Activities of Carmen AVRAM related to 2020/2058(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Sustainable Europe Investment Plan - How to finance the Green Deal (debate)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the Sustainable Europe Investment Plan - how to finance the Green Deal
Amendments (28)
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Expects that under the future multiannual financial framework (MFF), the contribution to the agricultural and rural development domain will be maintained, in real terms, at least at current levels; insists that any additional measures relating to the green transition be financed with fresh money and additional EU own resources that will go beyond the MFF proposal;
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Takes note of the Commission communication on the Sustainable Europe Investment Plan (COM(2020)0021), but emphasises that the elements proposed within it, including the Just Transition Fund, depend entirely on an ambitious MFF agreement; expresses its deep concern that the front-loading of EU budget funds to cover new spending requirements stemming from the COVID- 19 pandemic may deprive EU farmers of funding in the latter years of the MFF, which would be particularly damaging if they are expected to comply with newrigorous obligations under the Green Deal;
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A (new)
Recital -A (new)
-A. whereas all sectors of the EU economy will be impacted by the transition towards a sustainable economy,
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Welcomes the Commission’s proposals on the MFF and the Next Generation EU, including the additional resources of EUR 32.5 billion for the Just Transition Fund and EUR 1 billion for the European Fund for Sustainable Development, to facilitate the European Investment Fund to provide support to a wide range of small and medium-sized enterprises;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Calls on the European Commission and the Member States to utilise the Recovery and Resilience Facility, where appropriate, to provide complementary support to European farmers and cooperative businesses to coherently cope with the challenges deriving from the need to ensure compliance with new rules and to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change in a manner that does not threaten food production and respects the principle of sustainability;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A (new)
Recital -A (new)
-A. whereas the European Green Deal is a growth strategy and should lead to sustainable and inclusive economic growth, job creation and ensure the strategic autonomy of the EU,
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A (new)
Recital -A (new)
-A. whereas the Covid-19 sanitary crisis underlines the importance of investments in a socially and environmentally sustainable economy, in particular investments promoting cutting edge R&D, competitive industry, deepening and strengthening of the single market, strong SMEs, healthcare, a strong welfare system and social wellbeing,
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Recalls that a significant percentage of the common agricultural policy (CAP) envelope, which represents the larges a significant share of the EU budget, will be set aside to support climate-related objectives; recalls that the reform of the CAP is still ongoing and that no decision has yet been made on the exact contribution to environmental and climate-related objectives and requirements; recalls also that the Commission evaluation deemed the CAP to be the appropriate framework to develop the targets in the European Green Deal and for this reason it must be adequately funded;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A (new)
Recital -A (new)
-A. whereas the spending required to support European economies raise the question of how incurred debt will be repaid; whereas it is important to prevent the increase in inequalities suffered following the previous crisis, where the burden on citizens was increased to bail out banks,
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A (new)
Recital -A (new)
-A. whereas tax exemptions for the aviation and maritime sectors may also distort competition between industrial sectors and may promote inefficient and polluting modes of transport,
Amendment 52 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Points out that the recent COVID- 19 outbreak has revealed the strategic role that agriculture plays in providing safe and high-quality food at affordable prices; insists that efforts made by EU farmers to produce food more sustainably must not be undermined by the import of products from third countries that do not meet the EU’s food safety, environmental protection, animal welfare and social standards.EU’s food safety, environmental conditionality, animal welfare and social standards apply fully to the import of products from third countries, completing the efforts made by EU farmers to produce food more sustainably;
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Welcomes the Commission’s European Recovery Plan with the European Green Deal at its heart; endorses the underlying principle that public investments will respect the oath to ‘do no harm’; highlights that this oath applies to both social and environmental objectives; emphasises that national recovery and resilience plans should put the EU on the path to a 50 % to 55 % reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 1990 and climate neutrality by 2050 while providing sufficient guarantees to ensure social equity in the sustainable transition;
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Questions whether the SEIP, as currently constituted, will enable the mobilisation of EUR 1 trillion by 2030, given the negative economic outlook following the COVID-19 crisis; requests the Commission to ensure full transparency on financing issues, such as the optimistic leverage effect or the lack of clarity over the extrapolations of certain amounts; furthermore questions how the new MFF as proposed by the Commission in its revised proposals of 27 and 28 May 2020 would enable the achievement of the SEIP targets; regrets that the SEIP alone will not be sufficient to finance the objectives of the Green Deal and that additional investments will have a decisive role in the success of the Green Deal; calls on the Commission and EU Member States to come forward with plans that explain how they will bridge the considerable investment gap with both private and public investments;
