88 Amendments of Maria GRAPINI related to 2015/2354(INI)
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 a (new)
Citation 8 a (new)
– having regard to its resolution of 3 May 2010 on delivering a single market to consumers and citizens1a, __________________ 1a Text adopted, A7-0132/2010.
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 b (new)
Citation 8 b (new)
– having regard to its resolution of 19 January 2016 on Towards a Digital Single Market Act,
Amendment 4 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 b (new)
Citation 8 b (new)
– having regard to the Commission communication of 25 October 2011 entitled "Social Business Initiative - Creating a favourable climate for social enterprises, key stakeholders in the social economy and innovation" (COM (2001) 682 final),
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 c (new)
Citation 8 c (new)
– having regard to the Council Conclusions of 7 December 2015 on the promotion of the social economy as a key driver of economic and social development in Europe,
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 a (new)
Citation 8 a (new)
– having regard to the Council Conclusions of 7 December 2015 on the promotion of the social economy as a key driver of economical and social development in Europe,
Amendment 7 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 9 a (new)
Citation 9 a (new)
– having regard the study of 2016 entitled "Social Economy", commissioned by the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection,
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas the proper functioning of the Single Market is based on the constant adjustment and provision of an integrated response to the major economic and social challenges of the future, and on finding a balance between an open economy stimulating economic growth and quality job creation and an economic system delivering consumer protection as well as social and environmental safeguards to citizens;
Amendment 22 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas a strong social market - which turns the focus back to the people, directed towards the fight against unemployment, poverty, inequalities, social exclusion and wage dumping, promoting respect of fundamental social rights, fair mobility and improvement of living and working conditions in Europe - is an important factor to increase solidarity and cooperation among Member States;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas the single market is underperforming in almost all areas – in stimulating a digital-driven market, encouraging start-ups, integrating global supply chains, improving workers mobility and social rights, dealing with new business models and ensuring market facilitation, standardisation and the licensing of professionals – due to a number of physical, legal and technical barriers;
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
Ba. whereas the single market must not be seen in isolation from other horizontal policy areas, particularly the digital single market, health, social and consumer protection, labour law and mobility of citizens, the environment, sustainable development, energy, transport and external policies;
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas, according to Parliament’s own research, the anticipated gain from completingon of the single market stands at a trillion euroscould have the potential to bring an efficiency gain of EUR 615 billion per year;
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas a genuinely strategic approach is called for the further integration of the single market, and whereas the response to the challenges faced should be political as much as technical in nature;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas the EU should pursue a genuine single market and treat it as a common asset of all citizens, workers, economic operators and Member States;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph -1 (new)
Paragraph -1 (new)
-1. Is of the opinion that the mid-term review of the EU’s 2020 Strategy should set ambitious targets to reach a green, knowledge-based social market economy and sustainable growth by 2020; stresses that the single market should be central in achieving the goal of a sustainable and highly competitive social market economy in the context of the EU 2020 Strategy’s long-term vision taking up the challenges of maintaining social justice and economic growth as well as focusing on benefits for citizens, consumer protection, and SMEs;
Amendment 51 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph -1 a (new)
Paragraph -1 a (new)
-1a. Reiterates that the perception of the single market as being solely tied to the economic aspects has exhausted its own potential and a new broader based strategy must be put into action, establishing a balance between economic rights and fundamental social rights, integrating consumers’ and citizens’ interests into the single market;
Amendment 53 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Supports the overall objectives of the Commission’s Single Market Strategy for goods and services, and welcomacknowledges its vision for how to unleash the full potential of the single market but recalls on the Commission to improve the social and environmental side of the single market based on the Lisbon Treaty’s obligations;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Supports the overall objectives of the Commission’s Single Market Strategy for goods and services, and welcomes its vision for how to unleash the full potential of the single market in order to increase the number of quality jobs and to develop SMEs;
