26 Amendments of Charles GOERENS related to 2022/2142(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 a (new)
Citation 8 a (new)
— Having regard to the report of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs on improving the functioning of the European Union building on the potential of the Lisbon Treaty (A8-0386/2016),
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 b (new)
Citation 8 b (new)
— Having regard to the report of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs on possible evolutions of and adjustments to the current institutional set-up of the European Union (A8-0390/2016)
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the unanimity requirement in the Council continues to be one of the biggest impediments in reaching rapid and effective EU decision- making processes; whereas some Member States have repeatedly used their right to veto to block or delay decisions, notably in order to raise concerns on other unrelated issuer even exert undue pressure on other unrelated issues; whereas this raises, in some cases, serious concerns related to the full respect of the principle of sincere cooperation; whereas this has affected the Union’s ability to act, notably to tackle crisis situations, and pursue its objectives in several areas;
Amendment 10 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
B a. Whereas the allocation of Union financial resources to address the Covid- 19 and the consequences of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine requires a mid-term review of the 2021-2027 MFF; Whereas the achievement of unanimity in Council on the mid-term review of the MFF might delay this process, to the detriment of citizens and businesses in need;
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas passerelle clauses do not changecannot lead to an increase in nor to a modification of EU competences, but onlythey rather entail the streamlining of decision- making rulprocedures, allowing a move from unanimity to qualified majority voting (QMV) and/or from special legislative procedures to the ordinary legislative procedure (OLP) in specific cases;
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas passerelle clauses were already usedhave been used only once in 2004 to move to QMV and co-decision for specific decisions on visas, asylum, migration and free movement of persons3; whereas no passerelle clause has been activated since then entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty; _________________ 3 Council decision 2004/927 providing for certain areas covered by Title IV of Part Three of the Treaty establishing the European Community to be governed by the procedure laid down in Article 251 of that Treaty (OJ L 396, 31.12.2004, p. 4).
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital J
Recital J
J. whereas the Treaties foresee that the activation of passerelle clauses still requires unanimity in the Council or the European Council;
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Believes that the Union must be ableequipped with all necessary means to respond rapidly and effectively to the unprecedented challenges it is facing, instead of relying on emergency procedures requiring unanimity voting in Council with no formal involvement of Parliament in the negotiations ; regrets that, even though the Union has proven in specific cases to be able to act decisively, the unanimity voting requirement has often blocked EU action in different areas;
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Considers it urgent, therefore, to go beyond unanimity and move as soon as possible to QMV and OLP in key policy fields in order to improve the EU’s capacity to act;
Amendment 27 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. WelcomesHighlights that the use of the “untapped potential” of the Lisbon Treaty has often been instrumentalised to postpone an inclusive and constructive discussion on Treaty change, and cannot be further invoked as an alternative or a preliminary step ahead of Treaty revisions; Regrets, however, that such untapped potential has not been exploited satisfactorily; Welcomes in this respect the conclusions of the Conference on the Future of Europe;, and reiterates its commitment to following them up effectively and its cthrough its proposall for amending the Treaties to be amended urgently55;Calls again on the Council to quickly forward this proposal to the European Council, and calls as well on the Commission to take its full responsibility on this matter pursuant to Article 48(2) TEU; _________________ 5 Resolution of 9 June 2022 on the call for a Convention for the revision of the Treaties.
