24 Amendments of Jérôme LAVRILLEUX related to 2015/0009(COD)
Amendment 21 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 1
Recital 1
(1) The economic and financial crisis has led to a lowering of the level of investments within the Union. Investment has fallen by approximately 15% since its peak in 2007. The Union suffers in particular from a lack of investment as a consequence of market uncertainty regarding the economic future and the fiscal constraints on Member States and territorial entities. This lack of investment slows economic recovery and negatively affects job creation, long-term growth prospects and competitiveness.
Amendment 22 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 1
Recital 1
(1) The economic and financial crisis has led to a lowering of the level of investments within the Union. Investment has fallen by approximately 15% since its peak in 2007. The Union suffers in particular from a lack of investment as a consequence of market uncertainty regarding the economic future and the fiscal constraints on Member States. This lack of investment slows economic recovery and negatively affects job creation, long-term growth prospects, the preservation of social models and competitiveness.
Amendment 32 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 2
Recital 2
(2) Comprehensive action is required to reverse the vicious circle created by a lack of investment. Structural reforms and fiscal responsibility are necessary preconditions for stimulating investment on sound foundations and promoting stable and sustainable growth. Along with a renewed impetus towards investment financing, these preconditions can contribute to establishing a virtuous circle, where investment projects help support employment and demand and lead to a sustained increase in growth potential.
Amendment 44 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 4
Recital 4
(4) Throughout the economic and financial crisis, the Union has made efforts to promote growth, in particular through initiatives set out in the Europe 2020 strategy that put in place an approach for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The European Investment Bank ('EIB') has also strengthened its role in instigating and promoting investment within the Union, partly by way of an increase in capital in January 2013. Further action is required to ensure that the investment needs of the Union are addressed and that the liquidity available on the market is used efficiently and channelled towards the funding of viable and sustainable investment projects having a direct impact on the real economy, growth and employment.
Amendment 69 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) The purpose of the EFSI should be to help resolve the difficulties in financing and implementing productive investments in the Union and to ensure increased access to financing which is simpler, more accessible and more functional. It is intended that increased access to financing should be of particular benefit to small and medium enterprises. It is also appropriate to extend the benefit of such increased access to financing to mid- cap companies, which are companies having up to 3000 employees. Overcoming Europe's current investment difficulties should contribute to strengthening the Union's economic, social and territorial cohesion.
Amendment 70 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) The purpose of the EFSI should be to help resolve the difficulties in financing and implementing productive investments in the Union and to ensure increased access to financing. It is intended that increased access to financing should be of particular benefitbenefit, as a priority, to small and medium enterprises. It is also appropriate to extend the benefit of such increased access to financing to mid- cap companies, which are companies having up to 3000 employees. Overcoming Europe's current investment difficulties should contribute to strengthening the Union's economic, social and territorial cohesion.
Amendment 71 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) The purpose of the EFSI should be to help resolve the difficulties in financing and implementing productive investments in the Union and to ensure increased access to financing. It is intended that increased access to financing should be of particular benefit to small and medium enterprises, which are responsible for more than 80% of job creation in the European Union. It is also appropriate to extend the benefit of such increased access to financing to mid- cap companies, which are companies having up to 3000 employees. Overcoming Europe's current investment difficulties should contribute to strengthening the Union's economic, social and territorial cohesion.
Amendment 82 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 11
Recital 11
(11) The EFSI should support strategic investments with high economic value added contributing to achieving long-term Union policy objectives.
Amendment 91 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 11 a (new)
Recital 11 a (new)
(11a) The EFSI should take into account the territorial dimensions of strategic investments by targeting its action at rebalancing the level of investment between urban and rural areas; in order to ensure better cohesion between territories, the EFSI should promote investments having the potential to achieve this, in particular in suburban areas, which play a key role in coordinating and energising the link between urban and rural areas;
Amendment 102 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14
Recital 14
(14) The EFSI should target projects delivering high societal and economic value having a direct impact on the real economy. In particular, the EFSI should target projects that promote job creation, long- term growth and competitiveness. The EFSI should support a wide range of financial products, including equity, debt or guarantees, to best accommodate the needs of the individual project. This wide range of products should allow the EFSI to adapt to market needs whilst encouraging private investment in the projects. The EFSI should not be a substitute for private market finance but should instead catalyse private finance by addressing market failures so as to ensure the most effective and strategic use of public money. The requirement for consistency with State aid principles should contribute to such effective and strategic use.
Amendment 121 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 15
Recital 15
(15) The EFSI should target projects with a higher risk-return profile than existing EIB and Union instruments to ensure additionality over existing operations. The EFSI should finance projects across the Union, including in the countries most affected by the financial crisis, regions suffering industrial desertification and territories with the poorest social indicators. The EFSI should only be used where financing is not available from other sources on reasonable terms.
Amendment 153 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 18
Recital 18
(18) In order to enable the EFSI to support investments, the Union should grant a guarantee of an minimum amount equal to EUR 16 000 000 000. When provided on a portfolio basis, the guarantee coverage should be capped depending upon the type of instrument, such as debt, equity or guarantees, as a percentage of the volume of the portfolio of outstanding commitments. It is expected that when the guarantee is combined with EUR 5 000 000 000 to be provided by the EIB, that the EFSI support should generate EUR 60 800 000 000 additional investment by the EIB and EIF. This EUR 60 800 000 000 supported by the EFSI is expected to generate a total of EUR 315 000 000 000 in investment in the Union within the period 2015 to 2017. Guarantees that are attached to projects which are completed without a call on a guarantee are available for supporting new operations.
