose forthwith a consolidation of the 1 200 divers measures adopted in the AFSJ since 1993 in order to bring coherence in this policy area, whilst taking account of the Union's new missions and roles as well as of the new legal framework offered by the Treaty of Lisbon, starting with areas considered as priorities in agreement with the European Parliament; reminds the Commission that Parliament will assess its commitments on this during the forthcoming Commissioner hearings; asks the Commission therefore to state clearly, on a case-by-case basis, which proposals it intends to codify or recast, and reserves the right to make full use of its power to amend legislation; considers that the new AFSJ legal framework should be given priority over the need for continuity or consolidation of legislation that was shaped in a substantially different constitutional framework;

150.  Stresses that, in particular for AFSJ-related legislative proposals, the decision-making process should, from the first day after the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, be transparent and in keeping with the rules dealing with

   the eight-week period during which the national parliaments may verify compliance with the criterion of subsidiarity,
   the specific opt-ins/opt-outs granted to some countries (the United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark),
   and the new delegated power (Article 290 TFEU) and the implementing measures that are provided for in Article 291 TFEU, but for which there is currently no legal basis;
  

is of the opinion that, in cases where a legislative procedure has started under the provisions of the Treaty of Nice providing for mere consultation of Parliament, as is the case in many areas of the AFSJ, and Parliament's opinion has been delivered, the legislative procedure should recommence under the Treaty of Lisbon at first reading in order to give Parliament the opportunity to express its views in awareness of its prerogatives;

151.  Stresses that, contrary to what was stated in the Presidency's draft Stockholm programme, when fundamental rights are at stake EU external policy should comply with the EU's internal legal framework and not the reverse; asks to be informed immediately of planned or pending negotiations on international agreements with a bearing on the AFSJ, in particular those founded on Articles 24 and 38 of the current EU Treaty; considers that special priority should be given to formulating, before the next EU-US summit, a coherent common strategy for future relations with the USA in connection with the AFSJ, in particular as regards the conclusion of the following pending agreements:

   the former 'Community track' of the ESTA visa waiver agreement,
   the EU-US passenger name records agreement,
   the EU-US agreement on access to financial data (SWIFT), with due reference to the EU-US agreements on mutual legal assistance and on extradition,
   the EU-US framework for protecting data exchanged for security purposes;

152.  Calls on the Commission to simplify the financial programmes established to support the creation of the AFSJ and to make them more accessible; in this context, underlines the need for financial solidarity in the preparation of new financial perspectives;

153.  Reserves the right to come back with specific proposals when it is consulted on the legislative action programme;

154.  Calls for a mid-term review and evaluation of the Stockholm programme by early 2012;

o
o   o

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

(1) OJ C 267, 14.10.1991, p. 33.
(2) OJ C 273 E, 14.11.2003, p. 99.
(3) Texts adopted, P6_TA(2008)0352.
(4) Texts adopted, P6_TA(2009)0386.
(5) Subject to Article 10 of Protocol 36 on transitional provisions and to Article 276 of the TFEU.
(6) OJ L 328, 6.12.2008, p. 55.
(7) OJ L 158, 30.4.2004, p. 77.
(8) Regulation (EC) No 864/2007 of the European Parliament and the Council of 11 July 2007 on the law applicable to non-contractual obligations (Rome II) (OJ L 199, 31.7.2007, p. 40).
(9) Council Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 of 22 December 2000 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (OJ L 12, 16.1.2001, p. 1).
(10) Council Regulation (EC) No 1206/2001of 28 May 2001 on cooperation between the courts of the Member States in the taking of evidence in civil or commercial matters (OJ L 174, 27.6.2001, p.1).
(11) OJ L 327, 5.12.2008, p. 27.
(12) Joined cases C-402/05 P and C-415/05 P,Kadi v Council and Commission [2008] ECR I-6351.
(13) OJ L 350, 30.12.2008, p. 60.
(14) OJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1.
(15) OJ L 281, 23.11.1995, p. 31.


