Activities of François ALFONSI related to 2021/2079(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
EU islands and cohesion policy (debate)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on EU islands and cohesion policy: current situation and future challenges
Amendments (20)
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 6 a (new)
Citation 6 a (new)
— having regard to the 7th Environment Action Programme (EAP) and the concepts set out therein,
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas islands often suffer from a combination of multiple and permanent structural handicaps, such as small size, a low population density-density permanent population which has to cope with seasonal demographic pressure, small market, double insularity (island and archipelago), difficult topography very similar to mountainous regions, a dependence on maritime and air transport or a dependence on a small number of products;
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas the long-term social, economic, environmental and cultural consequences of the COVID-19 crisis on the island territories of the Union are of particular concern, and whereas Europe’s recovery must not create further regional disparities; whereas the COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated that island economies are highly vulnerable to such events;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital J
Recital J
J. whereas islands have exceptionally rich biodiversity and ecosystems; whereas island ecosystems are particularly threatened by the impact of climate change and should be protected;
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K
Recital K
K. whereas islands’ marine and terrestrial biodiversity is largely endemic, and therefore more fragile; whereas marine and coastal pollution, as well as overfishing, can be a source of concern for islandhave an increased impact on the islands’ environment, with very serious consequences for employment, the small-scale fisheries sector and local communities;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital L
Recital L
L. whereas the outermost regions and islands are particularly at risk from natural disasters, such as volcanic eruptions, forest fires and storms, storms, drought and the problems of desertification;
Amendment 47 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Recalls that insularity creates structural problems of dependence on maritime and air transport, which is a public service on which the daily lives of European citizens living on an island depend, with additional costs for importing and exporting goods, as well as for passenger transport; stresses that, in the case of archipelagos, these difficulties are multiplied by a double insularity;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Stresses that island economies are oriented towards the primary and tertiary sectors and that hyper-specialisation weakens the economic fabric by making it more vulnerable to economic slowdowns; is concerned about long-term developments which in many EU islands can create an economy that is based solely on tourism; stresses that support should be given to strengthening other sectors in order to achieve a good balance and a diversified labour market;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Calls for specific rules and financial support to help islands achieve climate neutrality goals, taking into account the additional costs involved and the impact of mobile technologies on their energy systems, which require proportionally very high investments to manage intermittent renewable energies; calls for these costs to be taken into account in the ‘Fit for 55’ legislative package;
Amendment 101 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Considers the use of renewable energy to be a priority and believes it could bring substantial benefits to islands, while taking into account the needs of local communities; calls, therefore, for the development of a wide range of renewable energy to be supported; welcomes the green hydrogen programmes which islands have launched;
Amendment 106 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Calls for renewables-based energy autonomy to be established as a target for all European islands and supported by the requisite financial resources;
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16a. Calls for an analysis of natural disaster risk prevention strategies, climate change adaptation measures and regional policies that could lead to the proliferation of housing and infrastructure on coastal floodplains or in landslide-prone areas;
Amendment 128 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Stresses the need for increased support foron the islands, within ecological limits and with due regard for a healthy marine environment, for agriculture and, aquaculture, and sustainable fisheries, as well as crafts and the blue economy, including through European cooperation programmes; calls on the Commission to draw up a regulation laying down specific measures in the area of agriculture for all NUTS 2 and NUTS 3 level islands with a view to achieving food autonomy and increasing the competitiveness of their products;
Amendment 132 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 a (new)
Paragraph 18 a (new)
18a. Highlights the lack of sustainable solutions for transporting agricultural products between most islands and the mainland and for exporting and importing agricultural products from and towards islands, and calls on the Commission and the Member States to support innovative projects for greener connections into their development plans for the islands;
Amendment 136 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 b (new)
Paragraph 18 b (new)
18b. Stresses the need to support remunerative and environmentally friendly short supply chains and the development of a farming sector that prioritises high value-added traditional products, local consumption and green solutions;
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 c (new)
Paragraph 18 c (new)
18c. Stresses that targeted regional policies and action aimed at protecting and restoring the unique biodiversity of the islands are necessary to preserve their natural resources and means of subsistence; strongly advises, therefore, against watering down the environmental regulations on the islands.
Amendment 158 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Stresses the need to ensure the territorial continuity of all islands through maritime and air transport and to ensure the safety and suitability of land bridges and road links; calls on the Commission to ensure that the 2021-2023 work programme of the Connecting Europe Facility contributes to the territorial accessibility of islands; improving island accessibility is crucial to their development and should go beyond connections with the national mainland;
Amendment 183 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 a (new)
Paragraph 25 a (new)
25a. Points out that the islands are not currently covered by the EU legislation on territorial classification; calls on the Commission to start discussions on this, with a view to including islands in the common classification of territorial units for statistics;
Amendment 186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27
Paragraph 27
27. Calls for an additional budget allocation to be established to cover the extra costs connected with European islands under the future cohesion policy; suggests expanding the island contact point by setting up an island task force within DG REGIO;
Amendment 189 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 a (new)
Paragraph 27 a (new)
27a. Calls on the Commission to consider setting up a programme like the European urban initiative that would support partnerships between insular regions in order to establish innovative approaches to island-specific problems;