Activities of Katalin CSEH related to 2022/0051(COD)
Plenary speeches (1)
Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence (debate)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937
Amendments (23)
Amendment 291 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 12
Recital 12
(12) This Directive is in coherence with the EU Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy 2020-202499 . This Action Plan defines as a priority to strengthen the Union’s engagement to actively promote the global implementation of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and other relevant international guidelines such as the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, including by advancing relevant due diligence standards. _________________ 99 Joint Communication to the European Parliament and the Council on the EU Action Plan on HThe Action Plan also emphasises the importance of the fight against corruption along the lines of the UN Convention against Corruption, recognising that corruption facilitates, perpetuates and institutionalises human Rrights and Democracy 2020-2024 (JOIN/2020/5 final)violations and hinders the observance and implementation of human rights.
Amendment 297 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 16
Recital 16
(16) The due diligence process set out in this Directive should cover the six steps defined by the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct, which include due diligence measures for companies to identify and address adverse human rights and environmental impacts. This encompasses the following steps: (1) integrating due diligence into policies and management systems, (2) identifying and assessing adverse human rights and environmental impacts, (3) preventing, ceasing or minimising actual and potential adverse human rights, and environmental impacts, (4) assessing the effectiveness of measures, (5) communicating, (6) providing remediation. The OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct also includes detailed recommendations to ensure meaningful stakeholder involvement and access to justice, including guidance to remove barriers to engagement with vulnerable stakeholder groups.
Amendment 344 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 55
Recital 55
(55) In order to ensure consistent application and enforcement of national provisions adopted pursuant to this Directive, national supervisory authorities should cooperate and coordinate their action. For that purpose a European Network of Supervisory Authorities should be set up by the Commission and the supervisory authorities should assist each other in performing their tasks and provide mutual assistance. In order to safeguard the level playing field and mitigate risks of forum-shopping arising from decentralised enforcement, the Commission should support Member States with guidelines on application and enforcement, and monitor adherence to these guidelines through the European Semester for policy coordination, and address potential shortcomings in country-specific recommendations.
Amendment 381 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – introductory part
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – introductory part
(b) the company did not reach the thresholds under point (a), but had more than 250 employees on average worldwide and had a net worldwide turnover of more than EUR 40 million in the last financial year for which annual financial statements have been prepared, provided that at least 50% of this net turnover was generated in one or more of the following sectors:
Amendment 383 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point i
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point i
(i) the manufacture of textiles, wearing apparel, leather and related products (including footwear), and the wholesale trade of textiles, clothing and footwear;
Amendment 384 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point iii
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point iii
(iii) the extraction of mineral resources regardless from where they are extracted (including crude petroleum, natural gas, coal, lignite, metals and metal ores, as well as all other, non-metallic minerals and quarry products), the manufacture of basic metal products, other non-metallic mineral products and fabricated metal products (except machinery and equipment), the manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products, the manufacture of electrical equipment, and the wholesale trade of mineral resources, basic and intermediate mineral products (including metals and metal ores, construction materials, fuels, chemicals and other intermediate products).
Amendment 387 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point iii a (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point iii a (new)
(iii a) construction and civil engineering (including construction of roads, railways, bridges and tunnels, utility and water projects);
Amendment 389 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point iii b (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point iii b (new)
(iii b) financial services, real estate activities, legal and accounting activities (including auditing), management consultancy activities.
Amendment 400 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point c
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point c
(c) ‘adverse human rights impact’ means an adverse impact on protected persons resulting from the violation of one of the rights or prohibitions listed in the Annex, Part I Section 1, as enshrined in the international conventions listed in the Annex, Part I Section 2, that Annex shall be reviewed on a regular basis and be consistent with the Union’s objectives on human rights. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 17, to amend the list in Annex I, Section 1;
Amendment 405 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point c a (new)
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point c a (new)
(c a) ‘adverse impact on good governance’ means any potential or actual adverse impact on the good governance of a country, region or territory, as set in Annex I, Section 3 to this Directive. That Annex shall be reviewed on a regular basis and be consistent with the Union’s objectives on good governance. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 17, to amend the list in Annex I, Section 3;
Amendment 419 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point n
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point n
(n) ‘stakeholders’ means the company’s employees, the employees of its subsidiaries, and other individuals, groups, communities or entities whose rights or interests are or could be affected by the products, services and operations of that company, its subsidiaries and its business relationships; workers and employees (including under informal arrangements), the workers and employees of its subsidiaries (including under informal arrangements), trade unions, consumers and end-users of products or services, civil society organisations, human rights and environmental defenders, witnesses and victims of corruption crimes perpetrated by the company, and other individuals, groups, communities or entities whose rights or interests are or could be affected by the products, services and operations of that company, its subsidiaries and its business relationships throughout the entire value chain; ‘vulnerable stakeholders’ means individuals or groups facing heightened risks of vulnerability or marginalisation, such as women, indigenous peoples, national or ethnic minorities, religious and linguistic minorities, children, persons with disabilities, and migrant workers and their families, in case of whom the adverse impact can be more severe or manifest differently, and who may need additional attention in the context of stakeholder engagement activities;
Amendment 423 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point n a (new)
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point n a (new)
(n a) ‘meaningful stakeholder engagement’ means interactive processes of engagement with relevant stakeholders taking place through, for example, meetings, hearings or consultation proceedings, characterised by two-way communication, conducted in good faith, in a responsive manner (involving the timely provision of all information needed by stakeholders), conducted on an on- going basis (not as a one-off endeavour), involving proper follow-through on implementation of agreed commitments, involving the identification and removal of potential barriers to engagement faced by vulnerable stakeholders (such as language, culture, gender and power imbalances, divisions within the community) and ensuring the safe participation of stakeholders without fear of reprisal;
Amendment 456 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 4
Article 6 – paragraph 4
4. Member States shall ensure that, for the purposes of identifying the adverse impacts referred to in paragraph 1 based on, where appropriate, quantitative and qualitative information, companies are entitled to make use of appropriate resources, including independent reports and information gathered through the complaints procedure provided for in Article 9. Companies shall, where relevant, also carry out consultations carry out meaningful stakeholder engagement with potentially affected individuals and groups including workers and other relevant stakeholders to gather information on actual or potential adverse impacts, with due attention to identifying and removing the barriers of meaningful engagement faced by vulnerable stakeholders.
