47 Amendments of Marco ZANNI related to 2015/2285(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Deplores the fact that the European Semester has little in the way of a parliamentary dimension and is of questionable value and that the proposals in the Five Presidents’ Report are lacking in ambition on that point; considers it disappointtotally inadequate, being rooted as they are ing that the first annual growth survey following that report has not been so produced as to be subject to the ordinary legislative procedure, as Parliament is calling fore dogma of fiscal consolidation and the irreversibility of the single currency;
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 1
Citation 1
– having regard to the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), and in particular Articles 121(2), 136 and 148 thereof,;
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Takes the view that the EU has no economic policy other than the sum of national policies; deplores the fact that there is no lever available – given the modest scale of the European budget – andis incapable of establishing an effective common economic policy in view of the enormous economic, social and political disparities between the Member States; stresses, furthermore, that economic forecasts, economic policy priorities, and the budget-making process do not stand in any form of coherent relationship, including at European level;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Points ouDraws attention to the fact that the European budget helps directly to achieveshould help two out of the three objectives charted in the Annual Growth Survey 2016 (relaunching investment, pursuing structural reforms, and implementing responsible fiscal polfoster growth and development; criticises); welcomes, therefore, the Commission’s proposal to channel European funding towards technical assistance to support structural reforms, which, wherever they have been implemented in accordance with the Troika's guidelines, have resulted in a sharp downturn in economic and social indicators;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Considers that the European budget could relieve the strain on national budgets and bolster fiscal consolidation efforts by providing own resources as well as rationalising expenditure; firmly believes that wider ranging management of public money at EU level would make it possible to achieve economies of scale and hence cut spending, especially in the diplomatic and military fieldshelp to rationalise expenditure if it focuses on specific shared priorities; firmly believes that economic recovery in Europe is to be achieved through greater public investment at national level, free of the fiscal consolidation constraints imposed by the EU;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Urges that thean immediate review of euro area havgovernance wits own budget in order to counteract asymmetric shocks and reward reform efforts; believes the European Stability Mechanism to be a prototype of such a tool; calls for budgetary policy and monetary policy to be brought into a policy mixh a view to making it possible for Member States to leave the single currency in order to boost growth and job creation.
Amendment 22 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas economic recovery in the European Union is under way but remains remains weak and uneven between and within Member States and is plartgely driven by temporary and external factors;
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas global economic growth is slowing down and new strategic challenges are arising, which raises questions about the sustainability of the export-led growth model promoted by the Commission and of the Euro area itself;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas the euro area’s current account surplus continues to rise, while Europe still faces an important investment gapreflecting a strong decline in investment and persisting macroeconomic imbalances within the euro area;
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas the employment rate is improving but not enoughstill insufficient to significantly curb unemployment and poverty;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas the single currency has had the effect of exacerbating divergences and imbalances between deficit and surplus countries, which reflects the fact that it is structurally impossible for the single currency to ensure real convergence and cohesion within a currency area that is very far from optimal;
Amendment 57 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D b (new)
Recital D b (new)
Db. whereas the implementation of fiscal consolidation policies have resulted in a significant deterioration of public services and social protection, which led to increasing levels of absolute poverty and socio-economic inequalities;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D c (new)
Recital D c (new)
Dc. whereas tax avoidance, tax evasion and aggressive tax planning have caused billions of losses in potential revenues to the public finances of several Member States, to the benefit of large corporations, thus undermining the basis for solidarity between countries and fair competition between enterprises;
Amendment 59 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D d (new)
Recital D d (new)
Dd. whereas recent empirical studies found that structural reforms pursuing labour market liberalization do not have a statistically significant impact on output growth, unlike investments in R&D and innovation, which generate the highest productivity gains;
Amendment 60 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D e (new)
Recital D e (new)
De. whereas empirical evidence shows that financial sector expansion in developed countries inhibits economic growth and increases income inequalities, as reported in several studies conducted by international organisations, including IMF, BIS, OECD;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. WelcomeStrongly regrets the 2016 Annual Growth Survey package and considers the proposed policy mix of investment, structural reform and fiscal responsibility, with increased emphasis on domestic demand and convergence, complementing accommodative monetary po as a reiteration of the same old strategy prescribed in all previous Annual Growth Surveys, which failed to deliver any meaningful signs of economic recovery, while prolonging the crisis; points out that, despite some emphasis on domestic demand, the overall strategy is based on supply-side policy instruments, which are inadequate to address the real cause of the current lack of growth associated to the lack internal demand and rising inequalicties;
Amendment 80 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. WelcomesConsiders that improvements in public finances, in particular gradually declining debt/GDP ratios; are harmful and unbalanced if achieved through cutting expenditure in essential public services and productive investments;
