25 Amendments of Marco ZANNI related to 2016/2323(BUD)
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the important role played by the EU budget in delivering concrete answers to the challenges the EU is facing; stresses that jobs, economic growth, migration, security and tackling populism are the main concerns at EU level and that the EU budget remains part of the solution to these issues; underlines that a strong EU budget will benefit Member States and EU citizens alike; expects that the Commission will put forward a draft 2018 budget that enables the EU to continue to generate prosperity and ensure the safety of its citizensReiterates its concerns on the EU budget's funds and on their role in supplying concrete answers to citizen's needs and to the growing difficulties they are facing, such as unemployment, economic recession, poverty, the migration crisis and the security threats; underlines the need to properly evaluate which funds could be better managed at national level in order to guarantee the full respecting of the subsidiarity principle;
Amendment 47 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Believes that the EU budget must be equipped with the tools to enable it to respond to multiple crises simultaneously; is of the opinion that, while growth and jobs continue to remain the core priorities of the EU budget, obtaining sustainable progress in these fields will not be possible should EU citizens feel unsafe or insecureUnderlines that Europe is facing multiple crises simultaneously; believes that the only way to recover employment and ensure economic growth, is revising the Stability and Growth Pact in order to remove existing constraints on Member States' ability to make full use of all the fiscal policy tools; invokes an immediate exemption from existing budgetary rules of necessary public expenditures to deal with unforeseen natural disaster and unsustainable levels of unemployment, absolute poverty and inequalities, and to cope with emerging security threats and refugee inflows;
Amendment 54 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Underlines that the promises of prosperity, growth and employment that accompanied the introduction of the euro have not been kept; recognises that the European Monetary Union (EMU) established under the Maastricht Treaty is responsible for blocking the development and growth of Member States and this is the reason why they are now experiencing economic recession, poverty, low inflation rates and structurally high unemployment; stresses that recovering the competitiveness of the European economy can only be possible by allowing an opt-out clause for all countries not wishing to be part of the EMU;
Amendment 63 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Underlines that enhancing the competitivenessrecovery of the EU economy is key to ensuring economic growth and job creation; believes that the creation of socially sustainable, well-paid jobs must be one of the main priorities of the EU budget; argues that jobs are created mainly by the private sector, and that adequate budgetary support therefore needs to be devoted to supporting private sector investments; consequently, underlines the importance of Heading 1a, which delivers real added value for European citizens and business, and calls for an increase of its share in the globalshould be one of the main priorities of the EU budget;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Underlines that Institutions and the Union as a whole have not taken into account the devastating effects of their political and economic choices for citizens and SMEs in Europe; stresses that the social situation in the EU resulting from policies to date is disastrous, with no less than 122 million citizens, that is 24, 4% of the population of the European Union, at risk of poverty or social exclusion and almost 10% suffering from serious material deprivation or living in families with a very low work intensity;
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Stresses thate need for Member State to investments in research and innovation represent a pre- condition for achieving genuine competitiveness in the EU; regrets the fact that, as a result of an alarmingly low success rate of applications, fewer high- quality projects in the field of research and innovation are receiving EU funding; calls in this respect for an adequate level of appropriations to be ensured for Horizon 2020as key factor for enhancing their competitiveness; condemns that EU funds are more often invested in low-quality projects and that these wastes of money have a negative impact on Europe as such;
Amendment 89 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Recognises the fact that SMEs remain the backbone of the European economy and will continue to play a decisive role in creating jobs and growth across the EU; calls in this respect for COSME appropriations to be maintained at least at the level approved for 2017, taking into account the success of this programmean satisfactory level;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Strongly supports the further development and enhancement of inter- operability of European infrastructure networks; considers that the financing of the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) is vital to achieving these objectives, and calls on the Commission to ensure an appropriate level of funding in 2018Asks for a revision of the European infrastructure networks privileging those sustainable projects with a real added- value for citizens;
