43 Amendments of Fabienne KELLER related to 2021/2071(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation -1 a (new)
Citation -1 a (new)
— having regard to Articles 2 and 7 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU),
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 3 a (new)
Citation 3 a (new)
— having regards to its resolution of 10 June 2021 on the rule of law situation in the European Union and the application of the Conditionality Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/20921a _________________ 1a Texts adopted, P9_TA(2021)0287.
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 3 a (new)
Citation 3 a (new)
— having regard to the Commission communication of 30 September 2020 on the 2020 Rule of Law Report – the rule of law situation in the European Union (COM(2020)0580),
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 3 b (new)
Citation 3 b (new)
— having regard to the Commission’s reasoned proposal for a Council decision of 20 December 2017 on the determination of a clear risk of a serious breach by the Republic of Poland of the rule of law, issued in accordance with Article 7(1) of the Treaty on European Union (COM(2017)0835),
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Regrets the Commission’s intention to develop guidelines for the application of the Regulation; Reiterates that the application of the Rule of Law Conditionality Regulation cannot be subject to the adoption of guidelines, and urges the Commission to avoid any further delay in its application;
Amendment 7 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A (new)
Recital -A (new)
-A. whereas the conditionality mechanism set out by the Regulation was part of the overall political agreement on the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2021-2027, the Next Generation EU (NGEU) recovery plan and the Own Resources Decision, and should not be delayed in its application, in particular with regard to the application of the aforementioned instruments;
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Stresses that measures under the Regulation are necessary in particular in cases where other procedures set out in Union legislation would not allow the Union budget to be protected more efficiently; recalls that clear cases of breaches of the rule of law in several Member States are left unpunished and undermine the EU's financial interests;
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A a (new)
Recital -A a (new)
-A a. whereas the volume of the MFF 2021-2027 and the NGEU represents an unprecedented budget for the EU in its history that aims to support EU’s economic and social recovery following the consequences of the EU-Covid pandemic, and therefore requires more than ever timely and proper application of the principles of the sound financial management, as well as the protection of EU’s financial interests;
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Notes that after the Commission has begun to draft guidelines on the application of the Regulation; requests that, if the Commission deems such guidelines necessary, Parliament be consulted prior to their adopdecided to preprare the Guidelines the Parliament in its resolution of 25 March 2021 on the application of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2092, the rule-of-law conditionality mechanism requested the Commission to submit the guidelines by 1 June 2021 the latest; regrets that the Commission has handed over the draft guidelines on the application of the Regulation with 2 weeks delay; is of the opinion that the draft guidelines in its current form do not contain any additional information, which could contribute to the proper application of the regulation; concludes therefore that the Commission’s guidelines are partof its delaying tactic of the application of the regulation;
Amendment 9 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A b (new)
Recital -A b (new)
-A b. whereas according to the Regulation, respect for the rule of law is an essential precondition for compliance with the principles of sound financial management;
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas the Commission decided to abide by the non-binding European Council conclusions of December 2020 and declared that it would develop guidelines for the application of the Regulation;
Amendment 13 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
B a. whereas, in its resolution of 25 March 2021 on the application of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2092, the rule-of-law conditionality mechanism, Parliament requested the Commission to adopt the guidelines no later than 1 June 2021 and after having consulted Parliament;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Deplores the time wasted by the Commission since the entry into force of the Regulation; urges the Commission to act without any further delay in the application of the Regulation and to investigate swiftly and thoroughly any potential breaches of the principles of the rule of law in the Member States that affect or seriously risk affecting the sound financial management of the Union budget or the protection of the financial interests of the Union in a sufficiently direct way; reiterates that the situation in some Member States already warrants immediate investigation under the Regulation;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2 b. Is strongly of the opinion that the Parliament has to continue its necessary preparations for potential court proceedings under Article 265 of the TFEU against the Commission; is of the opinion that non-action or slow action by the Commission is a strong political signal not only to the European institutions and the Member States but also to the European citizens;
Amendment 15 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Takes note of the Commission’s intention to develop guidelines for the application of the Regulation; reiterates once again its view that the text of the Regulation is clear and does not require any additional interpretation in order to be applied; further stresses that the legislators have not conferred implementing or executive powers to the Commission to precise the application of the Regulation;
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Recalls that any guidelines must not undermine the adopted regulation or the intention of the co-legislators; stresses that the legislators did not empower the Commission to adopt guidelines, implementing or executive acts to clarify the conditions of application of the Regulation; asks the Commission to avoid strict or exhaustive definitions of the concepts, as this would be in contradiction with the Regulation; considers that interpretation of abstract concepts is a dynamic process which cannot be predefined in one document; believes that the guidelines should fully respect the interpretation of relevant concepts by the Court of Justice of the European Union and the Venice Commission.
