Activities of Kateřina KONEČNÁ related to 2022/0115(COD)
Plenary speeches (1)
Geographical indication protection for craft and industrial products (debate)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on geographical indication protection for craft and industrial products and amending Regulations (EU) 2017/1001 and (EU) 2019/1753 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Decision (EU) 2019/1754
Amendments (34)
Amendment 119 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 3
Recital 3
(3) For many years, geographical indication protection has been established at Union level for wines, spirit drinks6 , aromatised wines7 , as defined at Union level, as well as agricultural products and foodstuffs8 , as protected at Union level. It is appropriate to provide Union-wide geographical indication protection in respect of products falling outside the scope of existing regulations, while ensuring convergence, and aiming at encompassing a large variety of craft and industrial products, such as natural stones, jewellery, textiles, lace, cutlery, glass, woodcraft, musical instruments, leathercraft, soaps and porcelain. __________________ 6 Regulation (EU) 2019/787 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 April 2019 on the definition, description, presentation and labelling of spirit drinks, the use of the names of spirit drinks in the presentation and labelling of other foodstuffs, the protection of geographical indications for spirit drinks, the use of ethyl alcohol and distillates of agricultural origin in alcoholic beverages, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 110/2008 (OJ L 130, 17.5.2019, p. 1). 7 Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007 (OJ L 347 20.12.2013, p. 671). 8 Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 November 2012 on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs (OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p. 1).
Amendment 124 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 13
Recital 13
(13) Member States should have the possibility to charge a registration fee to cover their costs of managing the geographical indication system for craft and industrial products. Member States should charge lower fees forprogressive fees, taking into account the situation of micro, small or medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). The Office should not charge a fee for the management of the Union application process. However, the Office should have the possibility to charge a fee for the direct registration. In that case, the fees charged by the Office should be laid down by an implementing act in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council14 . __________________ 14 Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission’s exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13).
Amendment 128 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14
Recital 14
(14) To qualify for protection in the Member States, geographical indications should be registered only at Union level. However, with effect from the date of application for such registration at Union level, Member States should be able to grant temporary protection at national level without affecting the internal market of the Union or international trade. The protection afforded by this Regulation upon registration should be equally available to geographical indications of third countries thatwhich recognise and enforce the geographical indications of the Union and which meet the corresponding criteria and that are protected in their country of origin. The Office should carry out the corresponding procedures for geographical indications originating in third countries.
Amendment 153 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 46
Recital 46
(46) Where a self-declaration certification procedure is in place, competent authorities should carry out random controls no later than 3 months since the submission of a self-declaration.
Amendment 157 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) the registration, protection, control and enforcement of certain names that identify craft and industrial products with given quality, reputation or other characteristics linked to their geographical origin and,
Amendment 191 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point j a (new)
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point j a (new)
(ja) 'the Office' means the European Union Intellectual Property Office;
Amendment 192 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point k
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point k
(k) ‘notice of comment’ means a written observation lodged with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (‘the Office)Office indicating at inaccuracies in the application without triggering the opposition procedure.
Amendment 196 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) Its given quality, reputation or other characteristic is essentially attributable to its geographical origin; and
Amendment 199 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point c
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point c
(c) at least one of the essential production steps of the product takes place in the defined geographical area.
Amendment 216 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point d
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point d
(d) evidence that the product originates in the defined geographical area specified in Article 5, point (c);
Amendment 218 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point g
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point g
(g) details establishing the link between a given quality, the reputation or other characteristic of the product and the geographical origin as referred to in Article 5, point (b);
Amendment 235 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1
Article 10 – paragraph 1
1. Member States may charge a fee to cover the marginal costs of managing the geographical indication system for craft and industrial products provided for in this Regulation, including those incurred in processing applications, statements of opposition, applications for amendments and requests for cancellations.
Amendment 237 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 2
Article 10 – paragraph 2
2. Where a Member State charges a fee, the level of the fees shall be reasonable, foster the competitiveness of the producers of the geographical indications and shall takebe progressive, taking into account the situation of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.