Amendment 59 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Believes in this respect that equal treatment principle for workers should be considered a pillar of an effective and socially sustainable single market and urges the Commission to take the necessary legislative and non-legislative actions in order to ensure that the this principle is fully respected in the single market;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Underlines the urgent need to eliminate the remainingput back at the heart of the single market those who live in it and use it daily, and to eliminate the existing unjustified barriers from the single market in order to achieve effective tangible and quick results in terms of growth, innovation, job creation, consumer choice and new business models;
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Underlines the urgent need to eliminate the remaining barriers from the single market in order to achieve tangible and quick results in terms of growth, innovation, job creation, consumer choice and, new business models and supporting SMEs in their development while increasing their life duration;
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Welcomes the strategy’s focus on aspects aimed at helping businesses, in particular SMEs, micro- enterprises and start-ups, to scale up their activities, grow and stay in the single market, thus facilitating their innovation and job creation; considers that all initiatives for SMEs and start-ups should be treated as a priority, but reminds that these initiatives should not provide opportunities for dishonest businesses to circumvent existing rules, lower workers’ and consumer standards, increase the risk of corporate fraud, criminal activities and letterbox companies;
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Disagrees with the Commission’s statement that its proposal on single member companies should be implemented immediately, which in its current form is not a suitable instrument to boost the single market;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Believes that it is necessarycould be helpful to adopt a common definition ofcriteria to identify ‘innovative’ start- ups and SMEs, or objective criteria, that canwhich could be used as aone point of reference for the adoption of related measures; calls on the Commission to propose such a definition;
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Believes that it is necessary to adopt a common definition of ‘innovative’ start- ups and SMEs,, SMEs and social economy enterprises or objective criteria, that can be used as a point of reference for the adoption of related measures; reminds that social economy enterprises have revealed a huge innovative potential, coming up with creative solutions to major economic, social and environmental challenges: calls on the Commission to propose such a definition including social economy enterprises;
Amendment 94 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Believes that it is necessary to adopt a common definition of ‘innovative’ start- ups and SMEs, or objective criteria, that can be used as a point of reference for the adoption of related measures and for developing specific financial programmes; calls on the Commission to propose such a definition;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Stresses that there is a need to promote social economy enterprises within the internal market policies, having in mind that there are around 2 million social economy enterprises in EU, accounting for approximately 10-12% of all European businesses; stresses, moreover, that the social economy is rapidly growing, it provides quality products and services, and creates high quality jobs;
Amendment 99 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Calls onDraws attention to the Commission’s initiative to ask the REFIT platform to address unjustified barriers to innovation and put forward proposals for ways to reduce or remove them; calls on the Commission to assess in the REFIT process not only the costs but also the benefits and values of legislation, as well as to take into account its broader social and environmental impact and not only the economic one;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Calls on the Commission to actively involve all stakeholders, in particular social partners and consumers organisations to assess impacts of draft legislation and better regulation activities in the single market, run the proportionality and subsidiarity check (at ex-ante stage), and monitor implementation (ex-post stage); stresses, furthermore, that any exemptions for SMEs and micro entities must be assessed on a case-by-case basis for each proposal, while ensuring that exemptions do not lead to circumvention of social, labour or environmental legislation;
Amendment 108 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. WelcomesCalls on the Commission’s determination to address the difficulties faced by SMEs as a result of the complexity of differing national VAT regulations; extends its full support to the Commission in respect of the VAT reform; callin particular calls on the Commission to consider how the new rules con the Commission to assess the feasibility of further coordination and, in particular, to assess the possibility of a single tax in the e-commerce sectorcerning place of supply for VAT on digital services can be amended so as to accommodate the specific needs of small and micro-businesses;