Euro-Mediterranean economic and trade partnership
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European Parliament resolution of 25 November 2009 on the Euro-Mediterranean economic and trade partnership ahead of the 8th Euromed Ministerial Conference on Trade – Brussels – 9 December 2009
P7_TA(2009)0091RC-B7-0147/2009

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the Barcelona Declaration, adopted at the first Euromed Ministerial Conference held on 27-28 November 1995, which established a partnership between the European Union and the southern and eastern Mediterranean countries (SEMCs),

–   having regard to the Commission's Communication of 11 March 2003 entitled "Wider Europe – Neighbourhood: A New Framework for Relations with our Eastern and Southern Neighbours" (COM(2003)0104); to its European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) strategy paper of 12 May 2004 (COM(2004)0373); to its Communication of 9 December 2004 on its proposals for action plans under the ENP (COM(2004)0795); to the action plans for Israel, Jordan, Morocco, the Palestinian Authority, Tunisia and Lebanon, and to Regulation (EC) No 1638/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 2006 laying down general provisions establishing a European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument(1),

–   having regard to the Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreements between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and Tunisia(2), Israel(3), Morocco(4), Jordan(5), Egypt(6), Lebanon(7) and Algeria(8), of the other part, and the Euro-Mediterranean Interim Association Agreement on Trade and Cooperation between the Communities and the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) (for the benefit of the Palestinian Authority)(9);

–   having regard to Decision No 1/95 of the EC-Turkey Association Council of 22 December 1995 on implementing the final phase of the Customs Union(10),

–   having regard to the free trade agreement, known as the Agadir Agreement, signed by Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco on 25 February 2004,

–   having regard to the conclusions of the Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conferences and Sectoral Ministerial Conferences that have taken place since the launch of the Barcelona Process, and particularly the conclusions of the 6th Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conference on Trade held in Lisbon on 21 October 2007 and the 7th Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conference on Trade held in Marseilles on 2 July 2008,

–   having regard to the Paris Summit for the Mediterranean of Euro-Mediterranean Heads of State and Government of 13 July 2008 which created the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM),

–   having regard to the sustainability impact assessment (SIA) of the Euro-Mediterranean Free Trade Area (FTA) drawn up by Manchester University's Institute for Development Policy and Management,

–   having regard to the final declaration of the Euromed Summit of Economic and Social Councils and Similar Institutions held in Alexandria on 18 and 19 October 2009,

   having regard to the meeting of Euro-Mediterranean Trade Senior Officials held on 11 November 2009 in Brussels,

–   having regard to its previous resolutions on the EU's Mediterranean policy, in particular that of 15 March 2007 on the construction of the Euro-Mediterranean free trade zone(11) and that of 19 February 2009 on the Barcelona Process: Union for the Mediterranean(12),

–   having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.   whereas the 1995 Barcelona Conference launched a very ambitious project, namely the creation of new and closer political, economic, social and cultural ties between the northern and southern shores of the Mediterranean, and whereas that project is still a long way from completion,

B.   whereas the process of establishing the UfM, which is intended to revitalise the Euro-Mediterranean integration process by means of concrete and visible projects, is still under way; whereas no Euromed meetings were scheduled between January and July 2009 because of the conflict in the Gaza Strip,

C.   whereas the meeting of Euromed Foreign Affairs Ministers which was to have been held in Istanbul on 24-25 November 2009 has had to be postponed owing to a boycott by the Arab States, in protest against the Israeli position on the Middle East peace process,

D.   whereas the EU has signed association agreements with all its southern Mediterranean partners, with the exception of Syria and Libya; whereas the negotiations with Syria for an association agreement have been concluded, but its signing was postponed by Syria, and whereas the Commission has opened negotiations with Libya,

E.   whereas the bilateral approach, which is a component of any such process and a consequence of the specific cultural, social, economic and political differences between the countries involved, should be led and supported by a more global vision and plan for relations among the various partners, and thus accompanied by a regional approach,

F.   whereas the two shores of the Mediterranean continue to present a strikingly asymmetrical picture in economic, social and demographic terms, evidencing a wealth gap which is at the roots of instability and migratory and environmental pressures in the region; whereas there are significant differences between the Mediterranean countries in terms of development; and whereas more than 30% of the population in the SEMCs lives on less than USD 2 a day,