Amendment 156 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 19
Recital 19
(19) In order to allow for further increase in its resources, participation in the EFSI should be open to third parties, including Member States, national promotional and investment banks or public agencies owned or controlled by Member States, private sector entities and entities outside the Union subject to the consent of existing contributors. Third parties may contribute directly to the EFSI and take part in the EFSI governance structure.
Amendment 157 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 19
Recital 19
(19) In order to allow for further increase in its resources, participation in the EFSI should be open to third parties, including Member States, national promotional banks or public agencies owned or controlled by Member States or regional institutions, private sector entities and entities outside the Union subject to the consent of existing contributors. Third parties may contribute directly to the EFSI and take part in the EFSI governance structure.
Amendment 172 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 25
Recital 25
(25) The EIB should regularly evaluate activities supported by the EFSI with a view to assessing their relevance, performance and impact and to identifying aspects that could improve future activities. Such evaluations should contribute to accountability and analysis of sustainability. They should be forwarded in the form of a report to the European Parliament at regular intervals for its opinion.
Amendment 186 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 29
Recital 29
(29) To partially finance the contribution from the Union budget, the available envelopes of the Horizon 2020 – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation 2014-2020, provided by Regulation (EU) No 1291/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council2, and the Connecting Europe Facility, provided by Regulation (EU) No 1316/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council3, should be reduced. Those programmes serve purposes that are not replicated by the EFSI. However, the reduction of both programmes to finance the guarantee fund is expected to ensure a greater investment in certain areas of their respective mandates than is possible through the existing programmes. The EFSI should be able to leverage the EU guarantee to multiply the financial effect within those areas of research, development and innovation and transport, telecommunications and energy infrastructure compared to if the resources had been spent via grants within the planned Horizon 2020 and Connecting Europe Facility programmes. It is, therefore, appropriate to redirect part of the funding presently envisaged for those programmes to the benefit of EFSI, without sacrificing the initial objectives of those programmes. __________________ 2 Regulation (EU) No 1291/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 establishing Horizon 2020 - the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2014-2020) and repealing Decision No 1982/2006/EC (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 104). 3 Regulation (EU) No 1316/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 establishing the Connecting Europe Facility, amending Regulation (EU) No 913/2010 and repealing Regulations (EC) No 680/2007 and (EC) No 67/2010 (OJ L 348, 20.12.2013, p. 129).
Amendment 188 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 31
Recital 31
(31) Within the Union, there are a significant number of potentially viable projects that are not being financed due to a lack of certainty and transparency with respect to such projects. Often, this is because private investors are not aware of the projects or have insufficient information to make an assessment of the investment risks. The Commission and the EIB, with support from the Member States, should promote the creation of a transparent pipeline of current and future investment projects in the Union suitable for investment. This 'project pipeline' should ensure that information is made publicly available regarding investment projects on a regular and structured basis to ensure that investors have reliable and transparent information on which to base their investment decisions.
Amendment 197 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 34
Recital 34
(34) To ensure accountability to European citizens, the EIB should regularly report to the European Parliament and the Council on the progress and impact of the EFSI. To that end the EIB should submit an annual report to the European Parliament and the Council for their opinion.
Amendment 212 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2
The purpose of the EFSI shall be to support investments in the Union and to ensure increased access to financing for companies having up to 3000 employees, with a particular focus on small and medium enterprises, which provide over 80% of jobs in the European Union, through the supply of risk bearing capacity to the EIB ('EFSI Agreement').
Amendment 218 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 2
Article 1 – paragraph 2
2. The EFSI Agreement shall be open to accession by Member States. Subject to the consent of existing contributors, the EFSI Agreement shall also be open to accession by other third parties, including national promotional banks or public agencies owned or controlled by Member States, regional institutions, and private sector entities.
Amendment 224 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
Article 2 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
2. The EFSI Agreement shall provide for the creation of a European Investment Advisory Hub ('EIAH') within the EIB. The EIAH shall have as its objective to build upon existing EIB and Commission advisory services in order to provide advisory support for investment project identification, preparation and development and act as a single technical advisory hub for project financing within the Union. This shall include support on the use of technical assistance for project structuring, use of innovative financial instruments, use of public-private partnerships and advice, as appropriate, on relevant issues of EU legislation. In cooperation with the Commission, it shall introduce an innovatory communications strategy to inform the public of EFSI implementation measures.
Amendment 254 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 3
Article 3 – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 3
The Managing Director and the Deputy Managing Director shall be appointed by the Steering Board on a joint proposal of the Commission and the EIB for a renewable fixed term of three years. For the purposes of monitoring and transparency, they shall be interviewed by the committee responsible of the European Parliament at the beginning of their term and half-way through it.
Amendment 274 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – introductory part
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – introductory part
2. The EU guarantee shall be granted for EIB financing and investment operations approved by the Investment Committee referred to in Article 3(5) or funding to the EIF in order to conduct EIB financing and investment operations in accordance with Article 7(2). The operations concerned shall be consistent with Union policies, seek to ensure sustainability and support anyone of the following general objectives:
Amendment 325 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 9 – paragraph 3 – point 1 (new)
Article 9 – paragraph 3 – point 1 (new)
(1) For the purposes of monitoring and transparency, the Commission, the EIB and the Member States shall seek the opinion of the European Parliament annually regarding the content of the European Investment Project Pipeline .