12 Amendments of Rainer WIELAND related to 2013/2013(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas, subject to Protocol 30 of the Treaty, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union has already acquired legally binding force through the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon1 ; whereas the right of citizens to submit petitions to the European Parliament has already been enshrined in the Treaty since the entry into force of the Maastricht Treaty on 1 November 1993; whereas Parliament objects to the restrictive interpretation of the scope of application of the Charter put forth by the European Commission; whereas the same Treaty also establishes the legal basis for the EU to accede to the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as the European Citizens’ Initiative;
Amendment 9 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
Amendment 52 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital O a (new)
Recital O a (new)
Oa. whereas individuals and local communities, as well as voluntary organisations and businesses, are well placed to assess the effectiveness of European legislation as it applies to them, and to signal possible loopholes that need to be analysed in order to ensure better, more uniform and comparable implementation of EU law in all the Member States;
Amendment 53 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital O b (new)
Recital O b (new)
Ob. whereas the Judgment of 14 September 2011 in Case T-308/07 made it clear that procedural decisions by Parliament in petition cases are also subject to judicial review;
Amendment 54 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital O c (new)
Recital O c (new)
Oc. whereas the efficiency of the Committee’s work is largely the result of swiftness and thoroughness, and this could be improved further, in particular by optimising the time taken to process petitions and by systematising the procedure for their assessment;
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Considers that an interactive guide placed on the Internet by the European Parliament, by analogy with what the European Ombudsman has placed on the Internet, could reduce the number of petitions submitted which do not fall within the field of activity of the EU;
Amendment 66 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Confirms the key role of the Committee on Petitions in identifying non-judicial remedies for citizens, thus providing a reality check on the way in which the European Union is seen by the people of Europe, enabling conclusions to be drawn regarding whether European legislation actually delivers the expected results and responds to what people expect of the Union;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2c. Calls on the Committee on Petitions to examine the effects of the Equal Rights Trust case law on the admissibility of petitions and to investigate the question of what actual obstacles exist for citizens of the Union in obtaining a reliable interpretation of central issues under European legislation in cases before the national courts by applying for a preliminary ruling from the European Court of Justice;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2d. As part of the efforts to improve the work of the Committee, calls for a procedure involving fact-finding missions that on the one hand ensures the right of all members of a fact-finding mission to present the facts from their point of view, while also guaranteeing all Committee members the opportunity to participate in the decision-making process in regard to the conclusions to be drawn by the Committee on Petitions;
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 e (new)
Paragraph 2 e (new)
2e. Emphasises the need for continuity in processing petitions, despite the changes in legislative periods and the resulting changes in personnel;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 f (new)
Paragraph 2 f (new)
2f. Is determined to make the petition procedure more efficient, transparent, and impartial, while preserving the participatory rights of the Members of the Committee on Petitions, so that the handling of petitions will stand up to judicial review even at a procedural level;
Amendment 84 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Takes the view that procedures must be developed for urgent petitions whereby fact-finding missions can also be carried out in the long ‘white’ period with no parliamentary business during the European elections and also – if the nature of the petition suggests it – during the ‘white’ period in summer (e.g. Damüls, where the summer months were the only possible time for a fact-finding mission);