G.   whereas the economies of the SEMCs are highly dependent on foreign trade; whereas around 50% of their trade flows are to the EU, although they account for only 8% of the EU's external trade, with a positive balance for the EU; and whereas the export structures of the SEMCs are very poorly diversified and these countries remain specialised in sectors which bring little in the way of growth,

H.   whereas the EU is the major foreign investor in the region but foreign direct investments (FDIs) remain very low there compared to other parts of the world, and whereas there are great differences, from one country to another, in the capacity to attract FDIs,

I.   whereas South-South regional integration is far from being achieved, and whereas South-South trade flows are underdeveloped, accounting for only 6% of the SEMCs" total trade,

J.   whereas this situation could have very harmful effects on the Euro-Mediterranean integration process, and on the food security and sovereignty of the SEMCs in particular, by exacerbating the effects of trade concentration, such as increasing dependence on a few – mainly agricultural – items exported to the EU while in parallel increasing the need for basic food imports, and therefore not benefitting the SEMCs and their enterprises,

K.   whereas the SEMCs must remove the political and economic obstacles which are currently standing in the way of the integration process throughout the area in order to achieve more fruitful collaboration amongst themselves,

L.   whereas textiles, clothing and footwear producers on the two shores of the Mediterranean are losing much of their market shares owing to a globalised marketplace and strong competition from Asia,

M.   whereas the FTA, if it is to have real positive effects, should boost the integration of the SEMCs into international trade and ensure their economic diversification, with fair sharing of the resultant benefits, in order to achieve the main objective of the Euro-Mediterranean economic and trade partnership, namely the reduction of the development gap between the northern and southern shores of the Mediterranean,

N.   whereas the effects of the economic and financial crisis have aggravated the already existing political, economic and social challenges in the partner countries, particularly in relation to the problem of unemployment; whereas it is in the common interest of those countries and the EU to bring down unemployment rates in the region and to offer decent prospects to the populations concerned, particularly women, young people and the rural population,

1.  While acknowledging certain improvements, deplores the fact that the Euro-Mediterranean partnership's main objectives are still far from being achieved; stresses that the success of this process, and of the FTA in particular, which could contribute to peace, prosperity and security in the entire region, requires a sustained and convergent effort from all parties and greater involvement of civil society and of the people on both shores of the Mediterranean;

2.  Considers that numerous difficulties, not only economic but also political, such as the Middle East conflict, have had a considerable negative impact on the progress and development of this process, and of the FTA in particular; deplores the fact that for these same political reasons, the ministerial meeting of Euromed Foreign Affairs Ministers which was to have been held on 24-25 November 2009 in Istanbul was postponed and the UfM is not moving forward;

3.  Recalls the definition in the UfM of significant projects in strategic sectors, such as the building up of new infrastructures, cooperation between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), communications and the exploitation of renewable energy sources, in order to contribute to the development and to the facilitation of Euro-Mediterranean trade and investments; calls for meetings scheduled within the UfM framework to continue to be held and for a permanent secretariat to be established in Barcelona;

4.  Regards the current obstacles as an indication that the deepening of economic relations must progress hand-in-hand with a deepening of political relations; believes that genuine regional and economic integration can be achieved only if concrete progress is made in settling existing conflicts and in the field of democracy and human rights;

5.  Calls on the Commission, the Member States and the SEMCs to take into account the effects of the financial, economic and environmental crisis by incorporating social and environmental concerns into the economic and trade partnership to a greater extent; calls on the governments of the SEMCs to implement consistent and effective employment and social protection policies in order to mitigate the effects of the crisis;

6.  Points out in this regard that the objective of the FTA cannot be measured simply in terms of economic growth, but also, and above all, in terms of job creation; points out that youth and female unemployment is the most pressing social issue in the Mediterranean countries;

7.  Underlines the importance of the regional integration of the SEMCs and of increasing South-South trade; regrets that South-South cooperation is still under-developed;

