9 Amendments of Arndt KOHN related to 2018/2624(RSP)
Amendment 60 #
Paragraph 12
12. Underlines that by opting for the procedure under transfer of Article 7 of the Staff Regulations in the form of reassignment of the newly appointed Deputy Secretary-General with his post to the position of Secretary-General, it was possible to avoid publishing the vacant post of the retiring former Secretary- General; notes that the same procedure was used for the appointments of previous Secretaries-General; stresses, however, that this tradition of non-publication has reached its limits insofar as it does not correspond anymore to modern standards of transparency;
Amendment 61 #
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12 a. Notes that the Commission attributes to itself a wide discretion as regards to the procedure to be adopted to assign staff in order to best ensure the interest of the service; notes that the replies given by the Commission show that it acknowledges the possibility of terminating a procedure on the basis of Article 29 of the Staff regulation without follow-up and proceed directly with a transfer based solely on Article 7; is concerned that this wide discretion of the appointing authority runs against the idea of ensuring a fair, rule-based and transparent management of the staff;
Amendment 63 #
Paragraph 12 b (new)
12 b. Notes that it is a usual practice of the Commission to appoint staff by using transfers under Article 7; notes that 50,6% of all appointments at Director- General/Deputy Director-General/Hors Classe Adviser level were transfers according to Article 7 of the Staff Regulations; questions whether this wide use of transfers is compatible with rules which should allow the best candidates to be selected in an open, fair and transparent procedure;
Amendment 80 #
Paragraph 18
18. StaNotes that the two-steps nomination of the Secretary General constitutewas perceived as a coup-like action which stretched and possibly even overstretched the limits of the law; is concerned that the lack of transparency in this way of proceeding caused significant reputational damage and has infringed the trust of citizens toward the EU institutions;
Amendment 82 #
Paragraph 18 a (new)
18 a. Notes the political proximity of the new Secretary General given his activity as campaign manager for the EPP lead candidate for the President of the European Commission; is concerned that his nomination could undermine the political independence of the European Commission as set down in Article 17(3) of the Treaty on the European Union; stresses that the administration of the European Commission as an independent organ should remain free from political influence;
Amendment 88 #
Paragraph 18 b (new)
18 b. Is concerned by the fact that the new Secretary General accompanied the President of the Commission to a meeting of the EPP leaders on 23 March 2018; stresses that the Secretary General of the European Commission should exercise his function in full independence of political parties;
Amendment 97 #
Paragraph 19 a (new)
19 a. Is of the opinion that conditions for transfers in the interest of the service under Article 7 of the Staff Regulation need to be defined and justified more clearly; believes, in particular, that reassignments with the officials' post where the publication of a vacancy is not needed should only be used in exceptional circumstances; calls on the Commission to review and propose changes to its internal rules for the appointment of staff in this regard;
Amendment 121 #
Paragraph 24 a (new)
24 a. Welcomes the proposal made by Commissioner Oettinger during the hearing on 27 March 2018 to organise a round table as soon as possible in the present year with representatives from the EU institutions to review the Staff Regulations; calls on the contributing parties to carefully review the rules for the appointment of officials and to propose changes to the regulations where needed to make sure that appointment procedures are in line with the principles of transparency and equal opportunities;
Amendment 128 #
Paragraph 24 b (new)
24 b. Calls on the Commission to reassess the decision of the nomination of present Secretary General after the new rules adopted and in any case when the President of the Commission arrives to the end of his mandate; asks the Commission to take into account the EP opinion on the future decisions on the nomination of the EC Secretary General in order to strengthen transparency, democracy and trust on EU institutions;