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Welcomes the Commission’s determination to address the difficulties faced by SMEs as a result of the complexity of differing national VAT regulations; extends its full support to the Commission in respect of the VAT reform, but reminds that these initiatives should respect Member States competences; calls on the Commission to assess the feasibility of further coordination and, in particular, to assess the possibility of a single tax in the e-commerce sectorllowing Member States to reduce rates of VAT for the press, digital, publishing, e-books and on line publications in order to avoid discrimination in the single market;
Amendment 120 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Draws attention to the difficulties faced by some businesses, and in particular SMEs and start-ups, in securing funding; calls on the Commission, while continuing the valuable support provided to those companies through the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) and programmes such as Horizon 2020 and COSME, to explore ways of further facilitating access to them, and develop new funding models especially for micro- enterprises, for instance by reducingreduce the periods for calls ofor applications to six-month periods and further simplifying the relevant procedures, simplify the relevant administrative procedures, develop pro- active measures for continuous information and trainings on projects; calls upon the Commission to ensure that crowdfunding can be done seamlessly across borders, and encourages the Member States to introduce incentives for crowdfunding;
Amendment 128 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Draws attention to the difficulties faced by businesses, and in particular SMEs and start-ups, in securing funding; calls on the Commission, while continuing the valuable support provided to those companies through the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) and programmes such as Horizon 2020 and COSME, to explore ways of further facilitating access to them, especially for micro-enterprises, for instance by reducing calls for applications to six-month periods and further simplifying the relevant procedures, but also by reducing the threshold for SMEs from 10 million euros to 5 million euros;
Amendment 129 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Draws attention to the difficulties faced by businesses, and in particular SMEs and , start-ups, and social economy enterprises in securing funding; calls on the Commission, while continuing the valuable support provided to those companies through the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) and programmes such as Horizon 2020 and COSME, to explore ways of further facilitating access to them, especially for micro-enterprises, for instance by reducing calls for applications to six-month periods and further simplifying the relevant procedures;
Amendment 138 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Draws attention to the fact that each year thousands of SMEs across Europe go bankrupt while waiting for their invoices to be paid, including by public administrations; calls on the Commission and the Member States to step up their efforts to facilitate the application and enforcement of the Late Payment Directive; calls, furthermore, on the Member States to consider, in the event of unsatisfactory implementation of the Late Payment Directive, forms of adequate compensation for companies owed money by a public administraremuneration for commercial transactions;
Amendment 143 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Considering that big enterprises regularly win calls for tenders, calls on the Commission to analyse the possibility of revising the Directive on public procurement in the sense that the subcontractors, who are usually SMEs, should be paid no later than 30 days;
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. WelcomAcknowledges the legislative initiative on business insolvency, including early restructuring and second chances, which will ensure thatcould be one method to encourage Member States to provide a regulatory environment that is able to accommodate failure without discouraging entrepreneurs from trying new ideasand non-regulatory environment that accepts that failure sometimes happens and encourages innovation, but reminds that the costs and consequences of failing companies affects not only the company’s owner and shareholders, but also its creditors, employees, citizens and taxpayers; stresses that the legal framework on business insolvency must ensure responsible risk-taking providing certainty and fairness to creditors and employees; calls on the Commission, in this context, to reinforce workers’ protection and the defence of their interest, including through guaranteeing the full respect of their right to information and consultation, and establishing preferential rights for employees in case a business goes bankrupt;
Amendment 146 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Welcomes the legislative initiative on business insolvency, including early restructuring and second chances, which will ensure that Member States provide a regulatory environment that is able to accommodate failure without discouraging entrepreneurs from trying new ideas, but draws the attention to the fact that the bankruptcy procedures need to be more efficient;
Amendment 149 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11a. Regrets that the Commission did not emphasise enough the specific role of traditional manufacturing by Crafts and SMEs as an important contribution to both competitiveness and economic stability in Europe; encourages the Commission to exploit the full potential of digitalisation and innovation of the manufacturing industry in particular for micro and small manufacturers and start- ups, as well as for less industrialised regions to help reduce regional disparities and revitalise local economies; believes that stronger SMEs Crafts policy has to be put forward as one of the top priorities of all European Institutions and Member States over the next years;