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes with concern that Europe’s global competitiveness policy remains an important objective, whilefundamentally focused on cost factors, while stressing the fact that the worsening global outlook calls for strengthening domestic sources of growth through strong demand side policies which include large public investments in R&D and innovation;
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls for furtherconcrete efforts to support recovery, foster convergencereduce socio-economic disparities and correct macroeconomic imbalances associated with excessive surpluses, including by channelling excess savings towards the domestic economy and boosting public investment; calls to this end on the Commission to fully apply the excessive imbalance procedure and impose sanctions where necessary;
Amendment 116 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Is encouraged by mildalarmed by the slow and meaningless improvements in labour market indicators, which reflect an increase of temporary and part-time jobs; calls for more effort to reduce poverty, social exclusion and growing inequalitiesective and concrete measures to reduce unemployment, poverty, social exclusion and growing inequalities, through a significant increase in public spending;
Amendment 130 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Urges the Commission to suspend the ongoing negotiations on the TTIP, TISA and other free trade agreements, as they are inconsistent with the strategic goals for inclusive and sustainable growth, and to refrain from granting market economy status to China in consideration of the millions of jobs and hundreds of billions of euros of output that would be put at high risk;
Amendment 132 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Calls forStrongly doubts that the European Fund for Strategic Investments to be used to maximum effect to support higher-risk projects not financed otherwise, and to promote growth, job creation and cohesionis an adequate instrument to support investment and to promote growth, job creation and cohesion; highlights the well-known risks of combining structured finance and high leverage; deplores the large hidden costs for taxpayers associated with the use of public-private partnerships to finance infrastructures and public goods;
Amendment 147 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to use the European Structural and Investment Funds to their full potential, including by removing the link to any form of macroeconomic conditionality; stressed the need to direct funding towards research and development, SMEs and sustainable projects, in the view of creating high quality jobs and promoting sound economic development in the long run;
Amendment 162 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Is aware of the ongoing deleveraging process in the private sector; points to the importance of coimplementing thea banking union and boosting equity investments in SMEsstructural reform based on a clear separation of trading activities from the core credit function, while completing the unfinished reform of the financial sector, in order to channel investments in the real economy and SMEs and prevent disruptive financial crises in the future;
Amendment 176 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Highlights the importance of investments in human capital, research and innovation and other social investments, including a minimum income mechanism at national level; calls to this end for the immediate exemption of public productive investments from budgetary rules;
Amendment 196 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Considers that, after a long and painful period of nominal adjustment, focus should be put on structural reforms and investments aimed at it should be clear that the consolidation of the economic and monetary union, driven by current austerity policies and neoliberal structural reforms will significantly erode economic growth potential in the EU; stresses the importance of reaching a common agreement to abandon the single currency and restorengthening growth potential, promoting fair and sustainabl national economic sovereignty so as to ensure democratic economic policies, thereby allowing Member States to maintain a fair and adequate welfare systems and reducinghigh quality and inclusive public services, in the view of combating unemployment, poverty and social inequalities;
Amendment 213 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Calls for dismissing product and, service and labour market reforms and better regulation, promoin view of the insignificant and counterproductive impact on economic growth and focusing instead on the stronger role of strategic public investments in supporting innovation and quality-based competition;
Amendment 237 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Urges that further steps be taken towards resilient labour markets with reduced segmentation and sustainable welfare systems with increased focus on social investmentenhancing quality employment and ensuring adequate welfare systems with increased focus on social investment and income support mechanisms to fight poverty and social exclusion;
Amendment 252 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Emphasises the need for modern, efficient anda democratic citizen-friendly public administration;
Amendment 262 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Calls for a greater shift of taxation away from labour towards taxation on multinational companies by ending corporate tax avoidance, redistributive taxes, and corrective taxation on pollution and financial transactions;
Amendment 269 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Takes note with concern of the proposal for a Structural Reform Support Programme, to be discussed under the ordinary legislative procedure, which aims at ensuring the implementation of austerity and neoliberal policies outside any democratic control by enhancing the technocratic and undemocratic character of EU economic governance;
Amendment 273 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
17a. Is concerned with the Capital Market Union project pursued by the Commission with the aim of further developing capital markets; points out that further financial expansion adversely affects real economic growth, while increasing the instability and systemic risk in the financial sector;
Amendment 281 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Reiterates the need for responsible fiscal policies, taking into account debt sustainability, the economic cycle and investment gapStrongly regrets the continuous focus on the fiscal responsibility in order to comply with the conditions of the Stability and Growth Pact, taking into account its deflationary and adverse effects on the European economies;
Amendment 300 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Insists on implementation of the Stability and Growth Pact, while making use of available fiscal space, inter alia, to deal withthe radical revision of the Treaties, the Stability and Growth Pact, and the Six-Pack and Two-Pack, as well as the repeal of the Fiscal Compact, in the view of removing existing constraints on Member States' ability to make full use of the fiscal policy tool and allowing countries to opt out from the euro zone following a democratic vote; invokes for immediate exemption from existing budgetary rules of necessary public expenditures to deal with unsustainable levels of unemployment, absolute poverty and inequalities, as well as with emerging security threats and refugee inflows;
