11 Amendments of Helmut SCHOLZ related to 2016/2310(INI)
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the respect for fundamental freedoms shown at the elections of 11 December 2016; urges all political parties to accept its results in the interest of domestic stability and underlines their responsibility to ensure that there is no backsliding into political crisis; calls for a swift formation of a new government in order to make use of the mandate to carry on with necessary reforms; considers cross-party cooperationfully implement the agreements under the so- called Pržino Agreement and to carry on with necessary reforms; considers that intensive cooperation beyond the borders of the four major parties including civil society and representatives of the various minorities of the country is essential for addressing pressing social, domestic and EU- related challenges; points out, that the solution of these challenges are closely interlinked with the elaboration of a viable basic consensus by all political parties as well as social and ethnic parts of the society as regards the fundamental direction of the development of the country;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Notes that by implementing the Pržino agreements as well as recommendations made by OSCE/ODIR and the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe the electoral process has improved, including the legal framework, the Election Administration voters’' lists and thein some cases the public media environment; hopes that the alleged irregularities and shortcomings, including voter intimidation, vote buying, abuse of public resources, will also be addressed effectively by the competent authorities in view of the local elections in May 2017; stresses the need for a de-politicisation of the electoral administrationand if necessary legally in a transparent manner and free from influence of political parties by the competent authorities in view of the local elections in May 2017; underlines the conviction that the ongoing mistrust regarding the accuracy of the voters' registration data can be solved in a sustainable way only by a population census; stresses the need to establish a track record of effective scrutiny of political party and electoral campaign financing; stresses that in accordance with the principles of good governance the electoral administrations must be de- politicized and any attempt at political influence on the electoral authorities has to be banned by law in order to increase the public’'s trust in future elections;
Amendment 131 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Notes some progress in reforming public administration including the steps to implement the new legal framework on human resources management; remains concerned about the politicisation of public administration and that civil servants are subject to political pressure; urges the new government to enhance professionalism, neutrality and independence at all levels and within all public administrations, including the electoral authorities; stresses the need to complete the 2017- 2022 public administration reform strategy, including by making sufficient budget allocations for its implementation, and to strengthen relevant administrative capacity;
Amendment 151 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Notes that the Special Prosecutor has raised the first criminal indictments concerning wrongdoings arising from the wiretaps; is concerned about attacks and obstruction against her work and the lack of cooperation from other institutions; considers it essential for the democratic process to enable the Special Prosecutor’'s Office to carry out thorough investigations in full autonomy and to oblige all state authorities to cooperate with the Special Prosecutor's Office at any time in full;
Amendment 157 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. RNotes, that the Index of perceived corruption of officials and politicians in the country recently published by Transparency International has deteriorated once more again significantly in 2016 which points to a disturbing vicious circle between corruption and an unequal distribution of power as well as of the wealth in the society; remains concerned that combating corruption is being undermined by political interference; stresses the need to strengthen the independence of the police, the prosecution and the State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (SCPC); calls for improving transparency in the selection and appointment of SCPC members; calls, as a matter of urgency, for efforts to be made to ensure the effective prevention and punishment of conflicts of interest and to establish a credible track record on high- level corruption; underlines the need to re- evaluate and to enhance the EU mechanism for monitoring and evaluating the use of EU funds in the country and their potential susceptibility to feeding corruption practices and networks;
Amendment 192 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Welcomes the adoption of the national strategy for equality and non- discrimination 2016-2020, however, is concerned that their implementation is out of focus of social and political dialogue due to the political crisis in the country; is concerned about impartiality and the independence of the Commission for Protection from Discrimination; reiterates its condemnation of hate speech against discriminated groups; is concerned that intolerance against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people persists; reiterates its call for the Anti- Discrimination Law to be aligned with the acquis as regards discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation; underlines again the need to combat discrimination against the Roma, and to facilitate their integration and their access to the education system and the labour market; is concerned about the inhumane physical conditions in prisons, despite a significant increase in the prison budget;
Amendment 199 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Is concerned about the lack of implementation of the Law on Equal Opportunities and the limited effectiveness of institutional mechanisms to advance gender equality; urges the competent authoritiescalls for further efforts to promote gender equality and increase the participation of women in political life and employment, to improve their socio- economic situation and to strengthen women's rights on the whole; is concerned about the lack of implementation of the Law on Equal Opportunities and the limited effectiveness of institutional mechanisms to advance gender equality; points out that the economic reality in female-dominated industries like the textile and the shoe industries are marked by alarmingly low wages under the overall minimum wage in the country of 160 EUR (in 2016) and a grave disrespect of workers' rights which basically counteract the implementation of this law; urges the competent authorities to initiate appropriate economic policy adjustments for an sensitive increase of the wages in gender-segregated industries, to make sufficient budget allocations for its implementation and to improve support services to victims of domestic violence;
Amendment 231 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Remains concerned that the political situation represents a serious risk to the Macedonian economy; given the ongoing amalgamation of state and party political structures, which finds its reflection in the deteriorated corruption index, calls for the plans to privatize state property, particularly in the field of energy, to be stopped; continues to be concerned about weak contract enforcement, the size of the informal economy and the difficulty in obtaining access to finance; stresses that the sizeable shadow economy is an important obstacle to business; calls on competent authorities to also address judicial efficiency;
Amendment 235 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Welcomes the maintenance ofNotes that the macro-economic situation of the country is characterized by low inflation, balanced public finances and relatively low public debt; notes, however, that a macro-economic stability butcannot be said to be the case for a constant unemployment rate of about 30 per cent for years and an equally widespread poverty within the country; is concerned that unthe employment remains high with very low labour mate, with about 15 per cent among young people and almost 38 per cent among women, is very low and thus far from the EU's own tarkget participation, especially among youth and womeof 75 per cent; calls on the Commission to define employment rates as an explicit criteria of accession and integration; further urges competent authorities to tackle long-term and structural unemployment, to promote economic policy cooperation, to better align education with labour market demands and to develop a targeted strategy on how to better integrate young people and women into the labour market; believes that this policy should also aim to prevent any forms of employment through clientelistic networks by law, to consistently enforce the existing labor law, to penalize any kind of attempts to undermine its application as well as to improve the provision of and access to social services, especially for women; is concerned about the outflow of highly educated young professionals; strongly calls on the government to dedicate particular attention to improving the perspectives of youth;
Amendment 248 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Is concerned about the significant shortcomings in the field of the environment, in particular in the area of air and water pollution; calls for a comprehensive policy and strategy on climate action to be developed that is in line with the EU 2030 framework; points out the need for the implementation of environmental policy objectives and targets to be in line with the rights and living conditions of the employees of companies concerned in order to avoid conflicts such as those at Jugohrom in Tetovo when the employees of the company, which could not satisfy environmental constraints, were forced to take unpaid leave;
Amendment 291 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Welcomes Macedonia’s continued constructive role in regional and international cooperation; commends the increased alignment with EU foreign policy (73 %); reiterates the importance of finalising the negotiations on a bilateral treaty with Bulgaria;