Amendment 151 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 b (new)
Paragraph 11 b (new)
11b. Notes that companies, especially SMEs, are either not aware of the rules applicable in other Member States or have difficulties in finding and understanding the information on the rules and procedures applicable for their business; calls on the Commission to interlink all different portals, access points and information websites in a single gateway that will provide SMEs and start-ups with user-friendly information so that they can make well-informed decisions, save time and costs;
Amendment 152 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 c (new)
Paragraph 11 c (new)
11c. Calls on the Commission to develop the Points of Single Contact from a regulatory portal into a system of fully- fledged online business portals promoting regular exchange of information by and between business representatives and assisting national business or citizens to compete in other EU Member States;
Amendment 161 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Emphasises that the collaborative (or sharing) economy is growing fast reshaping old services and markets and changing the way that many services and assets are provided and consumed; underlines, furthermore, the strong link between these new business models and the performance of the single market; notes that the fast development of the sharing economy presents opportunities but also poses many challenges and legal uncertainties that might affect consumers, workers and traditional business providers and suppliers;
Amendment 169 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Emphasises that the collaborative (or sharing) economy isand the social economy are growing fast and changing the way that many services and assets are provided and consumed; underlines, furthermore, the strong link between these new business models and the performance of the single market;
Amendment 170 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to come forward with proposals to prevent abuses in the employment area and bogus self- employment, to examine infringements of workers’ rights and social protection provisions in the sharing economy as well as to assess the impact of crowdworking and crowdsourcing; calls on the Commission to establish an European Forum, which organises regular exchanges with stakeholders, including social partners, who play a decisive role in the transition of the different employment sectors towards the digital economy, in order to promote an effective legal framework as well as quality employment and workers’ rights;
Amendment 171 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Calls on the Member States to ensure that employment rights, high quality working conditions, effective social welfare coverage and a real level playing field in the single market are guaranteed in the growth of the sharing economy, taking into account its potential for more flexible forms of employment, identifying new forms of employment, enhancing the rights and protection of genuine self- employed workers;
Amendment 172 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Welcomes the Commission’s announced initiative on the European agenda for the collaborative economysharing economy including the guidance on how EU law applies to this new sector, and its intention to look at that economy in order to assess what needs to be done in order to taccompanykle the challenges it poses, to support its growth and its major contribution to the economic system; welcomes the Commission approach to examine the extent to which the provisions of the Services Directive, the e-Commerce Directive and the EU consumer protection acquis are applicable to the sharing economy and if there is need for further regulation, calls on the Commission to go beyond these provisions and examine the issue of social security and employment rights of workers, health and safety norms, taxation and licensing;
Amendment 186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Considers that, in the collaborativesharing economy, the samesimilar rules should apply to the samesimilar services, with a view to ensuringpreserve the solid framework of existing regulations, safeguard high quality of services, independent of how their access and provision is organised, ensure a level playing field, and consumer safetrights and safety and full adherence to employment and social rights by companies operating in the sharing economy while avoiding fragmentation that would hamper the development of new business models;
Amendment 198 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Draws attention to the important role of standards for innovation and progress in the single market; calls on the Commission to support and reinforce European standards, including by exploiting the opportunities offered by the ongoing negotiations for a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and to request the inclusion in the text of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) of the harmonization of standards for products and services;
Amendment 207 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16a. Calls on the Commission, being responsible for competition in the EU internal market, in cooperation with national surveillance authorities, to ensure a level playing field among competitors serving the market;
