30 Amendments of Vicente Miguel GARCÉS RAMÓN related to 2008/2248(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the petitions processright to petition the European Parliament by virtue of Article 194 of the EC Treaty provides European citizens and residents with a means of obtaining non-judicial redress for their grievances when these concern issues arising from the fields of activity of the European Union,
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K
Recital K
K. whereas Parliament considers that the obligation to cede legitimately acquired private property without due process and proper compensation and the obligation to pay arbitrary costs for unrequested and often unnecessary infrastructure development constitute a violation of an individual's fthe laws applicable to the regulation of the right of property must conform to the principles laid down in Article 17 of the Charter of Fundamental rRights under the ECHR and in the light of the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights (see, for instance, Aka v. Turkey1), which in essence coincide with the rules set out in Article 33 of the Spanish Constitution, with a view to ensuring maximum possible satisfaction of that fundamental right,
Amendment 15 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital L
Recital L
L. whereas in the course of the current parliamentary term the Committee on Petitions, acting in response to the very large number of petitions received, has conducted detailed investigations, has reported three times on the extent of the abuse of the legitimate rights of European citizens to their legally acquired property in Spain, and has also detailed its concerns in relation to the undermining of sustainable development, environmental protection, water quality and provision, and procedures concerning public procurement with regard to urbanisation contracts and insufficient control of urbanisation procedures by many local and regional authorities in Spain1, 1 See the above-mentioned resolution of 21 June 2007 and the resolution of 13 December 2005 on the alleged abuse of the Valencian Land Law or Ley Reguladora de la Actividad Urbanística (LRAU – law on development activities) and its effect on European citizens (Petitions 609/2003, 732/2003, 985/2002, 111272002. 107/2004 and others) (OJ C 286 E, 23.11.2006, p.225)., which are currently the subject of legal proceedings both in Spain and before the Court of Justice of the European Communities, Or. es
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital M
Recital M
M. whereas there is growing evidence that the judicial authorities in Spain have begun to respond to the challenge resulting from excessive urbanisation in many coastal areas, in particular by investigating and bringing charges to bear against corrupt local officials who, by their actions,potential abuses and unlawful practices that have facilitated unprecedented and unregulated urban developments to the detriment of the rights of Europeacertain citizens, thereby damaging irretrievablyseverely damaging the biodiversity and environmental integrity of many regions of Spain; whereas Parliament has observed, however, that procedures remain outrageously slow and that the sentences handed down in many of these cases are incapable of being enforced in a way which provides any satisfaction to the victims of such abusesome regions of Spain,
Amendment 23 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital N
Recital N
N. whereas such widespread activity, supported by irresponsible local and regional authorities through inadequate and sometimes unjustified legislation which in many cases runs counter to the objectives of several European legislative actsthe lax application of the urban planning and environmental laws in force in the Spanish autonomous communities to certain urban development operations, as well as the emergence of major cases of corruption stemming from these, hasve been mostpotentially damaging to the image of Spain and to its broader economic and political interests in Europe,
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital O
Recital O
O. whereas regional ombudsmen have frequently acted, in very difficult circumstances, to defend the interests of European citizens in cases related to urbanisation abuses, albeit that their efforts have generally not been heeded by regional governmenthough in some autonomous communities, regional governments have on occasion been able to pay no heed to their efforts,
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital P
Recital P
P. whereas Article 33 of the Spanish Constitution makes reference todefines the rights of individuals to their property, and whereas no comprehensive interpretation of that article has ever been provided by the as a fundamental right, laying down that: ‘1. The right to private property and to inheritance is recognised. 2. The social function of these rights shall determine their scope, as provided for by law. 3. No person shall be deprived of their property or their rights except for a cause recognised as being in the public interest or in the interest of society and in exchange for fitting compensation as provided for by law’; whereas Article 148.3 of the Spanish Constitution al Court, notably as regards the provision of property for social use as opposed to the rights of individulows the autonomous communities to which such powers have been transferred to assume responsibility for land use planning, town planning and housing (as is the case with the Community of Valencia); whereas some statutes of autonomy allow for the delegation of powers to local councils able to assume these and to ensure due coordination and efficiency in the provision of services (Article 45 of the Statute of the Autonomous Community of Valencia); considering als to their legally acquired homes and dwellings, currently-applicable Law of 16 December 1954 on compulsory purchase, and the subsequent amendments thereto, as well as Royal Legislative Decree No 2/2008 of 20 June 2008 approving the revised text of the Land Law, and considering the vast body of case law of the Spanish Supreme Court and Constitutional Court in respect of the right to private property,
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital Q