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Takes note ofRegrets the Commission’s intention to develop guidelines for the application of the Regulation; reiterates once again its view that the text of the Regulation is clear and does not require any additional interpretation in order to be applied;
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Considers that the Commission’s annual Rule of Law report constitutes an objective, impartial, fair, and qualitative assessment of breaches of the principles of rule of law; believes that where the conclusions of the annual reports highlight individual or systemic breaches of the rule of law which affect or seriously risk affecting the sound financial management of the Union budget or the protection of the financial interests of the Union in a sufficiently direct way, they should be directly linked to the triggering of the Conditionality Mechanism; calls on the Commission to clarify a methodology to create a clear and direct link, when relevant, between the annual reports and the Conditionality Mechanism;
Amendment 24 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Highlights that guidelines are not legally binding and by no means could delay the application of the Regulation already in force; notes that the Commission is deviating from its usual practice of drafting guidelines for the application of a legal act only in cases where the actual implementation of the act over a certain period of time shows the need for guidance;
Amendment 25 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Calls on the Commission to clarify in the guidelines that breaches of the rule of law in a Member State which result from decisions or events that took place prior to 1 January 2021 still fall within the scope of the Regulation as long as their effect is still ongoing;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Highlights that guidelines are not legally binding; notdeplores that the Commission is deviating from its usual practice of drafting guidelines for the application of a legal act only in cases where the actual implementation of the act over a certain period of time shows the need for guidance;
Amendment 27 #
3 b. Highlights that civil society, including independent NGOs and citizens, is at the forefront to identify potential breaches of the rule of law at local and national level, and should therefore be involved in their reporting; calls on the Commission to establish, in the guidelines, an efficient, user-friendly, and easily accessible online one-stop shop for citizens and civil society to report both fraud and corruption cases related to EU Funds, as well as individual or systemic breaches in their Member State, guaranteeing anonymity and leading, where deemed relevant by its services, to further investigations by the OLAF, the EPPO or the Commission;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Strongly regrets the Commission’s failure to respond to Parliament’s request and to adopt its guidelines by 1 June 2021; reiterates its call on the Commission to draft the guidelines as soon as possible in close cooperation with Parliament ; reminds the Commission that Parliament already started the necessary preparations for potential court proceedings under Article 265 of the TFEU against the Commission;
Amendment 30 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3 c. Recalls that the Regulation provides a clear definition of the rule of law, which must be understood in relation to the other values of the Union, including fundamental rights and non- discrimination; is of the opinion that state-sponsored discrimination against minorities has a direct impact on the projects on which Member States decide or not to spend EU money, and therefore directly affects the protection of the financial interests of the Union;
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 d (new)
Paragraph 3 d (new)
3 d. Believes that transparency is essential to foster the confidence of Member States and citizens in the Conditionality Mechanism:points out that each step of the procedure of the Regulation should therefore be taken in a fully transparent way; Calls therefore on the Commission to set-up the transparency rules and principles that it will apply when triggering the Conditionality Mechanism;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. UStresses that measures under the Regulation are necessary in particular in cases where other procedures set out in Union legislation would not allow the Union budget to be protected more efficiently; therefore urges the Commission to avoid any further delay in the application of the Regulation and to investigate swiftly and thoroughly any potential breaches of the principles of the rule of law in the Member States that affect or seriously risk affecting the sound financial management of the Union budget or the protection of the financial interests of the Union in a sufficiently direct way; reiterates that the situation in some Member States already warrants immediate investigation under the Regulation, in particular Member States already under the procedure of Article 7 TEU;
Amendment 35 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. UDeplores the time wasted by the Commission since the entry into force of the Regulation; urges the Commission to avoidct without any further delay in the application of the Regulation and to investigate swiftly and thoroughly any potential breaches of the principles of the rule of law in the Member States that affect or seriously risk affecting the sound financial management of the Union budget or the protection of the financial interests of the Union in a sufficiently direct way; reiterates that the situation in some Member States already warrants immediate investigation under the Regulation;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. AskRequests the Commission to report to Parliament on a quarterly or semi-annual basis regarding new and ongoing cases under investigation, starting as soon as possible with the first cases;
Amendment 46 #
6 a. Calls on the Commission to clarify in the guidelines that breaches of the rule of law in a Member state which result from decisions or events that took place prior to 1 January 2021 still fall within the scope of the regulation as long as their effect is still ongoing;