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Calls for the issuing of long-term common bonds to contribute to financing the recovery and the just and sustainable transition;
Amendment 145 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Amendment 171 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Calls for the gradual phasing-out of public and private investments in highly polluting and harmful industries for which economically feasible alternatives are available, while fully respecting the legitimate rights of Member States to choose their energy mix according to their specific situation and needs;
Amendment 307 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Reaffirms its previous position regarding candidates for new own resources, and calls on the Commission to propose new own resources which correspond to essential EU objectives including the fight against climate change and the protection of the environment; asks, therefore, for the introduction of new own resources based on the auction revenues of the Emissions Trading System, a contribution on non-recycled plastic packaging waste, the future Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base or a precursor based on operations of large enterprises, an EU tax on digital companies by the end of 2020, and a financial transaction tax;
Amendment 312 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Amendment 317 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14a. Regrets the U.S. decision to withdraw from the global digital tax talks under the OECD framework; recalls the urgency and the need of a digital tax adapted to the reality of the new century; calls the European Commission to put a new European proposal on the table by the end of 2020;
Amendment 322 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 b (new)
Paragraph 14 b (new)
14b. Calls on all Member States to join the enhanced cooperation framework to implement a Financial Transaction Tax;
Amendment 347 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)
Paragraph 15 a (new)
15a. Considers that for the EIB to play a successful role in financing the Green Deal, a bottom-up and participatory approach is crucial, and to better coordinate with various stakeholders, such as local and regional authorities and representatives from civil society;
Amendment 361 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Recognises the important role of the national promotional banks and institutions and of international financial institutions (IFIs), including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the World Bank, in the financing of sustainable projects, thereby contributing to the achievement of the goals of the Paris Agreement;
Amendment 371 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Recalls the statement of the ECB President that the ECB is supporting the development of a taxonomy as a way of facilitating the incorporation of environmental considerations in central bank portfolios; calls on the ECB to evaluate the feasibility of including sustainability criteria in its collateral framework and its annual stress testing exercise, while assessing ways to guide lending towards energy transition investments and to rebuild a sustainable economy in the aftermath of the COVID- 19 crisis; encourages the ECB to move forward with its monetary policy review in order to evaluate the financing of economic activities causing significant harm to environmental and social objectives; calls on the ECB to disclose annually its degree of alignment with the Paris Agreement and its exposure to the EU taxonomy;
Amendment 464 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Calls for the introduction of an enabling framework for public sustainable investments to collectively achieve the goals set out in the European Green Deal, but stresses that whatever financing model is chosen must not undermine the sustainability of public finance in the EU; supports the commitment by EVP Dombrovskis to explore how taxonomy can be used in the public sector; calls for public support for airlines to be used in a sustainable and efficient manner;
Amendment 510 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 a (new)
Paragraph 24 a (new)
24a. Calls for companies benefitting from public support to commit to public country-by-country reporting, to respect their non-financial reporting obligations and to guarantee jobs, and disclose any beneficial treatment received; urges that such companies should fairly contribute to the recovery efforts by paying their fair share of taxes; seeks in this context a new social contract for corporates, harmonizing aims for profit with considerations for people and planet;
Amendment 534 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26
Paragraph 26
26. Invites the Commission to revise the Energy Tax Directive to increase relevant minimum excise duties that lost their effect due to inflation, end current tax exemptions to kerosene and maritime fuels, and coordinate a kerosene tax that could also feed into the EU budget;
Amendment 545 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 a (new)
Paragraph 26 a (new)
26a. Recalls that tax evasion and tax avoidance cause potential lost resources for national and EU budgets quantified as ranging from €50-70 billion to€160-190 billion;1a therefore seeks an intensified fight against tax fraud, tax evasion and tax avoidance and aggressive tax planning ; calls on the Commission to establish criteria on which it assesses EU Member State that would result in a black-list of EU Member States facilitating tax avoidance and to draft binding tax compliance plans for these Member States; __________________ 1aEuropean Parliament, EPRS, Bringing transparency, coordination and convergence to corporate tax policies in the European Union: I - Assessment of the magnitude of aggressive corporate tax planning, Study, 2015
Amendment 546 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 b (new)
Paragraph 26 b (new)
26b. Calls on Member States that are accused of facilitating tax avoidance to implement a minimum effective tax rate of 18% on all profits generated at Member State level, including profits shifted to tax havens through passive income such as interests and royalties payments or other base erosion and profit shifting tools so as to fight tax avoidance and mobilise resources to finance the sustainable and just transition.