38 Amendments of Gilles BOYER related to 2021/2251(INI)
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 23 a (new)
Citation 23 a (new)
Amendment 9 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A (new)
Recital A (new)
A. whereas Russia’s aggression in Ukraine on February 24 2022 has led the European Union to impose unprecedented economic sanctions; whereas the conflict generated by Russia has led a high number of Ukrainian citizens to leave Ukraine and to travel and settle in the EU; whereas the military invasion will generate economic and social consequences on the European continent, in particular on Eastern Europe countries;
Amendment 12 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B (new)
Recital B (new)
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Notes that by mid-February 2022, all Member States but one had submitted national recovery and resilience plans (NRRPs), requesting in total EUR 337.5 billion in grants and EUR 166 billion in loans; further highlights that four of these NRRPs are pending assessment by the Commission;
Amendment 15 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C (new)
Recital C (new)
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Notes that out of EUR 385.8 billion available for loans, seven Member States have requested loans amounting EUR 166 billion, leaving a considerable amount available for Member States to request loans at a later stage if needed; urges the European Commission to explore ways in which unused loans could address the economic, social and energy consequences impacting Member States, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine;
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D (new)
Recital D (new)
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Is concerned about the fact that all Member States have received a B-rating for the criteria evaluating whether the estimated total costs of the NRRPs are reasonable; calls on the Commission to ensure that costs are plausible and that proper cost analysis is being conducted in order to tackle fraud and corruption; urges the Commission to evaluate milestones before accepting payment requests and performing disbursements of funds;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Welcomes the Recovery and Resilience Scoreboard that provides an overview of the progress made in the implementation of the NRRPs and thereby fosters the transparency, public scrutiny and accountability of the Facility; welcomes the development of other monitoring tools on implementation at national level by governments, civil society organisations or relevant stakeholders; calls on the Commission to consider the integration of these datasets in the Scoreboard;
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Considers that the reliability of the performance data concerning the targets and milestones of the Facility is of the utmost importance; urges Member States to publicly provide detailed and timely information in order to ensure effective reporting of the impact of the Facility;
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Recalls that serious irregularities such as fraud, corruption, conflicts of interest and double funding, may lead to the reduction of financial contributions or the recovery of funds by the Commission;
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Recalls that irregularities may lead to the reduction of financial contributions or the, delays in disbursement of funds or recovery of funds by the Commission;
Amendment 44 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Stresses that the Commission, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the Court of Auditors and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) mayshall exercise their rights laid down in Article 129(1) of the Financial Regulation with regard to the Facility to ensure prevention, detection and investigation of fraud, conflicts of interest and corruption, and correction of irregularities; asks the Commission to provide information about the measures ensuring the early detection of the abuse of EU funds;
Amendment 48 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Notes with satisfaction from the Commission’s assessments of NRRPs that Member States’ prevention of double funding, arrangements to correct serious irregularities and recovery of funds are in general quite well developed; insists on the necessity of a close cooperation between all EU institutions and bodies as well as with national authorities to ensure the efficient and proper use of funds;
Amendment 53 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Calls on the Commission to encourage Member States to use ARACHNE and, in the meantime, to make sure that the alternative measures to risk- score the entities and individuals involved in implementation of the Facility are equivalent to ARACHNE; highlights the need to ensure a harmonised data collection process and interoperability of ARACHNE with national and local databases; calls on the Commission to make sure that, in addition to the information on the beneficiaries of the programme, data on beneficial owners is also collected by the Member States;
Amendment 63 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes that, according to the Commission, the real GDP of the EU-27 could be around 1.5 % higher in 2024 than without NGEU investments19 , when implemented effectively; notes, furthermore, that the Commission forecasts that RRF grants will fund 24 % of total recovery support measures in 2022; highlights that Russia’s aggression in Ukraine will have economic and social consequences over the continent, particularly in Eastern Europe, that might influence the forecasts; __________________ 19 European Commission discussion paper 144, Quantifying Spillovers of Next Generation EU Investment, July 2021. https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/default/files/ economy-finance/dp144_en.pdf