8.  Strongly encourages the SEMCs to develop South-South trade, taking their lead from the Agadir Agreement signed by Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia; regards this measure as essential to regional integration; calls on the other countries in the region to join that agreement to further develop the integration initiatives in which the SEMCs are engaged and to exploit synergies with the deepening of the Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreements between SEMCs and the EU; stresses that the EU institutions must respond positively to requests for technical and financial support to promote such South-South economic integration;

9.  Considers that the cumulation of origin system should be strengthened, since it is a useful customs tool for revitalising trade in the area, and that rules of origin should be updated and simplified in order to take account of the interests of the Euromed partners; calls on the Euro-Mediterranean trade ministers to endorse the regional convention on the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean system of rules of origin, which paves the way for simplification of rules of origin, and to take further steps towards implementing the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean cumulation of origin system;

10.  Notes that Euro-Mediterranean trade ministers are due to discuss measures to address the current weakness of Euromed trade and economic relations, a new Euro-Mediterranean Trade Road Map and a new mechanism for facilitating trade and investment in the region; welcomes all common initiatives to revisit the existing association agreements in the light of new economic requirements and challenges;

11.  Stresses that these discussions must take place in a context of mutual trust and respect between partners in order to ensure the right of the SEMCs to control the speed with which they open up their trade and to control their national strategies for economic and social development; recalls that negotiations on the FTA should be planned on a concerted, gradual basis in the context of a rational, predictable partnership reflecting the socio-economic realities of the SEMCs;

12.  Stresses that any further liberalisation in the field of agriculture and fisheries should take into account the need to protect sensitive goods while assessing systematically the social impact of liberalisation processes and plant health standards; calls on Euromed trade ministers to ensure that this process is gradual, bearing in mind the time needed to implement equitable tax reforms designed to offset the reduction in customs-related fiscal revenues; calls on the Euro-Mediterranean partners to consider the concept of an integrated Euro-Mediterranean agricultural policy founded on supply-chain complementarity and on a viable water policy and prioritising food-sovereignty needs over commercial considerations;

13.  Regards the services sector as essential for the SEMCs" development; believes that any liberalisation of services should take place on a basis agreed with the SEMCs, whereby they would have the right to phase in and control the opening-up of sensitive and vulnerable sectors of their economies; considers that a distinction must be made between commercial services and public services;

14.  Calls for the timetable for liberalisation of the industrial sector to be adjusted on the basis of the economic and social conditions in each country, including the level of unemployment and its impact on the environment; stresses that the economic and trade partnership should promote greater diversification in industrial goods production as well as higher added value; calls on the SEMCs to establish regional policies that take into account the role of very small enterprises and SMEs;

15.  Notes that Euro-Mediterranean textile producers face major difficulties in the context of growing global competition; draws attention to the need to strengthen the North-South partnership, in order to keep Euro-Mediterranean textiles and clothing production and trade competitive, and to promote SEMCs" activities with higher added value, based on creativity and innovation, and not only on business outsourcing;

16.  Stresses the need to foster investment security in the Mediterranean region, through a system which coordinates SME-targeted strategies and covers multiple fields: safeguards, financing, information and networking of SMEs;

17.  Considers that the new proposal to establish a Euro-Mediterranean investment facilitation mechanism is a significant step towards centralising and disseminating information via a single network, which should enable economic operators to gain a comprehensive picture of trade and investment conditions in the region; emphasises that the instrument should complement existing networks;

18.  Draws attention to the need to create a Euro-Mediterranean Investment and Development Bank, which would secure donors from both shores of the Mediterranean and would be able to attract the FDIs which the Euro-Mediterranean region is lacking;

19.  Welcomes the creation of the "Inframed" fund, which was announced within the framework of the UfM, as a long-term investment fund to finance infrastructure projects;

20.  Takes the view that the UfM should step up existing forms of cooperation under Euromed in order to offer all partner countries the chance of participating in the EU's programmes and corresponding policies on the basis of priorities and objectives set by mutual agreement; points out that it is important to extend the scope of Community programmes further to encompass participation by partner countries, particularly in the fields of cross-border cooperation (InterReg), education, research and professional training (student exchanges, etc.);