Amendment 218 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Underlines the importance of the unitary patent; supports the Commission’s intention to eliminate uncertainties as to how the unitary patent will coexist with national and supplementary protection certificates (SPCs), as well as the possible creation of a unitary SPC whilst keeping in mind public health and patients’ interests;
Amendment 226 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Calls for measures to facilitate access to the patent system in Europe for all micro-enterprises and SMEs that wish to use the European patent with unitary effect in innovating their products and processes; recalls the importance to license standard- essential patents effectively, within the restraints of EU competition law, under FRAND licensing terms, in order to preserve R&D and standardisation incentives and foster innovation;
Amendment 228 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 a (new)
Paragraph 18 a (new)
18a. Calls on the Commission to put forward without delay a targeted legislative proposal which would enable European companies to manufacture generic and biosimilar medicines in the EU during the supplementary protection certificate (SPC) period, following the expiry of patent protection, in order to export to countries where no SPC is in place or to prepare for immediate launch following expiration of the SPC; believes that such SPC manufacturing waiver would contribute to avoid the outsourcing of production outside the EU and to create a level playing field between European companies and their competitors from third countries;
Amendment 233 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Calls on the Commission to present awithout delay a legislative proposal for the protection of geographical indications for non-agricultural products in the EU with the aim of establishing a single European system putting thus an end to a inadequate and highly fragmented situation in Europe, and offering many and varied positive effects for citizens, consumers, producers and the whole European economic and social fabric;
Amendment 236 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Calls on the Commission to present a proposal for the protection of geographical indications for non-agricultural products in the EU considering that this would contribute to job stability, especially in poor rural areas;
Amendment 240 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 a (new)
Paragraph 19 a (new)
19a. Notes that the new 2014 public procurement regime is less cumbersome, includes more flexible rules to better serve other public sector policies as well as Member States or local specialities; points out that there are still significant inefficiencies in public procurement across Member States that limit cross- border expansion and growth in domestic markets;
Amendment 241 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 b (new)
Paragraph 19 b (new)
19b. Supports the general approach set out in the Commission’s Communication in relation to public procurement to improve procurement decisions and the transparency and quality of procurement systems; encourages national procurement authorities to promote greener and more social tendering processes by including social and environmental criteria in the public procurement tenders; calls on the Commission to use the upcoming evaluation report and revision of the Remedies Directive to address problems such as ‘abnormally low bids’ and other social dumping practices in the procurement process;
Amendment 242 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 c (new)
Paragraph 19 c (new)
19c. Agrees in principle with the Commission’s proposal to launch a voluntary ex-ante public procurement mechanism for large-scale infrastructure projects but suggests that the ceiling of EUR 700 million must be significantly lowered in response to the European Court of Auditors’ special report 10/2015, which detected errors relating to public procurement in around 40% of all the projects;
Amendment 243 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 d (new)
Paragraph 19 d (new)
19d. Notes that consistent uniform application and proper enforcement of EU rules combined with regular monitoring and evaluation on the basis of qualitative and quantitative indicators, benchmarking and sharing of best practices is urgently needed to achieve more homogeneous implementation of existing single market legislation; recalls, therefore, the need to fully and thoroughly transpose and implement European rules concerning the functioning of the single market in all Member States;
Amendment 245 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Points out that many measures have already been adopted but are not yet appliedproperly enforced thus undermining the level playing field in the single market; points out, furthermore, that according to data provided by the Commission in mid- 2015, around 1 090 infringement proceedings were pending in the area of the single market; calls on the Commission, therefore, to ensure thatwith a view to improve transposition, application and enforcement of single market legislation, to ensure that administrative coordination, cooperation and enforcement isare prioritised at all levels (EU, between Member States and national, local and regional authorities);