Amendment 63 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Notes that the absorption of grants under the Facility is projected to be front- loaded with 42 % of the total amount of allocated grants to euro area Member States to be spent by the end of 2022; notes that most grants are geared towards funding private and public investments; recalls that such investments are relatively more prone to errors; calls on the Commission to be vigilant, especially for payment requests from Member States where systematic failures in the management and control systems exist;
Amendment 68 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Calls on the Commission to make approval of the NRRPs conditional on the observance of the rule of law and the prevention and detection of, and the fight against, fraud, conflicts of interest and, corruption and double funding; stresses that all measures set out in the NRRPs must comply with the Union’s values enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Reiterates the importance of the successful implementation by the Member States of national recovery and resilience plans (NRRPs) in order to ensure a long- term impact on the EU economy and society; recalls that the RRF is a performance-based mechanism, whereby funding is disbursed upon completion of milestones and targets related to measures; urges the Commission to use all lessons learned from the creation and implementation of the RRF to shape the new EU economic governance framework;
Amendment 72 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Reiterates its concerns expressed in its resolution of 10 June 2021 on the views of Parliament on the ongoing assessment by the Commission and the Council of the national recovery and resilience plans1 that many Member States have not, or have only inadequately, involved regional and local authorities in the drafting process of the NRRPs; recalls that regional and local authorities and civil society organisations are at the forefront of NRRP local implementation and asks the Commission and the Member States to ensure proper involvement of social partners, civil society, youth organisations and other relevant stakeholders in the implementation of the NRRPs, as well as an effective coordination between the relevant levels of government; _________________ 1 OJ C 67, 8.2.2022, p. 90.
Amendment 122 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9 a. Reminds all Member States and the Commission that the current war in Ukraine poses a serious threat to the EU recovery and resilience strategy; urges the European Commission to explore ways in which unused loans could be requested to tackle the economic, social and energy consequences following Russia’s aggression in Ukraine on February 24 2022;
Amendment 131 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Tasks the Commission with analysing the reasons why the Member States have not requested loans to the full extent of their allocation; calls on the Commission, where relevant, to come forward with targeted measures to incentive the optimal use of the resources available under the RRF, taking into account the new financial needs caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the side-effects of sanctions on Russia;
Amendment 143 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10 b. Recalls that, under Article 21 of the Recovery and Resilience Facility, objective circumstances allow a Member State to make a reasoned request to the Commission to make a proposal to amend or replace the approved plan; recalls that objective circumstances do not include political developments in Member States and insists that the Commission should apply a strict definition of the objective circumstances that justify such an amendment;
Amendment 154 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Looks forward to more granular and disaggregated data allowing for a better understanding of the additionality impacts of the RRF; urges the Member States to provide detailed, transparent and timely information information to the Commission in order to ensure effective reporting of the impact of the RRF;
Amendment 214 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Notes that all approved NRRPs expect to achieve the digital target of at least 20 % set out in the RRF Regulation and that the overall digital expenditure of all approved NRRPs reaches almost 29 % or EUR 130 billion; notes that countries have taken different approaches to supporting SMEs and highlights different initiatives such as measures for tax relief, voucher schemes and R&D incentives, digitalisation and aggregators for available technologies and services to SMEs, or speeding of fund distribution to companies;
Amendment 217 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Underlines the importance that the NRRPs dedicate almost 50 % of total expenditure or EUR 203 billion to measures to benefit the well-functioning of the single market, improving the business environment and promoting private investments; calls on the Member States to lift all unnecessary obstacles that would prevent SMEs from accessing the relevant RRF funding; asks Member States to implement the NRRPS according to a transparent schedule to allow the private sector to plan their activities and projects according to the relevant reforms and funding;
Amendment 238 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Notes that approved NRRPs envisage expenditure on healthcare-related measures of EUR 37 billion, which corresponds to 8 % of total NRRP expenditure; expects these healthcare- related measures to contribute to increasing the resilience of healthcare systems and their preparedness for future crises; is concerned that many Member States did not include sufficient measures to make mental health care accessible and affordable for all age groups, especially in early ages and highlights that mental health should represent an integral part of the EU’s socio-economic recovery from the pandemic and an occupational health priority, in particular in educational and workplace environments;