21.  Encourages the use of solar and wind energy in the Mediterranean region; welcomes recent initiatives such as the "Plan Solaire" and the initial ideas under the Desertec Industrial Initiative to develop the vast potential for solar energy in the Middle East and north Africa, but regrets that actions are still conceived too much on a national basis; stresses that EU action in relation to the Desertec project must be coherent and make an active contribution to the endogenous development of North African and Middle Eastern countries and calls on the Commission to coordinate the EU's efforts pro-actively;

22.  Notes with concern the conclusions of the SIA; calls on the Commission to systematically follow the recommendations of the SIA with regard to the social and environmental impact of the liberalisation process in order to take account of the dimensions of social cohesion and sustainable development; stresses, furthermore, that this impact may vary significantly from one sector to another and from one country to another; underlines, with a view to achieving real social progress, the importance of promoting, within the economic and trade partnership, decent work and codes of conduct negotiated with multinationals which incorporate the objectives of providing decent employment;

23.  Takes the view that the FTA should be complemented by the phased introduction, subject to conditions, of free movement for workers, while taking account of the situation on the European employment market and current thinking in the international community on the links between migration and development; regards it as a matter of urgency to establish legal and administrative procedures to facilitate the granting of visas, in particular for the stakeholders in the Euro-Mediterranean partnership, students, university staff and socio-economic players; stresses that it is important and necessary to reduce the cost of transfers of remittances by migrant workers so as to maximise their use in the local economy;

24.  Asks the Commission to keep it fully informed about progress on the association agreement with Syria, the signing of which was recently postponed by Syria; considers that there are some concerns, such as bringing Libya back into negotiations for an association agreement and, more generally, into the UfM; asks the Commission to keep it fully informed and involved and to consult it at every stage in the negotiations;

25.  Notes, too, that several Mediterranean countries have expressed interest in deepening and/or widening their trade agreements with the EU, and asks the Commission, in view of the new powers in relation to trade conferred on Parliament by the Treaty of Lisbon, to take an earlier resolution by Parliament into account when negotiating these new agreements;

26.  Stresses that bilateral approaches should not be at the expense of a multilateral regional approach; believes that, while advocating closer cooperation with the most advanced partners, and with due regard for their specific political, cultural and social characteristics, the Commission must maintain the principle of region-to-region negotiations;

27.  Stresses that, in view of the Palestinian situation, specific and special measures should be taken to assist the population with a view to integrating this area into Mediterranean trade flows; in that respect, considers that a solution should be found to address the issue of certification of origin and subsequent preferential treatment under the EC-Israel Association Agreement applicable to goods coming from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank;

28.  Considers that a balanced Road Map based on a broad consensus and, inter-alia, a positive social and environmental impact assessment, could be a useful instrument for relaunching economic and trade cooperation in coming years; calls, therefore, on the Euro-Mediterranean Trade Ministers to endorse it at their ministerial meeting in December 2009; calls on the Euro-Mediterranean Trade Senior Officials to monitor the implementation of the Road Map in the coming years and propose any necessary adjustments, and asks to be kept informed of such measures;

29.  Stresses that the process of Euro-Mediterranean integration must, once again, become a political priority for the EU;

30.  Stresses the role of the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly (EMPA) within the partnership, as the democratic body bringing together parliamentarians from both shores of the Mediterranean around the three pillars of the Barcelona Process; calls, finally, for stronger cooperation on economic affairs between the EMPA and the Commission and Council;

31.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission, to the Heads of State and Government, to the Parliaments of the Member States and of the SEMCs and to the EMPA.

(1) OJ L 310, 9.11.2006, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 97, 30.3.1998, p. 2.
(3) OJ L 147, 21.6.2000, p. 3.
(4) OJ L 70, 18.3.2000, p. 2.
(5) OJ L 129, 15.5.2002, p. 3.
(6) OJ L 304, 30.9.2004, p. 39.
(7) OJ L 143, 30.5.2006, p. 2.
(8) OJ L 265, 10.10.2005, p. 2.
(9) OJ L 187, 16.7.1997, p. 3.
(10) OJ L 35, 13.2.1996, p. 1.
(11) OJ C 301 E, 13.12.2007, p. 210.
(12) Texts adopted, P6_TA(2009)0077.