Amendment 241 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 4
Article 10 – paragraph 4
4. By way of derogation to paragraph 3 of this Article, the Office shall charge a fee in the direct registration procedure referred to in Article 15, in the procedure referred to in Article 17(3) and for the appeals before the Boards of Appeal referred to in Article 30 to cover the marginal costs of managing these procedures. Fees may be charged also for the amendment of the product specification and cancellation if the procedure concerns a name that was registered under Article 15 or Article 17(3) in order to cover the marginal costs of managing these procedures.
Amendment 243 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 5
Article 10 – paragraph 5
5. The Commission shall adopt implementing acts to determine the amounts of the fees charged by the Office and the ways in which they are to be paid or, in case of the fee for appeals before the Boards of Appeal, reimbursed. The level of the fees shall be reasonable, foster the competitiveness of the producers of the geographical indications and shall be progressive, taking into account the situation of micro, small and medium- sized enterprises. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 65(2).
Amendment 246 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 11 – paragraph 4 a (new)
Article 11 – paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Member States, which agreed to the procedure referred to in paragraph 4 of this Article may annul their agreement and opt for a different procedure after notifying the other party or parties of the agreement in writing. If the competent authority acting on behalf of other Member State, or Member States, is located in a Member State that seeks to annul the agreement, that Member State shall notify the other party or parties of the agreement about its intention to annul the agreement in writing at least 6 months prior to the date of annulment.
Amendment 251 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 13 – paragraph 1
Article 13 – paragraph 1
1. After the conclusion of the examination referred to in Article 12, the competent authority shall conduct a national opposition procedure. That procedure shall ensure publication of the application and provide for a period of at least 60 working days from the date of publication within which any person having a legitimate interest and established or resident on the territory of the Member State in charge of the national phase of the registration or of the Member States in which the product concerned originates (‘national opponent’) may lodge an opposition to the application with the competent authority of the Member State in charge of the national phase of the registration.
Amendment 266 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 15 – paragraph 8
Article 15 – paragraph 8
8. Upon request by the Office, within 60 working days from such request, the Member State, through the contact point, shall provide assistance in particular for the examination process. Upon request by the Member State, the time limit may be extended by 60 working days. Such assistance shall include examining certain specific aspects of the applications lodged by the applicant with the Office, verifying certain information in the applications, issuing declarations concerning such information and replying to other requests for clarifications made by the Office in relation to the applications.
Amendment 270 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 – paragraph 3 – introductory part
Article 17 – paragraph 3 – introductory part
3. For geographical indications concerning products originating in a third country or countries the application for registration is submitted to the Office, such application for registration may be submitted only by third countries which recognise and enforce the geographical indications of the Union and shall comprise:
Amendment 271 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 – paragraph 4
Article 17 – paragraph 4
4. A joint application for registration referred to in Article 6(4) shall be submitted to the Office by one of the Member States concerned or by the applicant producer group in a third country, directly or by the competent authority of that third country. If the cross-border area concerns any Member State, or Member States and a third country or countries, the joint application shall be submitted by either Member State concerned. If the cross-border area concerns any Member State or Member States which obtained derogation from Article 11 and a third country or countries, the joint application shall be submitted by the applicant producer groups.
Amendment 273 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 – paragraph 5
Article 17 – paragraph 5
5. The joint application referred to in Article 6(4) shall include, where relevant, the documents listed in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article, from the Member States orconcerned and, where relevant, the documents listed in paragraph 3 of this Article, from the third countries concerned. The related national procedure for application, the examination and opposition procedure referred to in Articles 11, 12 and 13 shall be carried out in all the Member States and third countries concerned.
Amendment 281 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 19 – paragraph 6
Article 19 – paragraph 6
6. Where, based on the examination carried out pursuant to paragraph 1, the Office finds that the application is incomplete or incorrect, the Office shall send its observations to the Member State or in case of third country applications, to the relevant producer group or competent authority that has submitted the Union application, from where that application originates and request to complete or to correct the application within 60 working days. If the Member State, or in case of third country applications, the relevant producer group or competent authority, does not complete the application within the deadline, the application shall be considered to be withdrawn, or if not corrected, it shall be rejected pursuant to Article 24(2).