Amendment 242 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 b (new)
Paragraph 24 b (new)
24 b. Highlights that the pandemic led the Union to prioritize reforms and investments to improve the resilience of public institutions to shocks; stresses that plans also aim to increase the capacity of public administrations to manage European funds effectively at national, regional and local levels; regrets that progress in this area is too slow, especially at regional and local levels, risking the effective and timely use of the funds assigned to each Member State in the context of the RRF;
Amendment 252 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 c (new)
Paragraph 25 c (new)
25 c. Notes that in total so far, Member States have put forward 228 measures with a focus on supporting children and youth; notes that 74% of the measures focus on general, vocational and higher education and training capacity, as well as accessibility; affordability, quality and inclusiveness; including digitisation and infrastructure; further notes that 14% of the measures are dealing with early childhood education and care, early school leaving and child poverty; notes that 12% of the measures focus on tackling youth unemployment through job creation, hiring, job transition incentives and support for self-employment;
Amendment 285 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 d (new)
Paragraph 29 d (new)
29 d. Recalls that the EU objective to have 5G connectivity in all populated areas of the EU by 2030 is of utmost importance but at the same time particularly challenging to achieve; recalls that scattered and inconsistent approaches between Member States risk countries being left behind and the digital gap between them being exacerbated; notes that several RRPs contain investment proposals in 5G connectivity and recalls that Member States should complement these investments with measures for mobile broadband and infrastructure expansion;
Amendment 286 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 e (new)
Paragraph 29 e (new)
29 e. Highlights that synergies between RRF and other Union funding programmes are essential in order to ensure a proper recovery and consolidated resilience of the Union; regrets that some Member States have postponed the presentation of their Operational Programmes for the implementation of the EU structural funds for the period 2021-2027; calls on the Commission to assess the causes of these delays and to address them;
Amendment 287 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 f (new)
Paragraph 29 f (new)
29 f. Underlines the need for complementarity with other EU sources of finance to ensure synergies in EU spending efforts, in particular with cohesion policy funds which cover similar objectives to the RRF but with a focus on more long-term structural actions; calls on Member States and cohesion managing authorities to ensure that the Partnership Agreements are linked to and in complementarity with the RRPs.
Amendment 290 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30
Paragraph 30
30. Notes the Commission assessment that all NRRPs address at least a significant subset of challenges identified in the relevant European Semester recommendations but that not all challenges are addressed, such as sustainability of public finances, tax evasion, tax administration and tax avoidance ensuring stability on the housing market and tackling homelessness, equal access to childcare, structural policies that consolidate competition, public administration red tape and malfunctions of state-owned enterprises, ensuring access to independent civil justice and tackling shadow economy and corruption;
Amendment 315 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32 d (new)
Paragraph 32 d (new)
32 d. Urges the Commission to ensure that the evaluation of the milestones and targets achieved by the Member States as part of their NRRP will be based on rigurous quantitative and qualitative assessment; is concerned that a simple quantitative evaluation of the milestones and targets achieved would lead to a box ticking dynamic in Member States, which would then miss a historical opportunity for long-term structural reforms;
Amendment 316 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32 e (new)
Paragraph 32 e (new)
32 e. Urges Member States to publish periodically up-to-date data on the funds transfered to final recipients, thereby enabling the accurate monitoring of the NRRP implementation;
Amendment 358 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 34 e (new)
Paragraph 34 e (new)
34 e. Encourages the Commission to explore ways to include local and regional governments, as well as civil society organisations in the monitoring of the RRF implementation;
Amendment 373 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 36 a (new)
Paragraph 36 a (new)
36 a. Calls on the Commission to explore and present different scenarios on how to use the RRF experience to improve the EU economic governance framework; emphasises that, in order to ensure proper democratic legitimacy, such framework needs to overcome shortcomings in parliamentary accountability and lack of democratic oversight;
Amendment 375 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 36 b (new)
Paragraph 36 b (new)
36 b. Highlights that the revision of EU economic governance framework will be the opportunity to draw lessons from successes but also failures of the RFF; encourages the Commission to properly think about involvement of local and regional authorities and civil society organisations in any future economic coordination mechanism that will guide investments in EU Member States;