12 Amendments of Zigmantas BALČYTIS related to 2011/0439(COD)
Amendment 12 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4
Recital 4
(4) Public procurement plays a key role in the Europe 2020 strategy as one of the market-based instruments to be used to achieve a smart, sustainable and inclusive growth while ensuring the most efficient use of public funds. For that purpose, the current public procurement rules adopted pursuant to Directive 2004/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors and Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts have to be revised and modernised in order to increase the efficiency of public spending, facilitating in particular the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises in public procurement and to enable procurers to make better use of public procurement in support of common societal goals. There is also a neesustainable development and other common societal goals, providing the best results in cost-benefit terms. There is also a need to simplify EU rules on public procurement, particularly with regard to the method used to achieve the sustainability objectives which should be included in public procurement policy, and to clarify basic notions and concepts to ensure better legal certainty and to incorporate certain aspects of related well- established case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Amendment 14 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) Under Articles 9, 10 and 11 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, environmental protection requirements and the concept of the socially-sustainable production process must be integrated into the definition and implementation of the Union policies and activities, in particular with a view to promoting sustainable development and ensuring, throughout the supply chain, compliance with health, public safety and social norms and national and EU labour legislation. This Directive clarifies how the contracting entities mayshould contribute to the protection of the environment and the promotion of sustainable development, whilst ensuring and how they can use the discretionary power assigned to them to select technical specifications and award criteria with the aim of achieving socially-sustainable public procurement policy whilst ensuring the link with the subject-matter of the contract and that they can obtain the best value for money for their contracts.
Amendment 17 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 13
Recital 13
(13) Illicit conduct by participants in a procurement procedure, such as attempts to unduly influence the decision-making process or to enter into agreements with other candidates to manipulate the outcome of the procedure can result in, as well as all actions which violate standards of work, environmental protection and public health, can result in serious distortion of competition and violations of the basic principles of Union law and in serious distortions of competition. Economic operators should therefore be required to submit a declaration on honour that they do not engage in such illicit activities and be excluded if this declaration proves to be false.
Amendment 19 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 14
Recital 14
(14) Council Decision 94/800/EC of 22 December 1994 concerning the conclusion on behalf of the European Community, as regards matters within its competence, of the Agreements reached in the Uruguay Round multilateral negotiations (1986 to 1994), approved in particular the World Trade Organisation Agreement on Government Procurement, hereinafter referred to as the ‘Agreement’. The aim of the Agreement is to establish a multilateral framework of balanced rights and obligations relating to public contracts upholding equal opportunities for Union and third country economic operators to compete on equal terms in Union and third country markets with a view to achieving the liberalisation and expansion of world trade. For contracts covered by the Agreement, as well as by other relevant international agreements by which the Union is bound, contracting entities fulfil the obligations under those agreements by applying this Directive to economic operators of third countries that are signatories to the agreements.
Amendment 20 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 14 a (new)
Recital 14 a (new)
(14a) The Union needs an effective instrument to, on the one hand, encourage compliance with the principle of reciprocity in relation to third countries which do not provide equivalent access to European economic operators, particularly through an assessment of substantial reciprocity to be carried out by the Commission, and, on the other hand, ensure fair competition and a level playing field worldwide.
Amendment 21 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 14 b (new)
Recital 14 b (new)
(14b )In view of the need to encourage participation by the Union's economic operators in cross-border public markets, it is important that the Member States transpose and implement in a timely and adequate manner the provisions of the Services Directive;
Amendment 25 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 43
Recital 43
(43) Contracts should be awarded on the basis of objective criteria that ensure compliance with the principles of transparency, non-discrimination and equal treatment. Thoese criteria should guarantee that tenders are assessed in conditions of effective competition, also wheret the same time ensuring that contracting entauthorities require high-quality works, supplies and services that are optimally suited to their needs and which include factors linked to socially-sustainable production process criteria. As a result, contracting entities should be allowed to adopt as award criteria either ‘the most economically advantageous tender’ or ‘the lowest cost’, taking into account that in the latter case they are free to setshould refer to adequate quality standards by using technical specifications or contract performance conditions.
Amendment 44 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 54 – paragraph 1a (new)
Article 54 – paragraph 1a (new)
1a. Technical specifications may also include, as appropriate, requirements relating to:
Amendment 45 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 54 – paragraph 1a – point a (new)
Article 54 – paragraph 1a – point a (new)
(a) performance, including levels of environmental and climate performance and performance in terms of socially sustainable production process;
Amendment 46 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 54 – paragraph 1a – point b (new)
Article 54 – paragraph 1a – point b (new)
(b) life-cycle characteristics;
Amendment 47 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 54 – paragraph 1a – point c (new)
Article 54 – paragraph 1a – point c (new)
(c) socially sustainable production process;
Amendment 48 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 54 – paragraph 1a – point d (new)
Article 54 – paragraph 1a – point d (new)
(d) the organisation, qualification and experience of the staff assigned to performing the contract in question.