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Underlines the importanat EFSI is not prole and potential of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) in reducing the investment gap in Europe, and recognises the positive results achieved so far; welcomes alsoviding any stimulus to the European economy; regrets that most of the projects proposed are already-planned infrastructure investments, without any real added value; is deeply concerned about the fact that some EFSI projects are not consistent with the concept of "sustainable development" or "social impact", and they don't provide any additionality; rejects the Commission proposal for extending the EFSI until 2020, which will ser and believes to further improve its functioning, especially as regards the additionality principle and the geographical balancehat the best option should be to improve the productivity of public investments at national levels, with the immediate exemption of public productive investments from budgetary rules;
Amendment 118 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Underlines that ythe Youth uneEmployment is one of the main concerns at European level and that it puts at risk an entire generation of young Europeans; stresses that, as part of the conciliation agreement for the 2017 EU budget, a EUR 500 million allocation will be granted to the Youth Employment Initiative through an amending budget in 2017; remains firmly committed to securing adequate funding for the continuation of the Youth Employment Initiative until the end of the current MFF, while at the same time improving its functioning and implemenInitiative (YEI) failed to recover this emergency; believes that employment and social policy initiatives should come, primarily, from the Member States and that the solution to the problems of citizens cannot be found by imposing additional EU constraints, since the Member States themselves are best placed to meet the expectations of their citizens, including their social and economic expectations;
Amendment 128 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
Amendment 141 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Strongly supportsObserves that regional policy ais one of the main investment instrumentschapter of the EU budget that enables economic, social and territorial cohesion; underlines that this policy generates growth and jobs in all Member States; is concerned, however, about the unacceptable delays in implementation of operational programmes at EU level; calls on the Commission and the Member States to cooperate in order to ensure th; underlines the necessity to properly evaluate the use or misuse of the instruments operating under this umbrella, in order to accurately estimate the designation of managing and certifying authorities is concluded and implementation acceleratesir real capacity to create new jobs and have a real positive social and economic impact;
Amendment 159 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Recognises the importance of the European agricultural sector in maintaining food security in the European Union; expresses its full support to the farmers affected byEurope and of ensuring the protection of its products, as well as traditional products and products of high quality; condemns the Russian embargo orand the dairy sector crisis; callconsequences onf the Commission therefore to continue toEU politics in these fields; expresses its full support to the farmers across Europe in coping with unexpected market volatilityffected by the dairy sector crisis;
Amendment 165 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Is convinced that, under the current circumstances, where the ceiling in Heading 3 is too low, the EU budget has maximised its impact in dealing with the effects ofRecognises that in spite of the mobilisation of significant budgetary means spread over in 2015, 2016 and 2017 to address the migratoryion and refugee crisis; points out, however, that a sustainable solution mus, a solution has still not been found to this issue, as it has been shown by the repeated mobilisation of special instruments, such as the flexibility instrument, that the EU budget was not initially designed to address crises of such magnitude; underlines the failure of European policies on preventing migration flows and human trafficking;
Amendment 172 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. WelcomesReiterates its concerns about the role played by instruments such as the Internal Security Fund (ISF) and the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) in addressing the effects of the migratory and refugee crisis, and calls for adequate budgeting in the coming years for these funds; welcomes also the role of EU agencies in the area of justice and home affairs, such as Europol and the European Border and Coast Guard, and calls, in this context, for their mandate to be executed through adequate budgeting and staffing; is convinced that the EU needs to invest more in strengthening its borders, enhancing cooperation between law enforcement agencies, fighting terrorism and radicalisation and ensuring sound return operationthe management of the effects of the migratory and refugee crisis;
Amendment 192 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Strongly supports initiatives in the field of defence research with the aim of encouraging better cooperation between Member States; recalls that, while respecting provisions enshrinUnderlines that the European immigration policies have failed in preventing and fighting terrorism; demands, for this reason, that the management of all competences and funds entrusted into the Treaties, strengthened cooperation in the field of defence is needed in order to meet the security challenges that the EU is facing, which are generated by prolonged instabiEU be returned to the Member States in order to allow them to control their borders and implement a serious repatriations policy; recalls that, in order to implement a real politcy in the EU neighbourhood and uncertainty regarding the commitment of certain EU partners towards NATO objectiagainst terrorism, it is also necessary to dismantle terrorist organisations and expel all those involvesd;