Amendment 51 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Draws particular attention to the list of indicative breaches of the principles of the rule of law laid down in Article 3 of the Regulation; calls onurges the Commission to investigate potential occurrences of the breaches included in that list in the Member States, while pointing out that other practices or omissions by public authorities may also be relevant;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Recalls that identification of breaches of the principles of the rule of law requires objective, impartial, fair and thorough qualitative assessment by the Commission, taking into account relevant information from available sources and recognised institutions; in particular, calls on the Commission to take materials from EU bodies, such as the Court of Justice of the European Union, the Court of Auditors, the Commission’s annual Rule of Law Report and EU Justice Scoreboard, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), or from international organisations, such as the Council of Europe;
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. Considers that the Commission’s annual Rule of Law report constitutes an objective, impartial, fair, and qualitative assessment of breaches of the principles of rule of law; believes that where the conclusions of the annual reports highlight individual or systemic breaches of the rule of law which affect or seriously risk affecting the sound financial management of the Union budget or the protection of the financial interests of the Union in a sufficiently direct way, they should be directly linked to the triggering of the conditionality mechanism; calls on the Commission to clarify, in the guidelines, a methodology to create a clear and direct link, when relevant, between the annual reports and the conditionality mechanism;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Paragraph 8 b (new)
8 b. Highlights that civil society, including independent NGOs and citizens, is at the forefront to identify potential breaches of the rule of law at local and national level, and should therefore be involved in their reporting; calls on the Commission to establish, in the guidelines, an efficient, user-friendly, and easily accessible online one-stop shop for citizens and civil society to report both fraud and corruption cases related to EU Funds, as well as individual or systemic breaches in their Member State, guaranteeing anonymity and leading, where deemed relevant by its services, to further investigations by the OLAF, the EPPO or the Commission;
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10 a. Recalls that the Regulation provides a clear definition of the rule of law, which must be understood in relation to the other values of the Union, including fundamental rights and non- discrimination; is of the opinion that state-sponsored discrimination against minorities has a direct impact on the projects on which Member States decide or not to spend EU money, and therefore directly affects the protection of the financial interests of the Union; calls on the Commission to take this into account when drafting the guidelines;
Amendment 80 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Recalls that measures under the Regulation are necessary in particular in cases where other procedures set out in Article 7 TEU, in the Common Provision Regulation (CPR), in the Financial regulation or in other sector-specific or financial legislation would not allow the Union budget to be protected more effectively; stresses that this does not mean that the Regulation is to be considered as a ‘last resort’, but rather that the Commission can use a wide range of procedures to protect the Union’s financial interests, to be chosen on a case- by-case basis depending on their efficiency and effectiveness;
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Underlines that ‘systemic’ breaches, for instance those affecting the functioning of the justice system, the independence of judges or the neutrality of public authorities, have in general a clear inand direct impact on the proper management, spending and control of Union funds;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Recalls that Articles 6 and 7 of the Regulation sets out all steps and a precise timeline for the adoption and lifting of measures under the Regulation; underlines that the procedure for adopting and lifting measures respects the principles of objectivity, non-discrimination and equal treatment of Member States and is to be conducted using a non-partisan and evidence-based approach;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 3 a (new)
Subheading 3 a (new)
Transparency
Amendment 98 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)
Paragraph 15 a (new)
15 a. Believes that transparency is essential to foster the confidence of Member States and citizens in the conditionality mechanism: points out that each step of the procedure of the Regulation should therefore be taken in a fully transparent way;
Amendment 99 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 b (new)
Paragraph 15 b (new)
15 b. Calls on the Commission to set up, in the guidelines, the transparency rules and principles that it will apply when triggering the Conditionality Mechanism;
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 c (new)
Paragraph 15 c (new)
15 c. Believes that transparency implies, in particular: - disclosing the sources used by the Commission to trigger the Mechanism, - disclosing the content of the written notifications sent to the Members States, - disclosing the answers received from the Member States and the remedies proposed, - disclosing the Commission’s assessment leading to the potential lifting of adopted measures under the Mechanism, - keeping the European Parliament informed and involved at every step of the process to ensure the democratic scrutiny of the Mechanism and of EU funds;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16 a. Recalls that under the Regulation, it is essential that the legitimate interest of final recipients and beneficiaries are properly safeguarded;
Amendment 111 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 a (new)
Paragraph 18 a (new)
18 a. Recalls that the Regulation shall be applied in a manner that ensures the protection of persons reporting on breaches of Union law, in line with the principles set out in Directive (EU) 2019/1937;