Amendment 282 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 20 – paragraph 4
Article 20 – paragraph 4
4. If the judicial decision referred to in paragraph 2 has acquired the force of res judicata, the Member State shall, as necessary, withdraw or modify the application and notify the relevant producer groups or single producers of this fact.
Amendment 283 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 21 – paragraph 3
Article 21 – paragraph 3
3. The Office shall check the admissibility of the opposition. If the Office considers that the opposition is admissible, it shall, within 60 working days after the receipt of that opposition, invite the opponent and the applicant to engage in consultations for a reasonable period not exceeding 3 months. At any time during that period, the Office may, at the request of either party, extend the time limit for the consultations by a maximum of 3 months. The Office may offer mediation for the consultations between the applicant and the opponent pursuant to Article 170 of Regulation (EU) 2017(1001).
Amendment 284 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 21 – paragraph 6
Article 21 – paragraph 6
6. Within 1 month from the end of the consultations referred to in paragraph 23, the applicant established in the third country or the competent authority of the Member State or of the third country from which the application for Union registration was lodged shall notify the Office and, where applicable, the relevant producer groups or single producers of the result of the consultations, whether an agreement was reached with one or all of the opponents, and of any consequent changes to the application made by that applicant. The opponent may also notify the Office of its position at the end of the consultations.
Amendment 285 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 21 – paragraph 9
Article 21 – paragraph 9
9. The Office mayshall share the notice of comment with the applicant and the opponent.
Amendment 315 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 29 – paragraph 4
Article 29 – paragraph 4
4. Before deciding to cancel the registration of a geographical indication, the Office shall consult the competent authority of the Member State, the competent authorities of the third country or, where possible, the third country producer group which had applied for the registration of the geographical indication concerned, unless the cancellation is directly requested by the original applicants. If the geographical indication was registered pursuant to Article 15, the Office shall consult the Advisory Board referred to in Article 33. The Office shall also notify the relevant producer groups or single producers.
Amendment 320 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 – paragraph 2 – point b
Article 33 – paragraph 2 – point b
Amendment 329 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 35 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 35 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) any direct or indirect commercial use of the geographical indication in respect of products not covered by the registration, where those products are identical or similar to the products registered under that geographical indication or where use of the name exploits, weakens, dilutes, or is detrimental to the reputation of, or weakens the protected geographical indication;
Amendment 339 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 36 – paragraph 1
Article 36 – paragraph 1
1. Article 35 is without prejudice to the use of a geographical indication by producers in conformity with Article 43 to indicate that a manufactured product contains, as a part or component, a product designated by that geographical indication provided that such use is made in accordance with honest commercial practices and does not weaken, dilute, or is not detrimental to, the reputation of the geographical indication.
Amendment 354 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 40 – paragraph 2 – point d – point v
Article 40 – paragraph 2 – point d – point v
(v) providing advice and training to current and future producers, including on gender mainstreaming and equa, equality, workers' rights and environmental sustainability; and
Amendment 391 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 49 – paragraph 3
Article 49 – paragraph 3
3. Where self-declarations are used competent authorities shall carry out random controls no later than 3 months since the submission of a self-declaration. In the event of breaches, Member States shall take all necessary measures to remedy the situation.
Amendment 392 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 50 – paragraph 2 – point b – point iii
Article 50 – paragraph 2 – point b – point iii
(iii) is to be impartial, independent and free from any conflict of interest and in particular is not to be in a situation which may, directly or indirectly, affect the impartiality of its professional conduct as regards the performance of those official control tasks delegated to it; and
Amendment 393 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 50 – paragraph 2 – point c – point iii
Article 50 – paragraph 2 – point c – point iii
(iii) are to act impartially, independently and are to be free from any conflict of interest as regards the exercise of those official control tasks delegated to them; and