Recital Q
Q. whereas the national government in Spain has a duty to apply the EC Treaty and to defend and ensure the full application of European law on its territory, irrespective oftaking into account the internal organisation of the political authoritiesSpanish State as established by the Constitution of the Kingdom of Spain,
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital R
Recital R
R. whereas the Commission, acting pursuant to the powers conferred on it by Article 226 of the EC Treaty, has brought proceedings against Spain before the Court of Justice in a case involving the excessive urbanisation abuses which have occurred in Spain which directly concerns the implementation by the Valencian authorities of the Directivein respect of the Ley Urbanística Valenciana before the Court of Justice, on the grounds that it infringes the Community regulations on Ppublic Pprocurement1,
Amendment 40 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital T
Recital T
T. whereas, however, in manysome documented cases of urbanisation abuse in Spainpoor urban planning practice, the Commission has failed to act sufficiently forcefully, not only as regards enforcement of the precautionary principle of environmental law but also because of its lax interpretation of acts by competent local or regional authorities which have binding legal effect, such as the “provisional approval” of an integrated urban development plan by a local authority,
Amendment 42 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital V
Recital V
V. whereas successive fact-finding visits by the Committee on Petitions have shownnoted that these objectives are frequently grossly misunderstood by many local and regional authorities (not just in the coastal regions) when proposing or agreeing to extensive urbanisation programmes; whereas most urbanisation plans contested by petitions involve the reclassification ofsome local and regional authorities have continued with extensive urbanisation programmes, sometimes selectively reclassifying rural land into land zoned for urbanisation – to the considerable economic benefit of the urbanisation agent and the developer; and whereas there are also m, without any prior supra-municipal plan or guidelines setting reasonable anyd instances of protected land, or land which should be protected because of its sensitive biodiversity, being de-listed and reclassified, or not being listed at all, precisely to allow for urbanisation of the area concerneddispensible limits on municipal urban growth to provide a guarantee of desirable and balanced sustainable urban and regional development,
Amendment 45 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital W
Recital W
W. whereas such considerations compound the abuse which is felt by thousands of European citizens who, as a result of the plans of the urbanisation agents, have not only lost their legitimately acquired property but have been forced to pay the arbitrary cost of unwanted, often unnecessary and unwarranted infrastructure projects directly affecting their property rights, the end result of which has been financial and emotional catastrophe for many familiesthe lax application of the urban development and environmental legislation in force has occasioned serious financial and personal harm to some members of the public, which has on occasion taken the form of an increase in urbanisation costs in excess of those resulting from a correct assessment in accordance with the mandatory legal procedures, or in larger transfers of land than those laid down in law,
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital X
Recital X
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital Y
Recital Y
Y. whereas the natural Mediterranean island and coastal areas of Spain have suffered extensive destruction in the last decade as cement and concrete have saturated these regions in a way which has affected not only the fragile coastal environment – much of which is nominally protected under the Habitats1/Natura 2000 and Birds2 Directives – but also the social and cultural activity of many areas, which constitutes a tragsignific and irretrievablet loss to their cultural identity and heritage as well as to their environmental integrity, and all this primarily because of the greed and speculative behaviour of certain local authorities and members of the construction industry who have succeeded in deriving massive benefits from their activities in this regard, most of which have been exported3, 1 Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7). 2 Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds (OJ L 103, 25.4.1979, p. 1). 3 Note the recent reports issued by the Bank of Spain, Greenpeace, and Transparency International.absence of supramunicipal planning or regional planning guidelines placing reasonable limits on urban growth and development, set on the basis of explicit criteria of environmental sustainability, Or. es
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital Z
Recital Z
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Calls on the Government of Spain and of the regions concerned, where they have not yet done so, to carry out a thorough review and to revise all legislation affecting the rights of individual property ownerson urbanisation, in order to bring an end to theany abuse ofthat may occur and affect the rights and obligations enshrined in the EC Treaty, in the Charter of Fundamental Rights, in the ECHR and in the relevant EU Directives, as well as in other conventions to which the EU is a party;
