Activities of Anja HAGA related to 2023/2108(INI)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on shaping the EU’s position on the UN binding instrument on business and human rights, in particular on access to remedy and the protection of victims
Amendments (28)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 1 a (new)
Citation 1 a (new)
– having regard to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 a (new)
Citation 5 a (new)
– having regard to the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct,
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas corporations are major players in economic globalisation, financial services and international trade, and are required to comply with all applicable laws and international treaties and to respect human rights; whereas business enterprises may cause, contribute or be directly linked to adverse impacts on human rights and the environment; whereas corporations may alsocorporations may contribute to sustainable development through job creation and economic development, and therefore may have an important role to play in the promotingon of human rights, environmental standards and corporate responsibility as well as in the prevention of adverse impacts on human rights and the environment;
Amendment 12 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas victims of corporate abuse face multiple and overlapping obstacles to accessing remedies; whereas impunity for human rights abuses by transnational corporationcommitted by some companies remains largely unaddressed in the absence of a robust and comprehensive regulatory framework and alignment at global and regional level;
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas the position of the EU and the Member States has marginally evolved in relation to the work of the OEIGWG; whereas the EU has been working on ambitious legislation regarding corporate due diligence amongst others, which would serve as a basis for its negotiating mandate; whereas these files have not been completed yet and therefore a clear basis for a negotiating mandate has not yet been established; whereas, in the absence of a negotiating mandate, the EU representative only participated in the OEIGWG’s sessions as an observer and only contributed general statements; whereas also the engagement of other large economies outside the EU in the discussions has been ambivalent over the years;
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas Parliament has consistentlyshown supported for the UN discussions on the LBI, including by adopting a number of resolutions calling for the EU and the Member States to engage constructively in the negotiations;
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas, in recent years, the EU has been showing great ambition when it comes to business and human rights, and has initiated a number of legislative initiatives aimed at regulating business activities on human rights and environmental and climate-related obligations;
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Stresses that the overall level of enjoyment of human rights worldwide is inevitablyamong others contingent on the behaviour of corporations, given the current scale of globalisation and the internationalisation of business activities and value chains; emphasizes that all companies must be able to fulfil their human rights responsibilities and therefore be able to rely on good public governance and a well-functioning legal system;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. SUnderlines the importance of the UNGPs and the OECD Guidelines and the broad support they enjoy; stresses that any effort towards a potential LBI should ensure full alignment with these standards; believes that there is a risk that new initiatives that diverge from the these standards will undermine the ongoing efforts to implement the latter; strongly supports the full implementation, within and outside the EU, of the international standards on responsible business conduct to complement and strengthen the implementation of the UNGPs;
Amendment 35 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Stresses that corporate social responsibility solely on a voluntary basis risks creating market distortions and unfair competition for the enterprises that choose to comply with international standards or that are subject to national or regional obligations; welcomes, therefore, the current shift in terms of normative developments from soft-law initiatives towards binding standardsefforts to create a level playing field;
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Underlines the importance of closing the legal and regulatory loopholes which are being exploited by some transnational corporations and investors at the cost of human rights and the environment;
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Notes, with concern, that in the judicial systems of certain states, many procedural, substantive and practical barriers persist regarding access to justice for victims, including difficulties in identifying the competent court, barriers related to jurisdictional standards, short statutory limitation periods, excessive evidentiary burdens, limitedunclear liability owing to the corporate veil, access to legal representation and information, as well as other inequalities between claimants and defendants;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Acknowledges the OEIGWG as the only global and multilateral forum where mandatory rules on business and human rights are discussed and, therefore, considers it crucial for the EU to actively participatethat a critical mass of UN members, including the EU are engaged in this process;