Passenger compensation in the event of airline bankruptcy
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European Parliament resolution of 25 November 2009 on passenger compensation in the event of airline bankruptcy
P7_TA(2009)0092B7-0153/2009

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the question of 15 October 2009 to the Commission on passenger compensation in the event of airline bankruptcy (O-0089/09 – B7-0210/2009),

–   having regard to Council Directive 90/314/EEC of 13 June 1990 on package travel, package holidays and package tours(1),

–   having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2027/97 of 9 October 1997 on air carrier liability in respect of the carriage of passengers and their baggage by air(2),

–   having regard to Regulation (EC) No 785/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 on insurance requirements for air carriers and aircraft operators(3),

–   having regard to Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 February 2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights(4),

–   having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 September 2008 on common rules for the operation of air services in the Community(5),

–   having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.   whereas Directive 90/314/EEC (the Travel Package Directive) regulates aspects of the package holiday business and provides for appropriate compensation to, and repatriation, of consumers in the event of the bankruptcy of package holiday firms,

B.   whereas Regulation (EC) No 2027/97 establishes the nature of air carriers' liability in the event of accidents and compensation arrangements for passengers,

C.   whereas Regulation (EC) No 785/2004 lays down the insurance requirements air carriers and aircraft operators must meet,

D.   whereas Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 provides for compensation for and assistance to passengers who are denied boarding or whose flights are subject to cancellation or long delay,

E.   whereas Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 establishes stringent financial rules for aircraft operators,

F.   whereas there has been substantial growth in the last decade in the number of relatively small low-cost carriers flying to well-known holiday destinations and the number of passengers they carry,

G.   whereas there have been 77 bankruptcies in the aviation sector in the last nine years, resulting in some instances in many thousands of passengers being stranded at their destinations and unable to use the return portion of their flight ticket,

1.  Notes that the Commission has undertaken a wide-ranging consultation of stakeholders on the question of airline bankruptcy;

2.  Recalls that the Commission undertook a major study of the difficulties surrounding airline bankruptcy and its impact on passengers and forwarded its findings to Parliament in February 2009;

3.  Notes the findings of that study and the range of options which it examines;

4.  Recalls in this regard that there are a number of options which the Commission could pursue to strengthen the position of passengers of bankrupt airlines, including compulsory insurance for airlines, a voluntary insurance arrangement for passengers which airlines would be required to propose, and the establishment of a guarantee fund;

5.  Calls on the Commission to examine the possibility of a legislative proposal which has as its specific objective the provision of compensation for passengers of airlines which go bankrupt and which establishes financial and administrative arrangements, including the principle of collective responsibility, whereby all airlines flying the same route with available seats would ensure repatriation for passengers who are stranded at non-home airports in the event of airline bankruptcy, and, if it considers it appropriate, to submit such a legislative proposal by 1 July 2010; asks the Commission to propose, when reviewing the Travel Package Directive, an extension for repatriation or re-routing for the passengers concerned;

6.  Calls on the Commission to consider the possibility of extending such measures to airlines which have ceased operations and caused passengers similar inconvenience to that caused by airlines which go into bankruptcy;

7.  Calls on the Commission to investigate the quick release of impounded aircraft by national regulatory bodies so that those aircraft can be used to bring stranded people home;

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

(1) OJ L 158, 23.6.1990, p. 59.
(2) OJ L 285, 17.10.1997, p. 1.
(3) OJ L 138, 30.4.2004, p. 1.
(4) OJ L 46, 17.2.2004, p. 1.
(5) OJ L 293, 31.10.2008, p. 3.