Amendment 463 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 7 – paragraph 2 – point a
Article 7 – paragraph 2 – point a
(a) where necessary due to the nature or complexity of the measures required for prevention, develop and implement a prevention action plan, with reasonable and clearly defined timelines for action and qualitative and quantitative indicators for measuring improvement. The prevention action plan shall be developed in consultation with affected stakeholderthrough meaningful stakeholder engagement, with due attention to vulnerable stakeholders, and draw on the expertise of civil society organisations;
Amendment 484 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 8 – paragraph 3 – point a
Article 8 – paragraph 3 – point a
(a) neutralise the adverse impact or minimise its extent, including by the payment of damages directly to the affected persons and of financial compensation directly to the affected communities, assessing whether women and vulnerable stakeholders benefit equitably in compensation payments or other forms of restitution. The action shall be proportionate to the significance and scale of the adverse impact and to the contribution of the company’s conduct to the adverse impact, and aim to restore the affected persons to the situation they would be in, had the adverse impact not occurred (if possible). The type of remedy or combination of remedies may include restitution or rehabilitation, apologies, financial or non-financial compensation, punitive sanctions, taking measures to prevent future adverse impacts;
Amendment 493 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 8 – paragraph 3 – point b
Article 8 – paragraph 3 – point b
(b) where necessary due to the fact that the adverse impact cannot be immediately brought to an end, develop and implement a corrective action plan with reasonable and clearly defined timelines for action and qualitative and quantitative indicators for measuring improvement. Where relevant, tThe corrective action plan shall be developed in consultation with stakeholderthrough the meaningful involvement of stakeholders, on an ongoing basis, with proper follow- through on implementation of agreed commitments;
Amendment 513 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point a
Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point a
(a) persons who are affected or have reasonablindividuals, groups, communities or entities whose rights or interests are or could be affected by an adverse impact of the gprounds to believe that they might be affected by an adverse impactducts, services and operations of that company, its subsidiaries and its business relationships throughout the entire value chain,
Amendment 522 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point c
Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point c
(c) civil society organisations, human rights and environmental defenders active in the areas related to the value chain concerned.
Amendment 524 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point c a (new)
Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point c a (new)
(c a) victims and witnesses of corruption crimes perpetrated by companies, such as the obstruction of justice, bribery or embezzlement of property.
Amendment 530 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 4 – point a
Article 9 – paragraph 4 – point a
(a) to request appropriate, timely and effective follow-up on the complaint from the company with which they have filed a complaint pursuant to paragraph 1, and
Amendment 534 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 4 – point b a (new)
Article 9 – paragraph 4 – point b a (new)
(b a) to participate in a procedure that is legitimate, accessible, predictable, safe, equitable, transparent, rights-compatible, adaptable and based on meaningful engagement.
Amendment 537 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 4 a (new)
Article 9 – paragraph 4 a (new)
4 a. Member States shall ensure that recourse to complaints procedures should not preclude claimants from having unhindered access to judicial mechanisms.
Amendment 547 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1
Article 13 – paragraph 1
In order to provide support to companies or to Member State authorities on how companies should fulfil their due diligence obligations, the Commission, in consultation with Member States and stakeholders, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, the European Environment Agency, and where appropriate with international bodies having expertise in due diligence, may issue guidelines, including for specific sectors or specific adverse impacts. Given the importance of uniform implementation across Member State authorities to ensure a level playing field, adherence to these guidelines should be monitored through the European Semester for policy coordination, and potential shortcomings addressed in country-specific recommendations.