Amendment 256 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Calls on the Commission to further support the Member States in developing a strong culture of compliance and enforcement, including bypromoting and broadening the Internal Market Information System (IMI), developing implementation plans for new major legislation and, organising compliance dialogues with Member States and trainings for national public servants in charge of enforcement; stresses that correct enforcement and better regulation are essential and should cover all business sectors and apply to existing and future legislation;
Amendment 259 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Paragraph 21 a (new)
21a. Notes that Member States play a crucial role in the good governance and proper functioning of the single market, therefore, they need to jointly exercise a pro-active ownership and management of the single market, generating a new political impetus through consolidated state-of-health reports on the single market, regular and thematic discussions at Competitiveness Council meetings, dedicated annual European Council meetings and the inclusion of the single market as a pillar of governance in the European Semester;
Amendment 260 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 b (new)
Paragraph 21 b (new)
21b. Reiterates that the EU could create its own set of scientifically-based, independent indicators on the degree of integration of the single market, to be published as part of the Annual Growth Strategy and calls for the adoption of a strategic paper of ‘the presidents’ of EU bodies a ‘Five Presidents Report’ to map the road to a Genuine Single Market;
Amendment 261 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 c (new)
Paragraph 21 c (new)
21c. Stresses that the European Parliament’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee must strengthen its ties with national parliaments in order to coordinate and address issues in relation to transposition and implementation of single market rules;
Amendment 262 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 d (new)
Paragraph 21 d (new)
21d. Calls on the Commission to also strengthen the role of the institutional consultation of the social partners through the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions;
Amendment 265 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Emphasises that it is necessary to reinforce the Solvit network and to improve awareness of the network and its role in solving interpretation problems relating to the single marketpractical problem-solving gateways such as Solvit network and to improve funding, expertise, legal certainty of the procedures as well as raise awareness of the existence of the network among business and its role in solving interpretation problems relating to the single market; calls for a cooperation between SOLVIT and the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) to be reinforced;
Amendment 270 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22 a (new)
Paragraph 22 a (new)
22a. Stresses that the new Commission proposal to develop a market information tool gathering information directly from selected market players can be implemented only within the constraints of national and European competition law rules; calls on the Commission before taking any further steps to provide more information on the parameters of this proposal and to consult for this initiative not only selected market players but as well as social partners, consumers organizations, SMEs and start-ups to fully understand the workings of the market;
Amendment 274 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Takes note of the Commission proposal, as part of strengthening the single market for goods, to improve mutual recognition through action to increase awareness of the mutual recognition principle and through the revision of the Mutual Recognition Regulation; is sceptical with the Commission’s proposal for a traders’ self-declaration to legally bring a product into the market, as this might increase non-compliant products, threaten consumers’ health and safety and damage competition in the single market; calls instead on the Commission to ensure better market surveillance system by developing a European market surveillance framework and wider access to information about dangerous products which should help reduce non-compliant products in the single market; furthermore calls on European and national market surveillance authorities to investigate all claims of fraud vigorously;
Amendment 293 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Reiterates its call for the rapid adoption of the Product Safety and Market Surveillance Package by the Council and calls on the Commission to fully engage in its role as a solution facilitator in this respect; underlines the importance of the indication of country of origin, which is crucial to protect consumers and to strengthen the fight against counterfeiting;
Amendment 301 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25
Paragraph 25
25. Stresses that regulatory differences between Member States regarding differing labelling or quality requirements for the same products in different Member States create unnecessary obstacles to the activities of suppliers of goods and discriminate against different consumers; calls on the Commission to consider introducing a mandatory scheme for the provision of key information for furniture, established at EU levellabelling and quality scheme for products, established at EU level, for providing consumers with key information and ensuring equality in products’ quality in the different Member States; considers that such an initiative would be beneficial for consumers, industries and trade operators, ensuring transparency, adequate recognition of European products and harmonised rules for operators in the single market;