Origin marking
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European Parliament resolution of 25 November 2009 on origin marking
P7_TA(2009)0093RC-B7-0142/2009

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 980/2005 of 27 June 2005 applying a scheme of generalised tariff preferences(1),

–   having regard to Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market(2),

–   having regard to Article IX and Article XXIV:5 of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT 1994),

–   having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 of 12 October 1992 establishing the Community Customs Code(3) and Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 of 2 July 1993 laying down provisions for the implementation of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92(4), which set out the Community's non-preferential rules of origin system,

–   having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 918/83 of 28 March 1983 setting up a Community system of reliefs from customs duty(5),

–   having regard to its resolution of 5 February 2009 on enhancing the role of European SMEs in international trade(6),

–   having regard to its resolution of 6 July 2006 on origin marking(7),

–   having regard to its declaration on origin marking(8),

–   having regard to the Commission proposal of 16 December 2005 for a Council regulation on the indication of the country of origin of certain products imported from third countries (COM(2005)0661),

–   having regard to Rule 110(4) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.   whereas, at present, the EU does not have any harmonised provisions or uniform practices on origin marking in the EU; whereas disparities between regulations in force in the Member States as well as the absence of clear Community rules in this area are resulting in a fragmented legal framework,

B.   whereas national measures imposing compulsory origin marking on goods imported from other Member States are prohibited, while there is no such limitation on compulsory origin marking on goods imported from third countries,

C.   whereas a number of the EU's major trading partners, such as the United States, China, Japan and Canada, have enacted mandatory origin-marking requirements,

D.   whereas, in the Lisbon Agenda, the EU set itself the objective of strengthening its economy by, inter alia, improving the competitiveness of its industry in the world economy; whereas competition can be considered fair when it operates with clear rules for producers as well as for exporters and importers and when it is built on common social and environmental assumptions and values,

E.   whereas an origin marking scheme would have the aim of allowing consumers to be fully aware of the country of origin of the products they purchase; whereas consumers would thus be able to identify those products with the social, environmental and safety standards generally associated with that country,

F.   whereas the proposal to introduce a mandatory country of origin marking system in the EU is restricted to a limited number of imported products, such as textiles, jewellery, apparel, footwear, furniture, leather, lamps and light fittings, glassware, ceramics and handbags, for which the 'made in' requirement provides valuable information for final consumer choice,

G.   whereas it is crucial to ensure a level playing field with producers of those major partners of the European Union which have implemented origin marking,

H.   whereas the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon on 1 December 2009 will put Parliament and the Council on an equal footing regarding the common commercial policy; whereas under Article 207 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union the ordinary legislative procedure will apply to future regulation on origin marking,

1.  Reiterates that consumer protection requires transparent and consistent trade rules, including indications of origin;

2.  Calls on the Commission and the Council to take all necessary steps to ensure a level playing field with trading partners which have enacted origin-marking requirements;

3.  Calls on the Commission and the Council to set up proper customs surveillance and enforcement mechanisms;

4.  Urges Member States to maintain a consistent Community approach to this issue so as to enable consumers to receive more complete and accurate information; regards compulsory origin marking as an important step towards more complete information about social and environmental production and processing standards;

5.  Encourages the Commission strongly to intervene, together with the Member States, to defend consumers" legitimate rights and expectations whenever there is evidence of fraudulent or misleading origin marking by importers and third country producers;

6.  Considers the above-mentioned proposal for a Council regulation introducing compulsory indications of the country of origin of certain products imported from third countries into the European Union useful in reaching the objective of transparency and appropriate information for the consumer as well as consistency in international trade rules;

7.  Considers that, from 1 December 2009, in the context of the ordinary legislative procedure introduced by the Treaty of Lisbon, consultation and exchanges of views between Parliament and the Council should formally start and that any further delay would seriously damage citizens" rights, employment in the EU and the principle of free and fair trade;

8.  Calls on the Commission to maintain its proposal unchanged and resubmit it to Parliament in accordance with Article 207 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union immediately after the Treaty of Lisbon enters into force;

9.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission.

(1) OJ L 169, 30.6.2005, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 149, 11.6.2005, p. 22.
(3) OJ L 302, 19.10.1992, p. 1.
(4) OJ L 253, 11.10.1993, p. 1.
(5) OJ L 105, 23.4.1983, p. 1.
(6) Texts adopted, P6_TA(2009)0048.
(7) OJ C 303 E, 13.12.2006, p. 881.
(8) OJ C 323 E, 18.12.2008, p. 140.

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