Activities of Sergey LAGODINSKY related to 2023/2122(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Transparency and accountability of non-governmental organisations funded from the EU budget (debate)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on transparency and accountability of non-governmental organisations funded from the EU budget
Legal basis opinions (0)
Amendments (16)
Amendment 1 #
— having regard to its resolution of 8 March 2022 on the shrinking space for civil society in Europe,1a — having regard to the Council Conclusions of 14 March 2023 on the application of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights; The role of the civic space in protecting and promoting fundamental rights in the EU, — having regard to Article 11 of the Treaty on European Union, — having regard to the Charter of Fundamental Rights, and in particular Article 12 thereof, — having regard to Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights, — having regard to its resolution of 7 October 2020 on the establishment of an EU Mechanism on Democracy, the Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights,1b — having regard to the Joint Guidelines on Freedom of Association (CDL- AD(2014)046) adopted by the European Commission for Democracy Through Law (Venice Commission) and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), _________________ 1a OJ C 347, 9.9.2022, p. 2–14. 1b OJ C 395, 29.9.2021, p. 2.
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Recital A (new)
Recital A (new)
A. Whereas civil society organisations play a crucial role in promoting and defending the rights and values enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty of the European Union (TFEU), and the fundamental rights under the EU Charter of fundamental rights both at European and at national level;
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion
Recital B (new)
Recital B (new)
B. Whereas Article 63 TFEU together with Articles 7, 8 and 12 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (the 'Charter') enshrines the freedom of association at all levels and protects non-profit organisations against discriminatory, unnecessary and unjustified restrictions regarding the financing of their activities; whereas the freedom of association is one of the essential bases of a democratic and pluralist society, as it allows citizens to act collectively in fields of mutual interest and to contribute to the proper functioning of public life; whereas freedom of association does not only include the ability to create or dissolve an association but also the ability for that association to operate without unjustified interference by the state; whereas the ability to seek, secure and use resources is essential to the operation of any association;
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion
Recital C (new)
Recital C (new)
C. Whereas the Court of Justice confirmed in its judgment in Case C- 78/18 Commission v Hungary that the obligations of declaration and publicity may, in certain circumstances, be liable to limit the capacity of civil society organisations to receive financial support or to have a deterrent effect on the participation of donors;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion
Recital D (new)
Recital D (new)
D. Whereas the Venice Commission has indicated in its Report on funding of associations that some public disclosure obligations can be imposed on associations with “public utility status”, but those obligations should be limited to information on how the public funds obtained by the association concerned are spent; the disclosure obligations should not be extended to all financing, including from private donors; all reporting should be subject to a duty to respect the rights of donors, beneficiaries and staff, as well as the right to protect business confidentiality; whereas international standards on freedom of association require that no restrictions may be placed on its exercise other than those which are prescribed by law and which are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or public safety, public order, the protection of public health or morals or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion
Recital E (new)
Recital E (new)
E. Whereas the Council Conclusions on the role of civic space and promoting fundamental rights in the EU and the European Parliament report on shrinking civic space in the EU call for the protection of civic space and for the active protection civil society organisations;
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Stresses that civil society is a broader category than that of NGOs; notes that while NGOs are, on the one hand, a favoured institutional form of the neoliberal sta, comprising a variety of not-for-profit, voluntary organisations and entities that embody, promote, and therefore rarely truly oppositional, on the other hand many resist instrumentalisation and expose the excesses of state and private interests; stresses, therefore, that they must be protected, including through the provision of adequate funding, including foreign funding; notes that it is short-sighted to treat NGOs as a singular bloc with a singular policy outlookrepresent common societal interests; notes that NGOs play a key role in enabling citizens’ access to civil, political, economic, social, cultural and environmental rights; stresses, therefore, that they must be protected, including through the provision and access to adequate public funding at all levels, including foreign funding; acknowledges the diversity of NGOs as regards their size, resources and staff;
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Remains deeply concerned by threats to and attacks on NGOs in Member States and at European level, particularly by attempts to restrict NGO’s access to funding by imposing disproportionate administrative burdens on them, imposing negative labels on foreign-funded associations or conducting negative campaigns against civil society organisations receiving foreign funding;
Amendment 68 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls on the Member States and the EU to improve the legal environment for civil society by ensuring that any measure restricting the right of associations to seek, secure and use resources, including foreign resources, must pursue one of the legitimate aims under Article 11(2) of the European Convention on Human Rights, and be fully compliant with fundamental rights in accordance with case law of the Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights, as well as the recommendations of the Venice Commission;
Amendment 76 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4 a. Calls on the Commission to facilitate better access for NGOs to EU funding, particularly by facilitating better support for applicants and by increasing its efforts for innovative approaches such as financial support to third parties (CSOs) by intermediaries as well as increased institutional funding for organisations;
Amendment 80 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4 b. Considers that it would be useful to have consistent data from the Commission on the extent and effectiveness to which different EU programmes support NGOs to enable civic space and participation to bolster democratic resilience from within, as part of their evaluation;
Amendment 83 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Recalls that transparency and accountability measures must be necessary, proportionate, justified, and therefore only serve the purpose of ensuring legitimate public scrutiny; they furthermore must be applied to all beneficiaries of EU funding indiscriminately; stresses that reporting requirements for NGOs must remain strictly necessary and proportionate to the specific aims pursued; insists that any additional reporting obligations should not be unnecessarily burdensome and should take into account the resources, size, and staff available to an organisation and the scope of its activities;
Amendment 92 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5 a. Reminds of the need to focus on the accountability and transparency of the budget, its use and implementation by the beneficiaries, including NGOs, rather than on measures regarding their organisation and governance; warns against introducing further requirements for NGOs as compared to other beneficiaries;
Amendment 98 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Believes that current EU instruments are likely sufficient for achieving proportionate transparency goals concerning NGO funding; calls, however, on the Commission to step up its work for streamlining databases and on increasing user-friendliness of the Financial Transparency System (FTS); stresses that, within the FTS, all types and subtypes of beneficiaries, including for-profit organisations, should be searchable as a category in the register, rather than providing distinct categories just for NGOs or non-profits;
Amendment 123 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Warns emphatically against the weaponisation of the concept of ‘foreign interference’ and emphasises that this can be and is being used by governments to repress and stigmatize civil society and NGOs.
Amendment 126 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7 a. Calls on the Commission to propose a regulation that establishes interest representation registers in the Member States, which sets equal transparency requirements for all organisations that seek to influence policy outcomes, independent of their legal status and sources of funding;