Amendment 307 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26
Paragraph 26
26. Emphasises, in respect of the single market in services, that there is a clear need to improve the cross-border provision of services, while reconciling economic freedoms and workers’ rights; urges the Member States to ensure proper and more effective application of the Services Directive, while avoiding the practice of gold-plating; welcomes the Commission proposal to improve notification under the Services Directive; agrees to extend the notification procedure provided for in Directive 2015/1535 to all the sectors not covered by that directiveand proper implementation of the Services Directive; reiterates that facilitating the temporary provision of services by companies in another Member State should go hand in hand with guaranteeing the protection of workers posted to another Member State and ask for the revision, without delay, of the Posting of Workers Directive in order to ensure full respect of workers’ rights and of the equal treatment principle and to fight effectively social dumping and unfair competition;
Amendment 310 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26
Paragraph 26
26. Emphasises, in respect of the single market in services, that there is a clear need to improve the cross-border provision of services; urges theUrges Member States to ensure proper and morthe effective application of the Services Directive, while avoiding the practice of gold-plating; welcomes; stresses that employment and social standards must be guaranteed in both the Cdommission proposal to improve notification under the Services Directive; agrees to extend the notification procedure provided for in Directive 2015/1535 to all the sectors not covered by that directiveestic and cross-border provision of services; underlines that any extension of the notification procedure provided for in Directive 2015/1535 must not be inappropriately applied to services of general economic interest;
Amendment 320 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 a (new)
Paragraph 26 a (new)
26a. Acknowledges the Commission’s efforts to open up services’ markets within the parameters of the Services Directive and to improve notification under the Services Directive but considers, that the outcome of such exercise should enable a framework which allows employment and social standards in the service sector to be maintained and expanded as defined by Art. 3 of the EU Treaty; recognises that Member States are responsible for defining their social policy objectives and stresses that possible extension of the notification procedure provided for in Directive 2015/1535 to sectors not covered by that directive may not be misused to indirectly subject services, such as those in the general interest (public services) and that national, democratic law-making is fully respected;
Amendment 321 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27
Paragraph 27
27. SupportsRegrets that the Commission proposal to introduce a services passport to help service providers demonstrate that they satisfy the requirements applicable to them in the Member State where they wish to provide their service on a temporary basis; considers that this initiative should be aimed at reducing administrative burden for service providers and simplifying the procedures applicable to cross-border service provisiois failing to deliver regarding the need to better ensure social and workers’ rights within the single market; calls on the Commission to ensure the full respect of the equal treatment principle and to refrain from submitting a proposal to introduce a services passport, which would represent a possible tool for employment abuses and which would entail the strong risk of leaning towards the inacceptable principle of the country of origin;
Amendment 345 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 b (new)
Paragraph 27 b (new)
27b. Calls on the Commission to draw up a detailed assessment on the social impact of the single market legislation, as it has done on the economic impact and to include the "Monti II" clauses in all single market legislation;
Amendment 346 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 c (new)
Paragraph 27 c (new)
27c. Calls on the Commission to adopt a clear single market legislative agenda to strengthen workers’ rights, improve working conditions, promote equal treatment, prevent social dumping and exploitation of workers and ensure fair competition among the Member States;
Amendment 347 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 d (new)
Paragraph 27 d (new)
27d. Welcomes the fact that the strategy refers to the high level of unemployment across the EU, but regrets that it does not present specific steps and measures that can help people find employment, such as improving education and training standards, meeting lifelong learning targets, and tackling skills mismatches and qualifications of workers and professionals; considers that it is self- evident that the single market is changing rapidly due to digitalisation of the different industries and the new jobs will require a different set of skills and qualifications;
Amendment 348 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 e (new)
Paragraph 27 e (new)
27e. Disapproves that the Commission did not adopt any specific measures in the Single Market Strategy to address the needs of people and consumers with disability, elderly people and people living in rural and remote areas;
Amendment 349 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 f (new)
Paragraph 27 f (new)
