Activities of João FERREIRA related to 2020/1998(BUD)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2021 - all sections
Amendments (12)
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Stresses that the EU budget for 2021 should include enough commitment and payment appropriations to meet the financing needs of the common fisheries policy; asserts that, for fisheries and aquaculture to continue to be viable, increased funding for these industries is needed; believes that the budget for this sector must be fully consistent with the EU’s new goals, particularly those set out in the Green Deal, the new industrial strategy, the ‘Farm to Fork’ strmeet the needs identified by the Member Stategys and the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030; takes the view that maintaining the competitive position of the fisheries sector must be go hand in hand with achieving these goalake into account social, environmental and economic objectives;
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. IConsists on a significders that ant increase in appropriations for the budget line ‘Promoting citizens engagement and participation in the democratic life of the Union’ in line with the Parliament’s amendments to the Commission proposal establishing the ‘Rights and Values programme’1 . _________________ 1 https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/doc ument/TA-8-2019-0040_EN.html' must not contribute to the creation of an artificial European identity, falsification and historical revisionism, anti-communism and the laundering of Nazi-fascism.
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. WelcomesTakes note of the proposed increase by 12% in commitment appropriations and by 5% in payment appropriations as compared to the 2020 budget for the ‘Executive and corporate communication services’; proposes a further increase to enable active engagement by the Commission in its communication on the Future of Euin this regard, believes that while it is important to strengthen communication on where and how the EU budget is used, institutional prope agand to step up the fight against disinformationa should not a priority under the current circumstances and needs.
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Proposes an in decrease for the line ‘Commission Representations’ as such representations play an important role in informing citizens about the EU activities, fostering public debate on EU matters and countering disinformation and they will needinstitutional propaganda should not be a priority under the current circumstances and needs; considers that no additional resources should be mobilised to finance activities in the framework of the Conference on the Future of Europe.
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. WelcomesConsiders that the proposed increase by 35% in commitment appropriations and by 24% in payment appropriations for ‘Communication services for citizens’; proposes a further increase in view of the scale of communication actions that will be needed in the framework of the Conference on the Future of Europe should be better used if channelled to support cohesion policies.
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. WelcomeConsiders the action taken by Parliament and the Council to amend Regulations (EU) No 508/2014 and (EU) No 1379/2013 as regards specific measures to mitigate the impact of the COVID‐19 outbreak in the fisheries and aquaculture sector to be positive, despite it still falling short of the sector's needs; believes that the Commission must assess in real time how the health and economic situations unfold and, if necessary, consider extending these measures beyond 31 December 2020 if the pandemic continuesfor as long as the pandemic and its effects last;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5 a. Reminds that Cohesion Policy must have sufficient resources to effectively stop divergence and promote convergence among Member States; considers that the reinforcement of the structural and cohesion funds is a fundamental pre-requisite to fulfil values and principles enshrined in the Treaties;
Amendment 17 #
4a. Takes the view that the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) should allow for the ceiling for EU funding to be raised to 100%, eliminating national co-financing, in exceptional situations, including measures intended to promote response capacities to crises in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic; for financial resources to be used flexibly by Member States under the EMFAF, with the possibility of shifting between headings and priorities, in parallel with the funding of new requirements justified in the context of the pandemic; and for the funding system for accessing EU funds to be modified through the implementation of a pre-financing mechanism, eliminating the problems created by the need to make advance payments using own funds;
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Welcomes the Commission’s prompt and ambitious response to the economic crisis, specifically the far- reaching economic recovery plan that it proposed on 27 May 2020; also welcomeConsiders the Commission’s proposal to increase the 2021-2027 budget for the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, fisheries and aquaculture by EUR 530 million over its initial proposal to be restrictive and that this fund should be significantly strengthened; stresses, however, that this increase will still leave the budget below the amount called for by Parliament;
Amendment 25 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Criticises the fact that the implementation rate for the 2014-2020 EMFF is still far too low – only 35% – six years after it was adopted; stresses that this poor rate is partly due to national and European red tape, but also to the mismatch between the EMFF rules and the real needs of the sector;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Considers that measures to support the sector should be strengthened, inter alia through the reintegration of EMFF funding to support fleet renewal and upgrade or the purchase of new vessels, under the conditions already proposed by Parliament; that a minimum price system should be set and implemented for the first sale, with the aim of protecting fishers' revenues and ensuring that fish continues to be offered to the public, if necessary with the intervention of public entities to cover operational expenses — subject to EMFF funding — and the disposal of fish as an emergency; that the EMFF should be able to finance a Wage Guarantee Fund to support fishers' revenues on the basis of the average revenue of each professional; that temporary support for cessation of activity should not be limited to six months, as provided for currently under the EMFF, and may be extended beyond this period and also cover small and medium-sized shellfish and aquaculture operators; that aid should be provided for storage, funded by the EMFF; that specific aid should be provided for investment on board vessels or for personal protective equipment related to specific needs in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic; and that administrative procedures should be simplified;
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Reiterates that the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA)Member States and their authorities must be given the additional funding and equipment ithey needs to carry out itstheir activities properly and to ensure that the EU meets its sustainable fishing goals;