32 Amendments of Roberts ZĪLE related to 2020/2078(INI)
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 3
Citation 3
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
Ca. whereas the public debt to GDP in the euro area is projected to rise from 86% in 2019 to 103% in 2020; whereas such debt levels may be unsustainable if and when interest rates return to higher levels7a ; _________________ 7a https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscor ner/detail/en/ip_20_799
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C b (new)
Recital C b (new)
Cb. whereas growth has to an important degree relied upon unconventional and, in the long term, unsustainable monetary policy; whereas this monetary policy has failed to create a momentum for productivity-enhancing reforms;
Amendment 45 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C c (new)
Recital C c (new)
Cc. whereas monetary policy has not been neutral and has led to large redistribution effects between deficit and surplus countries and between savers and debtors;
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C d (new)
Recital C d (new)
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Points out that the Commission’s estimate of the investment needs of the EU for delivering the green transition and digital transformation amounts to at least EUR 595 billion per year8 ; recognises that public investments are limited as they represent scarce resources mostly funded by the taxpayers; underlines the need to prioritise the public investments which enhance economic growth; _________________ 8 Commission Staff Working Document - Identifying Europe's recovery needs, p. 16: https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/eco nomy- finance/assessment_of_economic_and_inv estment_needs.pdf
Amendment 79 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Is concerned with the insufficient progress in trade talks between the EU and UK; urges the Commission to prepare also for the no deal scenario, which would create serious barriers to trade between EU and UK since the beginning of 2021;
Amendment 83 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Recognises that the EU faces the unprecedented challenge of mitigating the social and economic consequences of the historic recession and setting the course for a rapid economic recovery linked to a sustainable and just transition and digital transformation; is convinced that, for this, a significant increase in public and private investment compared to the 2010s is indispensable and that the increasedappropriate and efficient level of investment must be stabilised for many years to come; calls on Member States to create a regulatory framework that supports private investment;
Amendment 92 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Underlines that the backbone of the economic recovery lies in the growth- enhancing structural reforms; notes that in order to protect European taxpayer, any assistance from Recovery Plan to each Member State should be conditional on the implementation of the structural reforms recommended in the Country Specific Recommendations;
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Recalls that high levels of taxation in Europe are a hindrance to investments, jobs, productivity and competitiveness;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 c (new)
Paragraph 4 c (new)
4c. Stresses that the sound public finances are necessary condition for the macro-financial stability of the Eurozone;
Amendment 98 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 d (new)
Paragraph 4 d (new)
4d. Recalls the positive practice of transparency in several Member States in the form of mandatory disclosure of contracts concluded by the public sector which supports the efficiency of public finances and promotes economic growth;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Welcomes the swift and strong response to the crisis in the area of monetary and fiscal policy, at both EU and Member State level, as well as the European Recovery Plan; considers it essential that the recovery package is fully aligned with the EU’s new growth strategy, i.e. in accordance with the principles of the European Green Deal (EGD), the European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR) and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and with the aim to protect women’s rights and achieve gender equality; demands that funds and resources be directed to projects and beneficiaries that comply with our Treaty- based fundamental values and that recipient firms protect their workers, pay their fair share of taxes, and refrain from paying out dividends or offering share buy- back schemes aimed at remunerating shareholders;
Amendment 124 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Welcomes the activation of the general escape clause of the Stability and Growth Pact, and expects that it will remain activated at least until the end of 2021 in order to support the efforts of the Member States to recover from the pandemic crisis and strengthen their economic and social resilience;
Amendment 131 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Urges Commission to present a roadmap to ensure a swift retraction of the general escape clause of the Stability and Growth Pact;
Amendment 151 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Welcomes the conclusion of the European Fiscal Board (EFB)9 that the fiscal framework has to be revised, and is convinced that the deep economic crisis triggered by the pandemic further exacerbates this need; believes that the review and reform have to meet the above requirements in terms of increasing investment relating to climate change and digitalisation and stabilising the newensure vigorous enforcement of sound budgetary management and secure clear path to sustainable levels of investment, while ensuring sound budgetary managementpublic debt in Member States; _________________ 9EFB Annual report 2019, p. 71 - https:/ec.europa.eu/info/sites/infos/files/20 19-efb-annual-report_en.pdf
