Activities of Richard ASHWORTH related to 2016/2004(BUD)
Plenary speeches (1)
Guidelines for the 2017 Budget - Section III (debate)
Amendments (13)
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the 2017 budget will have to face a context of fragile economic recovery jeopardised by the situation in emerging markets and, the difficult fiscal position in a number of Member States, and on-going geopolitical tensions;
Amendment 14 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas the 2017 budget will coincide with the mid-term review and possible revision of the multiannual financial framework (MFF);
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph -1 (new)
Paragraph -1 (new)
-1. Notes that the overall annual ceiling for the 2017 Budget limits commitment appropriations to EUR 154.5 billion in current prices; recalls that the purpose of the MFF is to deliver an adequate level of predictability for preparing and implementing medium and long-term investments;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Underlines that the capacity of the Union budget to tackle these crises arises principally from the use of all means available agreed upon in the MFF negotiations, and particularly the use of special instruments such as the flexibility instrument; recalls Parliament’s decisive role in shaping those instruments during the MFF negotiations; highlights, however, that if the crises continue to worsen even the full activation of the existing flexibility provisions will be insufficient to address the problem; stresses, in this context, invites the Council to reconsider its position on the question of budgeting the MFF special instruments so as to alleviate the constraints weighing on the Union budget; reiteratthe necessity of all institutions exercising budgetary restraint when drawing up their estimates of Union expenditure for the following financial year, ensuring the budget is prioritised in the areas of need and that a sufficient margin is available to respond to unforeseen circumstances; believes that the mid-term review of the MFF provides ian that connection its long-standing position that theopportunity to examine institutional differences in the calculation of payment appropriations for the special instruments (the flexibility instrument, the EU Solidarity Fund, the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund and the Emergency Aid Reserve) should be calculated over and above the MFF ceilings, as is the case for commitments; expects these issues to be resolved, and for a resolution to be found in the interests of budgetary stability and predictability;
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. NotWelcomes the Commission’s European Economic Forecast (Autumn 2015), which indicates a modestgradual recovery; stresses, however, that this recovery remains worryingly weak andmust be built upon in order too slow for a promptensure a return to full employment to be achieved, with long-term and very long- term unemployment on the rise; notes, furthermore, the appearance of new challenges, such as the slowdown in emerging market economies and global trade, with particular pressure arising from volatility on Chinese markets, the need to tackle the refugee crisis, and persisting geopolitical tensions;
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Notes, additionally, the Commission’s Annual Growth Survey for 2016; strongly believes that boosting investment, including a coordinated increase in public investment with a focus on the Europe 2020 targets, is a proper policy response with a view to a more balanced economic policy; believes that those two elements should be taken into consideration in the preparation of the draft budget for 2017 insofar as this should help identify priorities within an economic context; calls, consequently, for more synergies between the Union dimension of the European semester for economic policy coordination and the Union budget;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
Amendment 86 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Recalls that the Union budget provides the backbone of the investment plan by making available the EUR 8 billion required in commitment and payment appropriations for the provisioning of the guarantee fund of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), out of which a total of EUR 3.38 billion has already been mobilised in the 2015 and 2016 budgets; reiterates its commitment to reinforcthe Horizon 2020 programme and the Connecting Europe Facility through the annual budgetary procedure, in order to compensate the cuts agreed during the EFSI negotiations, by mitigating any negative impact from the creation of EFSI as much as possible;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Considers the European Youth Initiative (YEI), in particular, to be a fundamental contribution to the Union’s priority objective for jobs and growth, and therefore reiterates its commitment to continued funding for this programme with a view to scaling it up and thereby offering a greater number of young people the prospect of effectively entering the labour market by receiving a good quality offer of employment, continued education or apprenticeship to be a complementary measure to national schemes tackling youth unemployment; nevertheless believes that creating a competitive and vibrant economic environment offers the best means of reducing levels of youth unemployment; recalls the commitment made to the YEI by the three institutions to ‘ensure appropriate funding via an Amending Budget in 2016, by making use of all available means provided for in the MFF, and primarily of the Global Margin for Commitments’; notes that the figures for implementation indicate full success in terms of absorption capacity; calls on the Commission to present its evaluation of the YEI at the latest by the end of April 2016, and at all events in time for the inclusion of a prolongation of the programme in the EU budget 2017, while also laying the groundwork for the search for a permanent source of funding for the YEI as part of the revision of the MFFevertheless, believes that the Commission's assessment on the implementation of the YEI will be vital in determining the future funding needs of the programme; calls on the Commission to present its evaluation of the YEI at the latest by the end of April 2016;
Amendment 119 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Acknowledges the mobilisation of significant budgetary means by the Union and its Member States spread over 2015 and 2016 to address the migration and refugee, crisis both internally within the Union and externally in refugees’ countries of origin; stresses, however, that substantial additional financial means are required to address this crisis, as the increase in numbers of refugees and migrants cannot be considered a temporary phenomenon; highlights however, that longer-term solutions should be sought, not only in the annual budgetary procedure, but alsowill not be achieved by increased budgetary means alone, but may also require a significant reorientation of existing EU budget allocations, which should be considered in the upcoming interim revisionreview of the MFF;
Amendment 132 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Notes the setting-up of the Union Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis and of the Emergency Trust Fund for stability and addressing the root causes of irregular migration and displacement of people in Africa; urges the Member States to stand by their pracknowledges that the contribution made by some Member States to these funds is below the Commises and contribute to these fundssion's expectations; notes however the contributions made by Member States via other humanitarian aid schemes such as the World Food Programme and UNHCR; underlines that the Member States have reconfirmed their commitment, at the informal meeting of EU Heads of State or Government held to discuss migration on 23 September 2015, the European Council of 15 October 2015, and the Valletta summit of 11-12 November 2015; stresses, however, that further financial efforts will be needed to provide humanitarian assistance along the transit routes and to manage the challenges posed by increasing numbers of refugees; reminds that the above funds were created in response to the lack of flexibility and funding in the EU budget; insists that the actions undertaken to tackle the migration and refugee problem should not come at the cost of the EU´s development policies in other areas;
Amendment 186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Recalls that the final agreement on the MFF 2014-2020, as signed in December 2013, included a proposal for a compulsory review of the MFF 2014-2020, accompaniedArticle 2 of Regulation (EU) No 1311/2013 allows for a compulsory review of the MFF 2014-2020 by the end of 2016 at the latest, accompanied, as appropriate, by a legislative proposal for revision of the MFF by the end of 2016; stresses that the purpose of the review/revision is to provide the Union with sufficient resources to address internal and external crises; stresses that the Council should live up to the expectations raised by its own statements and decisions; underlines in this respect that the Council should take on should be to orient the budget further towards jobs, growth and competitiveness; underlines that all institutions have responsibility for ensuring the adequate financing of new tasks, either and unforeseen circumstances, by clearly identifying the policy areas which would no longer be among the Union’s priorities or by agreeing to an upward revision of the MFF ceilingsare not delivering added value;
Amendment 195 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Reiterates its position in favour of an in-depth reform of the system of Union own resources, and gives the highest political importance toNotes the work of the High Level Group on Own Resources created as part of the MFF 2014-2020 agreement; expects the Commission and the Council to take on board the final outcome, which is expected by the end of 2016, including any new candidate for own resources; recalls that the leading idea behind the own resources reform is to make the Union budget more stable, more sustainable, and more predictable, and more autonomous, while also alleviating the burden of excessive spending from national budgets and improving transparency for the citizens;