27f. Supports the Commission’s initiative to review the regulated profession, but reminds that any exercise should maintain high quality standards for employment and services, sound qualifications and consumers’ safety;
Amendment 350 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 g (new)
Paragraph 27 g (new)
27g. Regrets that the Commission’s Communication does not announce any proposal in relation to the social economy although it plays a key role in the EU’s social and economic development; urges the Commission to explore the potential of this emerging sector and without undue delay to improve its visibility and a regulatory environment for social enterprises;
Amendment 351 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 h (new)
Paragraph 27 h (new)
27h. Is of the opinion that a legal framework encompassing the different forms of social economy in Europe, i.e. cooperatives, foundations, mutual societies and associations will enable social economy enterprises, which do not benefit from the same measures applicable to SMEs, to operate on a legally sound basis and thus enjoy the advantages of the internal market and free movement; furthermore calls for the development of the Social Business Initiative (SBI), mainstreaming social entrepreneurship and social economy enterprises into the Small Business Act, and adopting the Statute for Mutuals;
Amendment 352 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 i (new)
Paragraph 27 i (new)
27i. Regrets that the Commission’s Communication does not suggests any proposal to acknowledge the specific character of public services within the single market and in particular to adopt a legal framework for services of general economic interest (SGEI) based on Protocol N26 and Article 14 of the TFEU, for instance in relation to quality requirements and notably with regard to social and territorial cohesion;
Amendment 355 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28
Paragraph 28
28. SEmphasises that the genuine single market should provide benefits and protection for citizens, consumers and businesses in terms of better quality, greater variety, reasonable prices, and safety of goods and services; stresses that unjustified discrimination against service recipients (consumers and entrepreneurs) on the basis of nationality or place of residence, in both online and offline environments, is not acceptable within the single market;
Amendment 359 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28 a (new)
Paragraph 28 a (new)
28a. Highlights that the ADR Directive and ODR platform may benefit consumers and businesses in cross-border transactions; calls for further mechanisms for adequate consumer redress to be introduced, including a collective approach to redress where needed;
Amendment 360 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28 a (new)
Paragraph 28 a (new)
28a. Agrees that when purchasing goods and services in the single market, consumers need transparent information and a set of modern and solid rights to protect their interests; is of the opinion that any review, merger or consolidation of consumer law directives should provide for a truly high level of consumers’ protection and enforceable rights, recognising existing best practices from national legislation;
Amendment 362 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28 b (new)
Paragraph 28 b (new)
28b. Calls on the Commission to analyse the current legal uncertainties affecting consumers and if necessary to resolve them through clarification and supplements to the legal framework of consumers rights; reiterates its commitment to the principle of flexible harmonisation for any proposed EU legislation concerning consumers and that full harmonisation is only applied when it sets a very high level of consumer protection and provides clear benefits for consumers;
Amendment 363 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28 c (new)
Paragraph 28 c (new)
28c. Stresses that consumers must be able to exercise their rights easily; welcomes the implementation of the ADR Directive and Commission’s new online dispute resolution (ODR) platform; notes that redress mechanisms applicable across the Union have yielded limited results and therefore urges the Commission to bring forward a legislative proposal to ensure implementation of an affordable, expedient and accessible Europe-wide collective redress system;
Amendment 375 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 a (new)
Paragraph 29 a (new)
29a. Emphasises that social economy enterprises represent a diversity of business models, that is key for a highly competitive and fairer single market; calls on the Commission to mainstream the social economy within its single market policies and to develop a European Action Plan for social economy enterprises in order to unlock the full potential for a sustainable and inclusive growth.
Amendment 377 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 b (new)
Paragraph 29 b (new)
29b. Reiterates that the Commission’s Social Business Initiative (SBI) stressed that the single market needs an inclusive growth, focused on employment for all; calls, therefore, on the Commission to launch a second phase of the SBI by developing an Action Plan for the social economy enterprises in Europe;
Amendment 378 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 c (new)
Paragraph 29 c (new)
29c. Calls on the Commission to provide an analysis within the Single Market Strategy on how the development of digital technologies and online platforms contribute to the rise of social economy enterprises characterised by democratic business models and reinvestment of profit, creating added value to enterprises, consumers and workers;