(Special legislative procedure – consultation)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to the Council (COM(2015)0646),

–  having regard to Article 113 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament (C8‑0009/2016),

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (A8-0063/2016),

1.  Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

2.  Regrets that the Commission published its proposal so late which means that the application of a minimum standard rate of VAT will be retroactive;

3.  Calls on the Commission to alter its proposal accordingly, in accordance with Article 293(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union;

4.  Calls on the Council to notify Parliament if it intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

5.  Asks the Council to consult Parliament again if it intends to substantially amend the Commission proposal;

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

Text proposed by the Commission   Amendment Amendment 1 Proposal for a directive Article 1 – point 1 Directive 2006/112/EC Article 97 From 1 January 2016 until 31 December 2017, the standard rate may not be lower than 15 %. From 1 January 2016 until 31 December 2018, the standard rate may not be lower than 15%.