Amendment 154 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. Regrets the poor enforcement of the EU fiscal rules before the COVID-19 pandemic;
Amendment 162 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9 a. Recalls that many growth-friendly structural reforms do not require fiscal space but rather legislative and administrative efforts aimed at strengthening market forces and private sector initiatives;
Amendment 170 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Considers it essential that the revision of the EU’s fiscal and economic policy framework should be completed by the time the escape clause is repealed and should enable fiscal policy to respond with discretion to shocks in the short term, and to reduce high public debt ratios to an agreed reference value60% GDP in the long term, while allowing a suefficient level of public investment, progressive tax policies and the repayment of loans in a cycle- comfortable manner, and the long-term modernisation of in line with EU fiscal rules, and efficient investment in public commodities;
Amendment 180 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Warns that boosting investment should not be seen as an alternative to productivity-enhancing reforms;
Amendment 182 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10b. Stresses that principle of value for money should represent the cornerstone of all EU funded investments; points out that EU funding should be accompanied by measurable objectives and outputs including a quantifiable and comparable evaluation mechanism that will allow to compare and rank the efficiency of individual EU programmes; underlines the importance of accountability and transparency for bodies that receive EU funding;
Amendment 189 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Proposes a combination of expenditure rules for public non- investment expenditure and a golden rule for public investment which is central to both; wishes to see a rapid recovery from the COVID-19 crisis and a transition to a cleaner, socially sustainable and more digital society;
Amendment 200 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11a. Recalls that the European Semester cycle is a framework for EU Member States to coordinate their budgetary and economic policies;
Amendment 202 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 b (new)
Paragraph 11 b (new)
11b. Recommends the necessary respect for the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality; stresses that Member States must continue to have sufficient flexibility in implementing an appropriate social policy;
Amendment 211 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Welcomes the refocus of the European Semester Spring Package aimed at providing an immediate economic policy response to tackle and mitigate the health and socio-economic impact of COVID-19 and reboot economic activity; supports the Commission’s announcement of a reform of the European Semester to convert it into a tool to coordinate the recovery measures, framed by the principles of the EGD, the EPSR and the SDGs; is convinced that this has to include the coordination of measures concerning state aid and tax policies; underlines the need for the integration of a new set of binding sustainability and wellbeing indicators and alternative measurements of growth performanceto define relevant performance indicators measuring progress of implementation of structural reforms;
Amendment 228 #
13. Recognises the role that the Commission has allotted to the European Semester in the Recovery Plan; notes, however, that the effectiveness and success of the alignment of Member States’ investment and reform programmes to the Semester process will depend on the progress of the Semester reform and the above-mentioned reform of the Stability and Growth Pact;
Amendment 236 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
Amendment 258 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Invites the Commission to explore new policies suggested by international institutions that support and contribute to financing a just transition and sustainable growth, as well as aiming to restore Member States’ public finances; calls for the new basket of resources to include income stemming from EU policies favouring both the implementation of environmental protection and the preservation of a fair single market;
Amendment 271 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Recalls the urgent need to complete and reinforce the EMU architecture with a view to protecting citizens and reducing pressure on public finances during external shocks so as to overcome social and economic imbalances, by creating a fiscal capacity for public investment, a macroeconomic stabilisation and cohesion function for the euro area, and a European unemployment benefit reinsurance scheme;
Amendment 281 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
17a. Stresses the need to further strengthen the financial sector through the completion of the Capital Markets Union;
Amendment 283 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 b (new)
Paragraph 17 b (new)
17b. Reminds that debt service costs remain low also because of ECB low interest rates policy; recommends to consider the impact of potentially rising interest rates and risks arising from further expansion of the ECB's balance sheet;
Amendment 284 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 c (new)
Paragraph 17 c (new)
17c. Recalls the need to reduce the levels of public debt to help the European economies to be more resilient to shocks, especially in highly indebted countries; warns about higher financing costs in the future once monetary policy accommodation is reduced, especially in the euro area;