Amendment 52 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Underscores that the latest normative developments at EU level on business and human rights have scarcebeen gradually addresseding access to justice and victims’ rights, which lie at the centre of the LBI as a core human rights treaty; stresses, in this regard, the complementary nature, objectives and scope of as well as the need for coherence between both normative tracks, which will operate at different levels;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Believes that the EU should actively engage in the ongoing negotiations, in particular to further develop the draft LBI, while focusing on victims of business-related abuses, ensuring a level playing field and legal certainty for businesses, in particular SMEs, dismantling barriers to justice and effective remedy, and enhancing cooperation by drawing on international perspectives and best practices; considers that this engagement would ultimately contribute to securing better implementation and enforcement of human rights internationally, while equally contributing to an international level playing field and delivering a global instrument that is both widely supported and ratified among states across all regions, including but not limited to Europe, and that remains relevant in the face of constantly evolving business-related threats to human rights;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11 a. Is of the opinion that further development of the draft LBI is not dependent on the EU alone, but also requires the serious engagement of other large economies in order to reach a consensus-based outcome that can rely on broad support globally;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Welcomes the Council’s commitment that the EU will strengthen its engagement and actively participate in the OEIGWG; considers, however, that the only meaningful and tangible way to enact this stated commitment is by adopting an EU mandate for negotiations; urges, therefore, the Commission to recommend that the Council to adopt an ambitious mandate for negotiations as soon as possible so that the EU is able to actively participate in the negotiations with a view to shaping the future LBI, which is already at an advanced stage;
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Believes that an LBI wshould be compatible with and complementary to the ongoing normative developments at EU level, and thus would contribute to creating a more coherent global legal framework on business and human rights;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Supports a broad scope for the LBI, which aims to cover all business enterprises, includingincludes transnational business activities and state-owned enterprises; considers that allowing states parties the flexibility to differentiate, under their domestic legislation, how business enterprises discharge the prevention obligations under the LBI, would provide important leeway for national adaptation and would be consistent with the universal scope of the UNGPs;
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Amendment 80 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. RegretNotes the fact that several references to the environment and climate change were removed from the scope of the LBI in the latest draft; considerrecommends that the EU and the Member States should strive for the environmental and climate impact of business activities to be included within the scopetake into account EU policies and ambitions in the field of climate and environment when engaging in discussions ofn the LBI;
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Calls for the EU and the Member States to ensure, in line with the provisions under the UNGPs, that the LBI prevention framework obligesadopts a risk based approach by encouraging corporate actors to pay particular attention to their activities in relation to areas or activities where the risk of gross human rights violations is heightened, such as conflict-affected areas or territories under occupation or annexation, where the risk of gross human rights violations is heightened, including by adding references to international humanitarian law, international criminal law and customary international law in the scope of the LBI;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Believes that the obligation for companies to undertake regular and risk- based human rights impact assessments prior to and throughout operations, and to take into account the needs of those at heightened risk, constitute particularly important elements for the LBI prevention framework, including by integrating a gender perspective, but also by taking into account issues concerning groups at risk of vulnerability or marginalisation;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Calls for the LBI to provide a central role to affected stakeholders, in particular through the obligation to promote thepromotion of an active and meaningful participation of relevant stakeholders, including trade unions, non-governmental organisations, indigenous peoples and community-based organisations, as well as the private sector, in the implementation of legislation, policies and other measuresthe LBI;
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25
Paragraph 25
25. Emphasises the need to ensure that states implement robust and effective, yet practical and proportional enforcement and compliance monitoring mechanisms; insists, furthermore, on the need for regular and in-depth reporting to be required from corporations and states partiethat any reporting requirements will be designed in such a way that they can be aligned with existing EU legislation in this regard, in order to avoid duplication of requirements;
Amendment 98 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27
Paragraph 27
Amendment 101 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28
Paragraph 28
28. Insists that the LBI should include the duty for states parties to develop a comprehensive and adequate system of legal liability that is responsive to the needs of victims, as regards remedy, and commensurate to the gravity of the abuse whilst avoiding facilitating abusive claims;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29
Paragraph 29
29. Insists that the LBI should address the practical and procedural obstacles faced by victims of corporate abuse when seeking justice; whilst avoiding facilitating abusive claims;