Amendment 308 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Emphasises the need for improvreinforced tax cpollection, fightingicy coordination in the fight against tax fraud, tax evasion and, tax avoidance, and improggressived tax policy coordinationlanning and tax havens;
Amendment 336 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. WelcomesNotes with concern that the recommendation on the economic policy of the euro area as a way to further deepen policy coordination in the follow-up to the Five Presidents’ Report; are still based on the dogma of fiscal consolidation, the irreversibility of the single currency, and neoliberal policy prescriptions which clearly failed to support economic growth, employment and convergence in the euro area, thereby prolonging the never-ending economic and social crisis and accelerating the disintegration of the EU;
Amendment 356 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 a (new)
Paragraph 23 a (new)
23a. Stresses that the single currency has an asymmetric and destructive impact on weaker economies, which are forced to undertake a painful adjustment of internal devaluation due to a currency that is overvalued with respect to their economies, while letting stronger euro area Members States exploit an unfair competitive advantage due to an undervalued currency relative to other members, thereby generating intolerable disparities and macroeconomic imbalances in the EU; emphasizes the urgent need for planning an orderly break-up of the monetary union and for immediately providing democratic mechanisms of voluntary withdrawal of a country from the euro area;
Amendment 368 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. WelcomesConsiders that the increased attention to the euro area’s aggregate fiscal stance; calls for greater discussion on whether it can be considered broadly neutral given the large investment gap, which is expected to be broadly neutral in 2016, masks significant divergences and an uneven distribution of fiscal space among euro area countries; emphasises the need for a strong expansionary fiscal policy in both deficit and surplus countries in light of historically low interest rates, the large investment gap and excessive external surplus in the euro area, in order to support economic recovery in deficit countries and correct macroeconomic imbalances in the euro area;
Amendment 379 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25
Paragraph 25
25. Supports the recommendation to differentiate fiscal effort by individual Member States taking into account their respective positions vis-à-vis Stability and Growth Pact requirements and stabilisation needs, as well as spillover effects; notes that high-surplus countrieHighlights that countries with the largest fiscal multipliers have little fiscal space vis-à-vis Stability and Growth Pact requirements to conduct any meaningful fiscal policy, while high-surplus countries with lower fiscal multipliers have significant fiscal space, which they cshould use to boost demand and ensure wage and price increases to the benefit of their populations and the monetary union as a whole;
Amendment 395 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26
Paragraph 26
26. Agrees that whilePoints out with concern that the euro area’s high current account surplus is a welcome sign of the euro area’s external competitiveness, itreflects persisting and harmful macroeconomic imbalances among creditor and debtor countries within the currency union, rather than being a sign of external competitiveness for the euro area as a whole; highlights that this also implies a significant lack of internal investment and a risk of euro appreciation when monetary poin the private and in the publicy starts to become less accommodativeectors, with adverse effects on growth and employment;
Amendment 406 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27
Paragraph 27
27. Emphasises the need to foster real economic recovery and social convergencwelfare driven by improvements in productivity and non- cost factors; underlines the importance of all Member States having sufficient at existing budgetary rules and the single currency artificially constrain Member States investment capacity, enpreventing their abiling balancedty to achieve a balanced, inclusive and sustainable growth;
Amendment 419 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28
Paragraph 28
28. Recognises the benefits of symmetrical adjustment, where regaining cost competitiveness does not require undergoing deflation which is detrimental to debt sustainability; grets the asymmetrical adjustment process imposed on debtor countries through painful internal devaluation, while creditor countries continued accumulating surpluses through "beggar- thy-neighbours" policies; condemns the arbitrary and ineffective use by the Commission of the macroeconomic imbalance procedure, while highlighting the asymmetric design of the procedure itself which is also evident in the different thresholds set for detecting harmful deficits and surpluses; calls on the Commission to activate the excessive imbalance procedure against excessive current account surpluses;
Amendment 431 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 6
Subheading 6
Amendment 433 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30
Paragraph 30
30. Believes that bettethe poor implementation record of country-specific recommendations requires clearly articulated priorities at European level and genuinflects the inadequateness of the Commission's recipes to the real specific economic and social needs in each country; is of the opinion that improving the public debate at national level, leading toin the attempt to achieve greater relevance and ownership; will not solve the lack of democratic legitimacy which is a structural feature of the current mechanism of macroeconomic coordination in the EU;
Amendment 442 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30 a (new)
Paragraph 30 a (new)
30a. Emphasizes that respecting Member States right to exercise their sovereign control over the monetary and fiscal policies represent the sole way to ensure democratic legitimacy and political accountability in the EU;
Amendment 444 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 31
Paragraph 31
Amendment 450 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 31 a (new)
Paragraph 31 a (new)
31a. Stresses that existing mechanism and instruments of coordination unnecessarily prevent Member States to democratically choose the economic policies they deem necessary and adequate to their specific situation on the basis on arbitrary and ideological assumptions; calls for a radical rethink of the EU economic governance framework based on the full respect of national economic sovereignty; stresses the urgent need to set up a plan for an orderly and coordinated break up of the Eurozone;