Amendment 207 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Reaffirms its conviction that in order to tackle the root causes of the migratory and refugee crisis, the EU needs to step up its role through investments in theStresses that the open-border policy of the European Union is one of the key elements that countries of origin of the refugees and migrants; notes that investments in infrastructure, housing, education, medical services and support for SMEs are part of the solutionbuted to the massive uncontrolled migration flow; reaffirms its conviction that in order to tackle the root causes of the migration; welcomes therefore the External Investment Plan as a coherent and coordinated framework to promote investments in Africa and the Neighbourhood countrieory and refugees crisis, all the investments should be focused in the countries of origin of the refugees and migrants;
Amendment 216 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Maintains its previous position thDeplores the indiscriminate ad hocbuse of external financial instruments which emerged in reprecsent years must be incorporated into the EU budget, with Parliament having full scrutiny over the implementation of these instrumentsing now a huge galaxy lacking in transparency and democratic control;
Amendment 219 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Underlines that one of the conditions for preserving stability and prosperity in the EU is a stable EU Neighbourhood; calls on the Commission therefore to ensure that priority is given to investments in the EU Neighbourhood in order to support efforts to tackle the main issues that this area is facing: the migration and refugee crisis in the Southern Neighbourhood and Russian aggression in the Eastern Neighbourhood; reiterates that supporting countries which are implementing association agreements with the EU is key to facilitating political and economic reformse necessity to ensure borders stability but believes it should stop any negotiations with Turkey, not respecting some of the basic principles of freedom and democracy;
Amendment 230 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 a (new)
Paragraph 18 a (new)
18 a. Condemns the European trade policy and stresses that agreements such as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) or the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and decisions such as granting China the Economic Market Status (MES) would create unfair competition and have a severe negative impact on jobs and growth;
Amendment 234 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Reiterates its previous calls forAsks to providinge the EU budget with an adequate level of payment appropriations in order to allow it to fulfil its main purpose as an investment budget; is convinced that this role cannot be fulfilled if the EU does not deliver on its commitments, thus endangering its credibilityfulfil its commitments;
Amendment 238 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Stresses that delays in the implementation of 2014-2020 programmes under shared management led to a drop in payment claims for 2016 and 2017; is particularly concerned about a possible reconstitution of a backlog of unpaid bills towards the endAsks not to increase the commitment appropriations in the Budget of the cEurrent MFF period, and recalls the unprecedented level of EUR 24.7 billion reached at the end of 2014; welcomes the fact that the Commission, on the occasion of the MFF mid-term revision, provided for the first time a payment forecast until 2020, bopean Union before a complete stabilisation of the backlog of out stresses that it needs to be duly updated every year, in order to allow the budgetary authority to take the necessary measures in timeanding payment claims;
Amendment 254 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 a (new)
Paragraph 23 a (new)
23 a. Asks for a severe and concrete reduction of the EU administrative expenditures and wastes of money taking into account the economic restrictions experienced in several Member States;
Amendment 256 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 b (new)
Paragraph 23 b (new)
23 b. Asks for a complete revision of the role of the European agencies questioning if their tasks and objectives could not be better accomplished by existing Directorates-General of the European Commission or by Member States in order to prevent duplication of roles and costs and also improving transparency;
Amendment 258 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Underlines that predictability and long-term sustainability of the EU budget is a prerequisite for a strong and stable European Union; draws attention to the fact thatRefuses and deplores any manipulation of the United Kingdom’'s withdrawal from the EU will provide an opportunity to address the long-standing issues which have prevented the EU budget from reaching its real potential, especially as regards the revenue side of the budget; reaffirms its position in favour of an in- depth reform of EU own resources, and welcomes in this respect the presentation of the final report of the High-Level Group on Own Resources (HLGOR); invites all involved parties to draw the appropriate conclusions from this report and analyse the feasibility of implementing the recommend(Brexit) as a trigger for reinforcing the revenue side of the budget which will, ultimately lead to further taxations of the HLGOR that would help make the EU budget more stable and predictable; welcomes the conclusion of the HLGOR regarding the ‘juste retour’ approach, which should end, as it has been shown by the report that all Member States benefit from the EU budget, irrespective of their ‘net-balance’businesses and an increase of tax pressure on the citizens;