Activities of Julia REDA related to 2016/0404(COD)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on a proportionality test before adoption of new regulation of professions PDF (882 KB) DOC (132 KB)
Amendments (22)
Amendment 86 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) The burden of proof of justification and proportionality lies on the Member States. The reasons for regulation invoked by a Member State by way of justification should thus be accompanied by an analysis of the appropriateness and proportionality of the measure adopted by that State and by specific evidence substantiating its arguments. This should not prevent Member States from taking immediate measures in the field of health care which they consider necessary to protect public health, nor in other areas where they consider measures necessary to pursue other overriding reasons in public interest.
Amendment 92 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) It is appropriate to monitor the proportionality of the provisions restricting access to or pursuit of regulated professions on a regular basis and with a frequency appropriate to the regulation concerned and to a degree commensurate with the complexity of the regulations in place and the extent of the new measures proposed. A review of the proportionality of restrictive national legislation in the area of regulated professions should be based not only on the objective of that legislation at the time of its adoption, but also on the effects of the legislation, assessed after its adoption. The assessment of the proportionality of the national legislation should be based on developments found to have occurred in the area since the legislation was adopted. This assessment should be completed before the adoption of new measures or the amendment of the existing national provisions.
Amendment 99 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 11 a (new)
Recital 11 a (new)
(11a) Member States should involve independent scrutiny bodies in the proportionality assessment in order to ensure that the assessment is carried out in an independent and objective manner. This could be achieved through the involvement of existing bodies, and should not entail the establishment of a new body.
Amendment 105 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 12 a (new)
Recital 12 a (new)
(12a) This Directive seeks to strike a balance between securing public interest objectives and quality of services on the one hand, and improving access to, and exercise of, regulated professions, which is in the interests of the professionals themselves, on the other. It is clear from settled case law of the European Court of Justice that when one Member State imposes less strict rules than another Member State, this does not necessarily mean that the latter Member State's rules are disproportionate.
Amendment 135 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 20
Recital 20
(20) The national authorities should carry out a global assessment of the circumstances in which the restrictive measure is adopted and implemented and examine in particular the cumulative effect of imposing several requirements in addition to the specific professional qualification. The taking-up and pursuit of certain activities may be conditional on complying with certain provisions such as rules relating to the organisation of the profession, compulsory membership of a professional body, professional ethics, supervision and liability. Therefore, when assessing the cumulative effect of the measures, the competent authorities should also take into account other existing requirements, such as continuous professional development, compulsory chamber membership, registration or authorisation schemes, quantitative restrictions, specific legal form requirements and shareholding requirements, territorial restrictions, multidisciplinary restrictions and incompatibility rules, requirements concerning insurance cover as well as language knowledge requirements, to the extent necessary to practise the profession. When doing so, existing requirements which are not being amended would not be subject to a new proportionality assessment. A measure introduced by a Member State cannot be regarded as necessary to achieve the objective pursued if it essentially duplicates requirements which have already been introduced in the context of other rules or procedures.
Amendment 141 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 20 a (new)
Recital 20 a (new)
(20a) According to Article 168(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), a high level of human health protection shall be ensured in the definition and implementation of all Union policies and activities. This also implies that a high level of human health protection is to be ensured when the Union adopts acts under other Treaty provisions.
Amendment 143 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 20 b (new)
Recital 20 b (new)
(20 b) This Directive should respect Member States' competence to regulate professions in the field of health care based on Article 168(7) TFEU as well as Member States' intention to provide and guarantee a high level of health care and patient safety. For this purpose, Member States should be able to give less weight to economic considerations in relation to public policy objectives and other relevant proportionality criteria.
Amendment 157 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1
Article 1 – paragraph 1
This Directive lays down rules on a common framework for conducting proportionality assessments before introducing new or amending existing legislative, regulatory or administrative provisions restricting access to or pursuit of regulated professions, or amending existing ones, with a view to ensuring the proper functioning of the internal market. It does not affect Member States' competence to decide whether and how, in accordance with the principles of non-discrimination and proportionality, to regulate a profession.
Amendment 176 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 1
Article 4 – paragraph 1
1. Member States shall ensure that before introducing new legislative, regulatory or administrative provisions restricting access to or pursuit of regulated professions, or amending existing ones, the relevant competent authorities undertake an assessment of their proportionality in accordance with the rules laid down in this Directive, taking full account of the specific nature of each profession. The extent of this assessment shall be commensurate to the content and impact of the provisions in question.
Amendment 188 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2
Article 4 – paragraph 2
2. Any provision referred to in paragraph 1 shall be accompanied by a detailed statement making it possible to appraise the provision's compliance with the principle of proportionality.
Amendment 198 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 5
Article 4 – paragraph 5
5. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the assessment of proportionality referred to in paragraph 1 is carried out in an objective and independent manner including through involvement of independent scrutiny bodies. This can be achieved through the involvement of existing bodies.
Amendment 251 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point d
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point d
Amendment 255 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point e
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point e
Amendment 260 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point f
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point f
Amendment 265 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point g
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point g
Amendment 267 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point h
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point h
Amendment 274 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point i
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – point i
(i) the economic impact of the measure, with particular regard to the degree of competition in the market and on the quality of the service provided, as well as the impact on the free movement of persons and services within the Union;
Amendment 282 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 a (new)
Article 6 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 a (new)
Member States shall also consider the following elements where relevant to the provision being introduced, having regard to the particular circumstances of the profession concerned, the nature of the provision and the pursued public interest objective: (a) the link between the scope of activities covered by a profession or reserved to it and the professional qualification required; (b) the link between the complexity of the tasks and the necessary possession of specific professional qualifications, in particular as regards the level, the nature and the duration of the training or experience required, as well as the existence of different routes to obtain the professional qualification; (c) the scope of the professional activities reserved to holders of a particular professional qualification, namely whether and why the activities reserved to certain professions can or cannot be shared with other professions; (d) the degree of autonomy in exercising a regulated profession and the impact of organisational and supervision arrangements on the attainment of the objective pursued, in particular where the activities relating to a regulated profession are pursued under the control and responsibility of a duly qualified professional; the scientific and technological developments which may reduce the asymmetry of information between professionals and consumers
Amendment 304 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 4 – point i
Article 6 – paragraph 4 – point i
(i) requirements concerning insurance cover or other means of personal or collective protection with regard to professional liability;
Amendment 309 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 1 a (new)
Article 6 – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 1 a (new)
These requirements, or any restrictive effect resulting from their implementation, shall not be considered disproportionate restrictions per se.
Amendment 312 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 7 – paragraph 1
Article 7 – paragraph 1
Member States shall, by appropriate means, inform citizens, service recipients, representative associations and relevant stakeholders other than the members of the profess and in addition to the members of the profession, inform all relevant stakeholders, including citizens, service recipients, representative associations before introducproposing new legislative, regulatory or administrative provisions restricting access to or pursuit of regulated professions, or amending existing ones, and give them the opportunity to make known their views which shall then be given due consideration. This requirement may be fulfilled, for example, by means of a public consultation.
Amendment 325 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 1
Article 9 – paragraph 1
1. The reasons for considering that provisions, assessed in accordance with this Directive, are justified, necessary and proportionate, and which are communicated to the Commission pursuant to paragraphs 5 and 6 of Article 59 of Directive 2005/36/EC, shall be recorded expeditiously by the relevant competent authorities in the database of regulated professions, referred to in Article 59 paragraph 1 of Directive 2005/36/EC and thereafter made publicly available, as soon as possible, by the Commission.