Activities of Hildegard BENTELE related to 2020/2129(INL)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION with recommendations to the Commission on corporate due diligence and corporate accountability
Amendments (13)
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph -1 (new)
Paragraph -1 (new)
-1. Stresses that it is the responsibility of states and governments to safeguard human rights in their countries and that this responsibility shall not be transferred to private actors; recalls that due diligence is primarily a preventive mechanism and that companies should be first and foremost required to identify risks or adverse impacts and adopt policies and measures to mitigate them;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Acknowledges that there is sufficient strong evidence that shows that the voluntary efforts of Union companies to prevent and mitigate the negative impacts of their behaviour on developing countries have failed asin the Union are not yet sufficient to prevent and mitigate violations of human rights of individuals, in particular worker’s rights, and of local communities are still taking place at the end of the supply chain;
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. Points out that well calibrated, and ideally “Union certified”, third party certification schemes, because of their in- build broad stakeholder participation, have big potential to pave the way to supply chains which are sustainable in respect of human rights and environmental standards; stresses that developing countries should be supported to implement and spread best practice;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Believes that there is stronga need for a mandatory, harmonised framework at Union level to ensure a level playing field for business and welcomes the Commission’s ongoing work on legislation requiring that Union companies conduct due diligence on respect for human rights and environmental obligations throughout their supply chains; based on an impact assessment and a careful evaluation which has concluded that it is functional and applicable to all actors on the market with more than 500 employees and welcomes the Commission’s ongoing work on legislation requiring that Union companies conduct due diligence on respect for human rights and environmental obligations; draws attention to the risk that companies might withdraw from third countries - which will result in job losses and in loss of cooperation partners for smallholders in developing countries - if new requirements prove to impose excessive administrative burdens and uncontrollable risks; considers nevertheless that a multilateral framework is preferable and asks the Commission to participate in negotiations on a UN treaty;
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Calls on the Commission to apply a human rights-based approach to the future legislation which shall be designed, implemented, monitored and evaluated respecting the core human rights principles of transparency and access to information, inclusion and non- discrimination with a special focus on the most vulnerable;
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Stresses that all human rights should be covered by the future legislation; considers that emphasis should be placed on workers and trade union rights, women, children or indigenous people; stresses that full alignment withany new legislation should be based on existing legal obligations and standards at European and international level should be sought; is of the opinion that the legislation should address all types of human rights abuses;
Amendment 55 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Highlights that the obligation to respect and protect human rights, and the environment and to avoid the risk of corrupshould focus on the first tier of the supply chain outside of the Union and on direct contractual business relation should be embedded throughout whole global value chains, products, services and business relationshipsips; calls for better legal frameworks and better implementation and monitoring of human rights and environmental standards and protection of human rights and environmental protection defenders in developing countries and affirms the Union’s readiness to support developing countries in institution-building and training of legal and administrative experts through development aid as well as through political dialogue;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
Amendment 73 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Renews its call to the Commission to propose legislation on the supply chain due diligence issue requirements for human rights and social and environmental standards while guaranteeing a level playing field for Union companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with the overarching goal of establishing sustainable, crisis-resilient, human rights respecting value chains; stresses the importance to carry out an impact assessment to design rules that enhance competitiveness, are functional and applicable to all actors on the market, including SMEs, to ensure that such a framework be WTO compliant; recommends that SMEs are provided adequate support and transition time in order to adapt their business operations to the new rules; insists on the importance to engage and consult with all relevant stakeholders in the definition of such a proposal;
Amendment 78 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
Amendment 95 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Considers that Member states should provide for sanctions applicable to infringements of the national provisions adopted in accordance with future due diligence legislation and should take all the measures necessary to ensure that those sanctions are enforced; stresses that the sanctions provided for should take into account the severity and repeated nature of the infringements committed and be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.
Amendment 97 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
Amendment 109 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Stresses that access toprovisions on effective remedy is crucialshould be included; considers that the legislation should obligeset appropriate standards for companies to have an effective grievance mechanism that should be transparent, accessible, predictable, safe, trustworthy and accountable; considers, in addition, that such mechanism should provide for effective judicial remedies to victims of human rights violations, environmental damage and corruption abuses, individually and through collective actions; believes that special protection should be provided to human rights defenders and its lawyers;