21 Amendments of Sabrina PIGNEDOLI related to 2020/2126(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 10 a (new)
Citation 10 a (new)
– having regard to the 2020 Report of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF),
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas on a regular basis, different media outlets all over Europe provide their readers with scandals covering fraud, conflict of interest, corruption and other illegal activities damaging the EUʼs financial interests and involving high-level political representatives in EU Member States, sometimes adopting the structure of, or supported by, criminal organisations;
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas the Pandora Papers published on 3 October 2021 by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists represent the latest major data leak, exposing more than 330 politicians and public officials from almost 100 countries, including 35 current or former heads of states and governments involved in corporate secrecy and offshore tax evasion and avoidance; whereas this scandal follows on from other similar cases yet there has been no effective intervention;
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas the OLAF Report 2020 identified conflict of interest and collusion between beneficiaries and contractors, in particular in the area of public procurement, among the main trends in fraudulent activity; whereas OLAF’s cases often relate to fraud or corruption in cross-border public procurement procedures involving EU funding;
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas Parliament has adopted numerous resolutions through which it has been calling on the Commission to take prompt action and to remedy the alarming misuse of EU funds by politically prominent wealthy individuals, elites and big conglomerates; whereas the Commission has yet to take action on this matter;
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Notes that, in today’s society, ‘oligarchy’ refers to any small, cohesive class or group that is in a position to make decisions or command others in either political or non-political contexts or rule a political community in its own interest, without regard for democracytic rules and sometimes violating fundamental principles;
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Adds that in the current EU political context, the term ‘oligarchy’ is being used as a way of pointing out the influence of the wealthy and powerful in politics and government, and that of economic, financial and industrial actors, who can exercise an influence that is typically used to benefit the few at the expense of the many;
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes, with particular concern, that the occurrence of such oligarchic groups, which sometimes do not refrain from using criminal practices or the support of criminal groups, has reached an unprecedented magnitude in the past several years;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Emphasises that, in order to protect themselves, oligarchic groups seek to gain control over the media and the judiciary so as to avoid media exposure and prosecution of possible criminal activities;
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Notes the considerable ability of oligarchic structures to gain easy access to the substantial resources provided by the NextGenerationEU recovery instrument thanks to the large amount of capital made available and the support of highly qualified professionals; points out, too, that public authorities do not always adequately address the risks and possible distortions affecting the EU’s financial interests;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Considers that promoting competition, enhancing transparency and assuring functional implementation of public procurement rules and free access to markets is fundamental to prevent oligarchs from seizing control of the economy and financial market, which wouldill result in them self-reinforcing to an even greater degree;
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Points out that conflicts of interest do not only occur in relation to fraud and criminal conduct; stresses nevertheless that the consequent detection and disclosure of conflicts of interest is paramount to identifying possible risks of misuse, bias, fraud and corruption in fund management, as well as preventing reputational harm; stresses that situations involving conflicts of interest sow suspicion and distrust among European citizens, and spread the feeling that there is a lack of transparency;
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11a. Reiterates that the citizens of each Member State must be able to trust in the integrity of the management of EU funds in all Member States, and that different standards of protection against conflicts of interest and fraud cannot therefore be applied;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 b (new)
Paragraph 11 b (new)
11b. Notes with concern that fraud against the interests of the Union is increasingly transnational in nature; calls on the Member States to cooperate more closely with one other and with OLAF, Europol and Eurojust to allow effective action to be taken against fraud involving several countries; regrets deeply that some Member States continuously choose not to implement OLAF’s recommendations following the conclusion of an investigation and do not launch judiciary actions to recover defrauded EU funds;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Emphasises that as far as cohesion policy is concerned, the most frequently detected types of fraudulent irregularities for projects financed under the programming period 2014-2020 for European structural and investment funds concern incorrect, missing and false or falsified supporting documents, infringement of contract provisions, eligibility and infringement of public procurement rules, and breaches in relation to ethics and integrity including conflict of interest and corruption; considers it essential to standardise data collection to ensure that data can be shared and accessed in such a way as to allow cross- checking between Member States;
Amendment 89 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Appreciates OLAFʼs long-term intensive investigative activity covering many politically controversial and complex cases; regrets that the indictment rate following recommendations by OLAF to Member States decreased from 53 % in the 2007-2014 period to 37 % in the 2016- 2020 period; further notes that the extent to which financial amounts recommended for recovery are actually recovered has not been assessed in recent years, and that the most recent assessment covering the years 2009 to 2016 indicates a recovery rate of 21 %; calls on OLAF and the Commission to investigate the underlying reasons and calls on the Member States to cooperate closely with EU bodies to ensure that funds misused by organised crime, including mafia groups, and oligarchs are recovered;
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Commends the invaluable work carried out by OLAF, the EPPO and Europol in combating fraud, money laundering and tax evasion, and stresses that these institutions are chronically understaffed and lacking financial resources due to the unwillingness of the Council as one of the budgetary authorities to authorise sufficient human and financial resources during the annual budgetary procedure; calls therefore on the Council to review its position and allow for increased financing of human resources for these agencies and offices, enabling them to carry out their important mission in an appropriate and effective way; welcomes the joint analysis efforts of OLAF and Europol to assess the threats and vulnerabilities of the RRF instrument;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Underlines that the Commission should use all the instruments available under EU financial legislation and the applicable sector-specific and financial rules to effectively protect the EU budget, including interruption of payment deadlines, suspension of payments, financial corrections or exclusion of expenditure from EU financing, infringement proceedings under Article 258 TFEU, checks and audits or, in duly justified cases, the application of Article 7 TEU addressing risks to the foundational values of the EU in the Member States, as has recently been done in the cases of Poland and Hungary;
Amendment 115 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25
Paragraph 25
25. Underlines the important role of investigative journalists in the fight against fraud and illegal activities that negatively impact the EU budget; reiterates in this regard the need to protect investigative journalism from strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), as well as personal harassment, intimidation and threats to life; stresses the importance of encouraging whistleblowing while ensuring legal safeguards under European law;
Amendment 125 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28
Paragraph 28
28. Points out that under the RRF Regulation, which forms part of the MFF 2021-2027 package, the Member States have to ensure the effective prevention, detection and correction of conflicts of interest, corruption and fraud, and avoidance of double funding, fictitious registration of assets, as well as transparency in the payment of funds and strengthening of the rules on the correct identification of the final recipient of funds; stresses that they are also required to explain the relevant arrangements in their recovery and resilience plans and include a summary of the consultation process at national level as well as a presentation of the controls and audit system put in place to ensure that the financial interests of the EU are protected;
Amendment 130 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29
Paragraph 29
29. Underlines that in order to protect the financial interests of the EU and to detect fraud, corruption and conflicts of interest in particular, it is important to know how EU funds are spent and who truly benefits from EU funds, since the largest beneficiaries often hide behind complex ownership structures, including those based in tax havens, rendering the identification process even more opaque;