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Calls on the competent regional authorities to declare a moratorium , where they do not have them, to draw up region all new urbanisation plans which do not respect the strict criteria of environmental sustainability and social responsibility and which do not guarantee respect for the rightful ownership of legitimately acquired property, and to and supramunicipal planning instruments as soon as possible that place limits on growth under criteria based on strict regional sustainability and, to the extent that existing legislation and the preservation of legitimately acquired rights permit, to reconsider those developments that compromise rational land use in the short, medium and long term, with a view to their reorientation towards sites and timeframes for implementation thalt and cancel all existing developments where criteria laid down in EU law, notablyre more acceptable from the socio-economic and environmental point of view; recommends, likewise, that the competent authorities reconsider, where appropriate, the application of contract law as regards the awardimplementation of urbanisation contracts andwork, as the Commission has argued before the Court of Justice of the European Communities, as well as compliance with provisions relating to water and the environment, have not been respected or applied; calls, likewise, on the competent regional authorities to promote an agreement between all social stakeholders with a view to a pact on improved town planning geared to sustainable development;
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Urges the competent national and regional authorities to establish functioning judicial and administrative mechanisms, involving the regional ombudsmen, which are given the authority to provide means ofthat make it possible to speed up redress and of compensation for victims of urbanisation abuse who have suffered under the incorrect application of the provisions of existing legislation such as the Ley Reguladora de la Actividad Urbanística and the Ley Urbanística Valenciana;
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Calls on the Commission, at the same time, to ensure strict respect for the application of Community law and of the objectives laid down in the Directives covered by this resolution, and to be more exigent vis-à-vis the Spanish authorities when it appears that many local authorities are failing to fulfil their obligations in relation to EU citizensso that compliance therewith can be demanded;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
Amendment 98 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Believes, nevertheless, that absence of clarity, that possible misapplication of the precovision and certainty with regard to individual property rights contained in existing legislation, and the lack of any proper and consistent application ofs concerning property rights with regard to the general interest, as laid down in current legislation on both development and the environmental law, are is one of the root causes of many problems related to urbanisation and that this, combined with a certain lathe complexity inof the judicial process, has not only compounded the problem but has also generated an endemic form of corruption of which, once again, the European citizen is the primary victim, but which has also caumade possible some cases of corruption of which the primary victims are ordinary citizens, as a result of the failure to achieve rational spatial planning, but which has also caused the Spanish state to suffer significant prejudice, specifically in the Valencian Community, arising from the interpretation of the application of Law 6/1994 of 15 November, regulating development activity, which, although formally repealed, continues to be applied to many development plans and projects currently being processed, since this is permissible under the transition provisions of the new Ley Urbanística Valenciana Development Law. Believes that the conclusions reached by the Valencian Community’s Ombudswoman (Síndica de Greuges), an institution justly famed for its defence of citizens’ fundamental rights, conclusions which state that owners’ rights may have been affected, whether as a result of being undervalued by the developer, or by their having to shoulder sometimes excessive development charges unilaterally imposed by the Spanish state to suffer significant loss; developer; Access to information and citizens’ involvement in the development process needs to be guaranteed from the outset of the process, making environmental information available to citizens in a clear, simple and comprehensible form. Believes that no properly delimited definition of ‘general interest’ has been made either in existing development legislation nor by the appropriate authorities, and that this term is used to approve projects which are environmentally unsustainable, and in certain cases to circumvent negative environmental impact assessments and reports by the Hydographic Confederation;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9.Pays tribute to, and fully supports the activities of, the regional ombudsmen (“síndics de greuges”) and their staff, as well as to the more assiduous public prosecutors (“fiscales”) who have recently doneare doing an enormous amount to restore the integrity of some of the institutions affected by this issueamline court proceedings, despite the complexity entailed by the legal actions arising from development activity;
Amendment 109 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Reiterates the conclusions contained in its previous resolutions by calling in question the methods of designation of urbanisation agents and the frequently excessive powers often given to town planners and property developers by certain local authorities at the expense of communities and the citizens who have their homes in the areaon the methods whereby town planners and property developers are designated by the administration to carry out urbanisation work, on the basis of the Commission’s arguments and legal bases for applying Community and Spanish government procurement legislation to the carrying out of urbanisation work, as set out before the European Court of Justice;
Amendment 119 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
Amendment 121 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Reaffirms that, where compensation is payable for loss of property, it should be awarded at a suitable rate and in conformity with the law and the case-law of the Court of Justice and of the European Court of Human Rights;
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
Amendment 124 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and the Council, to the Government and Parliament of the Kingdom of Spain and the Autonomous Regional Governments and Assemblies, to the national and regional ombudsmen of Spain and to the petitioners;