14 Amendments of Helmut SCHOLZ related to 2017/2283(INI)
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas while Ukraine has been making progress on the path towards European integration, there have been both important achievements and difficult tasks alike at one year before the end of the first electoral period after the Revolution of Dignity, with the great support lent by voters to modernisation and reform marred by frustration at dire personal economic circumstances andhile modernisation and reform have suffered on account of the disappointment of the people at dramatically deteriorating social conditions, the growing sense that the future has nothing to offer, dissatisfaction with the government’s reform policy, the continuing power of the oligarchs and the persistence of endemic corruption within sState bodieinstitutions;
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas the consent of Ukraine's people to closer relations between the country and the EU remains strong as previously, but three quarters of the population are nonetheless dissatisfied with the overall development of the country; whereas both social discontent in the country and direct criticism of specific reform projects of governments have increased substantially, and they are consistently perceived by majorities of the people as being unsatisfactory;
Amendment 12 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas Ukraine deserves particular p, in line with the Association Agenda, Ukraisne for reformshas undertaken reforms notably in the areas of energy, health, pensions, education and decentralisation, which were primarily to the detriment of the population in the form of drastic price rises, equally drastic welfare cuts and targeted deterioration of access to social welfare systems and educational facilities, and, as a consequence, there has been an increase in people's fear for their livelihoods and in alienation from politics among large sections of the population;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Stresses its conviction that meaningful progress with the implementation of the Association Agreement and of the reforms will be possible only if the so-called process of 'de-oligarchisation' is pursued and leads to the permanent dissolution of the personified symbiosis between economic, political and media power which has so far remained unbroken in terms of power politics and is continuing to exert strong influence over, and increasingly to counter, the progress of the reforms; is critical of the fact that de-oligarchisation has so far been used mainly as a tool for streamlining the market and restoring the balance between the different groups of oligarchs, which was fundamentally disturbed in 2014; expresses its concern about persistent conflicts of interest on the part of regulatory and supervisory authorities, which have grown into unconcealed battles between authorities;
Amendment 45 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Notes with concern that, so far, the government has not made adequate efforts to disarm units of Right Sector and of other right-wing extremist groups, which remain armed as before; urges the government to put an end to the climate of impunity for violent attacks by radical right-wing forces on minorities and dissenters, and for the intimidation of judges or influencing of elections, and to consistently prosecute offenders who commit such criminal acts, and expects the judiciary and public prosecutors to act clearly and autonomously;
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Points out that the 'National Manifesto' recently adopted by the Svoboda Party, the Right Sector and numerous other right-wing groups expresses clear opposition to association of Ukraine with the EU and calls for a 'new geopolitical approach to East and West'; underlines that the government’s unresolved position on these developments is in danger of burdening relations with relevant EU neighbours and the EU as a whole and contributing constructively to the political scope for overcoming the political divide in the country and resolving the conflict in Donbas;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Recalls that the government has committed to further amending the constitution in line with the recommendations of the Venice Commission; urges the speedy adoption of the new electoral code and the law on party financing; calls on the government to put in place arrangements in the run-up to the elections to prevent distortion of political competition and manipulation of political decision-making by the personal concentration of political, economic and media power in the hands of a small number of individuals.
Amendment 96 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16a. Observes that the Ukrainian Government has committed itself in the Association Agreement (Chapter 13) to effective application of the ILO's core labour standards and approximation with the relevant EU legislation; calls for these commitments to be honoured and underlines that it is not compatible with implementation of ILO Convention 87 (Article 3(2)) for employers to be required to report strikes or other collective action to the State security service or for trade union leaders and activists to be placed under the supervision of the State security service; calls for the legal basis to be improved so that workers can effectively compel their employers by judicial means to respect their right to wages for work done;
Amendment 98 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 b (new)
Paragraph 16 b (new)
16b. Recommends that work on the law on labour inspectorates, which was halted in 2017, be resumed with a view to substantially raising occupational safety and health standards, abolishing the requirement for labour inspectorates to seek approval from entrepreneurs, and providing them with sufficient resources and strong enforcement powers; stresses the need for the active involvement of the social partners in this;
Amendment 109 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 a (new)
Paragraph 18 a (new)
18a. Expresses its concern about the growing number of criminal cases being brought against journalists who reveal cases of corruption in the State apparatus or criticise the government's reform policy or its policy towards Eastern Ukraine; reminds the government of the commitment it has given to fully enforce internationally recognised human rights, such as the rights to freedom of expression and public dissemination of views;
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Paragraph 21 a (new)
21a. Calls for consistent and prompt efforts to develop public-service media that are politically and economically independent and committed to the free formation of opinions without State control as a counterweight to the dominance of private oligarchic monopolies;
Amendment 135 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Is concerned about the growing poverty of large parts of the population; points out that these developments are primarily driven by rigorous redistribution, to the detriment of very wide sections of the population, which is presented as 'economically necessary reforms', as for example in the energy sector; underlines its call, in the further development of the reform process, to ensure that the socio-economic stability of the country is not jeopardised and also to gear it to combating poverty and creating decent work in measurable ways;
Amendment 139 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 a (new)
Paragraph 24 a (new)
24a. Notes that, despite the adoption of new legislation, it has not so far proved possible to induce the country's elites to work for the common good; is concerned that investigations have shown that it is precisely the oligarchies embedded within the State that evade Ukrainian tax actively and on a large scale, depriving the State of funds which it urgently needs to stabilise its finances, so that it is compelled to seek macro financial assistance from international partners; calls on the government to increase the resources and skills of the competent authorities in order to prevent tax avoidance, which is widespread;
Amendment 148 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25
Paragraph 25
25. Praises Ukraine for good cooperation in the energy sector, not least the progress it has made in energy efficiency; points out the need for continued reforms, in particular to complete reform of the gas and electricity market, and to end existing monopolies, which will bring long-term economic benefits to industry and consumers; stresses the need for a national authority independent of political and private interests to regulate the gas and electricity markets, which must be required to strike a socially fair balance between the interests of suppliers and final consumers in setting prices;