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Underlines that, if approvedwhile urgent, Treaty changes extending QMV to areas where unanimity is currently required would require time before coming into force;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Stresses that, under the current Treaties, passerelle clauses can be activated immediately but only following a vote by unanimity in theHighlights however that the activation of passerelle clauses requires paradoxically an unanimous vote in Council or in the European Council;
Amendment 39 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Welcomes the fact that, in recent discussions in the Council, a majority of Member States have expressed their willingness to use passerelle clauses in certain fields and on a case-by-case basis; regrets that, unfortunately, no formal decision on their activation has yet been taken; Recalls that, in case of prolonged stalemate, the clause of enhanced cooperation should also be activated;
Amendment 47 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7 a. Calls on the Commission to recommend, where possible, the activation of passerelle clauses when issuing legislative proposals in policy areas where unanimity voting is required in Council, or where a special legislative procedure applies;
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7 b. Notes that the activation of passerelle clauses could as well become part of yearly evaluations, whereby the Commission assesses in its work program the activation of passerelle clauses in the context of newly issued legislative proposals, or for those where a vote in Council is still pending;
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 – introductory part
Paragraph 8 – introductory part
8. Stresses that the Common foreign and security policy (CFSP) is one of the areas where a rapid capacity to act plays a decisive role for the effectiveness of decisions; Considers thus that passerelle clauses could be a useful tool to move towards QMV in specific fields of the CFSP, in particular for:
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 – subparagraph 1 (new)
Paragraph 8 – subparagraph 1 (new)
Highlights that the activation of the passerelle clauses would strengthen the Union’s strategic autonomy, and increase its credibility globally by allowing it to act on the basis of solid positions;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Underlines that moving from unanimity to QMV on certain tax matters, such as in largely integrated tax policies and the implementation of international agreements, would contribute to a more effective framework for collecting taxes and tackling tax evasion and avoidance andwhile addressing fraud concerns;, and would benefit the performance of the Union in reaching its economic, green, social and digital objectives
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Highlights that moving to QMV and OLP for certain aspects of environmental and energy policies is particularly urgent, given the broader context of the environmental and climate emergency, notably the ones with fiscal nature, is particularly urgent for the implementation of the Green Deal, to facilitate the clean energy transition, and for offsetting the social and economic consequences of the ongoing energy crisis 6; _________________ 6 Resolution of 28 November 2019 on the climate and environment emergency (OJ C 232, 16.6.2021, p. 2).
Amendment 82 #
11. Underlines the neeat, in a context of evolving labour markets and fwor a dialogue between the Commission and Europeanking patterns impacted by the twin green and digital transition and demographic trends, it is becoming increasingly more important for the EU to deliver in terms of supporting and complementing Member States’ actions in tackling social issues; Stresses the need for a dialogue with the social partners on the possible use of passerelle clauses in the field of social policy; considers it important to evaluate the potential impact of using general passerelle clauses and the sector-specific clause provided forforeseen in Article 153(2) TFEU to strengthen the EU’s ability to implement measures to combat discrimination based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation (Article 19 TFEU) and take decisions onfor the protection of workers’ rights; .
Amendment 83 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11 a. Underlines the urgency of strengthening the EU’s ability to implement measures to combat discrimination based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation through the activation of the passerelle clause enshrined in Article 19 TFEU;
Amendment 87 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Stresses the importance of evaluating the potential impact of moving to the OLP in areas related to the protection of fundamental rights in the Union, such as through the activation of the sector-specific passerelle clause related to family law with cross-border implications (Article 81(3)(2) TFEU);
Amendment 96 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Calls on the European Council to adopt a decision under Article 31(3) TEU establishing that restrictive measures against governments of non-EU countries, non-state entities and individuals (Article 29 TEU) are to be taken by QMV, particularly given the necessity to act rapidly in response to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine;
Amendment 101 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Calls on the Commission, in light of the broader context of the climate and environmental emergencyobjectives set out by the European Green Deal, to present a proposal for the activation of the special passerelle clause provided for in Article 192(2)(2) to move to OLP for taxation matters with an environmental dimension;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16 a. Stresses that the treaty provisions governing the adoption and the review of the MFF Regulation entail long and cumbersome negotiations that slow down the adoption and the allocation of the Union budget; Calls on the European Council to adopt a decision in line with the sector-specific passerelle clause foreseen in Article 312(2)(2) TFEU to allow Council to adopt the Multiannual Financial Framework by QMV in view of the 2024 mid-term review;
Amendment 128 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Reiterate its call on the European Council8to adopt a decision in line withctivatethe sector-specific passerelle clause provided forforeseenin Article 312(2)(2) TFEU in order to allow theCouncil to adopt themalso for the adoption byCouncil of the nextMultiannual fFinancial fFramework through QMV instead of unanimity; _________________ 8 Resolution of 14 November 2018 on the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021- 2027 — Parliament’s position with a view to an agreement (OJ C 363, 28.10.2020, p. 179).