Activities of Gerald HÄFNER related to 2012/2308(INI)
Plenary speeches (5)
Location of the seats of the European Union's institutions (A7-0350/2013 - Ashley Fox, Gerald Häfner) (vote)
Location of the seats of the European Union's institutions (debate)
Location of the seats of the European Union's institutions (debate)
Location of the seats of the European Union's institutions (debate)
Location of the seats of the European Union's institutions (debate)
Reports (1)
REPORT on the location of the seats of the European Union’s Institutions PDF (235 KB) DOC (115 KB)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the location of the seats of the European Union’s Institutions
Amendments (14)
Amendment 15 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A (new)
Recital -A (new)
-A. whereas the European Parliament plays a distinct and unique role as the only institution that is directly elected by and accountable to European citizens, and since its role has undergone the most significant changes amongst all institutions since its creation, this report will primarily focus on the seat and working arrangements of the European Parliament;
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A a (new)
Recital -A a (new)
-Aa. whereas the decision by member states on these seats was reached in a broader deal, taking into account the historical development of the European Union and its institutions as well as considerations of geographical dispersion;
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A b (new)
Recital -A b (new)
-Ab. whereas Member States have done so in Protocol 6 annexed to the Treaties, establishing Brussels as seat of the Commission, the Council - with its meetings to be held in Luxembourg during the months of April, June and October -, the Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the regions, Luxembourg as seat of the Court of Justice of the European Union, the Court of Auditors and the European Investment Bank, Frankfurt as seat of the European Central Bank and The Hague as seat of the European Police Office;
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A c (new)
Recital -A c (new)
-Ac. whereas Article 341 TFEU establishes that the seat of the institutions of the Union shall be determined by common accord of the governments of the Member States;
Amendment 21 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas Article 341 TFEU and Protocol 6 annexed to the Treaties establishes that Parliament shall have its seat in Strasbourg where 12 periods of monthly plenary sessions, including the budget session, shall be held, that the periods of additional plenary sessions shall be held in Brussels, that its committees shall meet in Brussels, and that its General Secretariat and its departments shall remain in Luxembourg;
Amendment A #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 11
Citation 11
- having regard to Rules 41, 48 and 74a5(3), 29, 41, 48, 74a, 201 and 202(4) of its Rules of Procedure,;
Amendment B #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 10
Citation 10
- having regard to the petition gathered in 630/2006 by the One Seat campaign, which was signendorsed by more than 1.2one million EU citizens,
Amendment C #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas Article 232 TFEU allows Parliament to adopt its own rules of procedure aund toer which it may determine the length of plenary sessions, in accordance with the treaties and the case law of the ECJ;
Amendment D #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas the ECJ has stated that the location of the seat is not to hinder the well-functioning of Parliament; whereas it has further stated that there are disadvantages and costs engendered by the plurality of working locations, but also that any improvement of the current situationmodification of the seat or working locations would requires a Treaty change and, thus, the consent of the Member States;
Amendment E #
Motion for a resolution
Recital M
Recital M
M. whereas the additional annual costs resulting from the geographic dispersion of Parliament have conservatively been estimated to range between EUR 1569 million and EUR 204 million4, which is equivalent to between 15 % and 2approximately 10 % of Parliament’s annual budget, while the environmental impact is also significant, with the CO2 emissions associated with the transfers to and from the three working locations estimated to amount to at least 19 000 tonnes5; 4 Discharge 2010: EU general budget, European Parliament (Liberadzki Report) (A7-0120/2012), texts adopted, P7_TA(2012)0155. 5between 11 0005 and 19 000 tonnes6; 4 The 2002 report by the Secretary General of the European Parliament is the last comprehensive cost estimate that is available. The range of €169 - €204 million per year has been confirmed by the 2012 Joint Working Group Report of the Bureau and Budget Committee if the EUR 148 million estimate is complemented by the EUR 28.3 million annual amortisation cost for the Strasbourg buildings, that need to be taken into account since the purchase of those buildings. In a response provided by the Secretary General on 30 August 2013 to the requests made in Paragraph 10 of Parliament's resolution of 6 February 2013 on the guidelines for the 2014 budget procedure the additional costs of the Strasbourg seat are estimated at EUR 103 million, which would sum up to a total of EUR 156 million, when complemented with the same amortisation and the unused floor estimates as the Joint Working Group Report from 2012. 5 ‘The three places of work of the European Parliament - Financial, environmental and regional impacts of geographic dispersion , note prepared by the Secretary General of the European Parliament on 30 August 2013 in response to the request made in Paragraph 10 of the Parliament's resolution of 6 February 2013 on the guidelines for the 2014 budget procedure. 6 ‘European Parliament two-seat operation: Environmental costs, transport & energy’, report prepared by Eco- Logica Ltd. for the Greens/EFA, November 2007.
Amendment F #
Motion for a resolution
Recital P
Recital P
P. whereas Parliament, since its suggestion in 1958 to be sited in proximity to the Council and the Commission, has via numerous reports, declarations and statements alwaysrepeatedly expressed its wish for a more practical and efficient working arrangement;
Amendment G #
Motion for a resolution
Recital Q
Recital Q
Q. whereas the citizens of the EU – including the 1.27over one million citizens who signendorsed a petition asking for a single seat – have repeatedly expressed their discontent with the current arrangements;
Amendment I #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Commits itself, therefore, to initiate an ordinary treaty revision procedure under Article 48 TEU with a view to propose the changes to Article 341 TFEU and to Protocol 6 necessary to allow Parliament to decide fully over its internal organisation, including the setting of its calendar and the location of its seatthe location of its seat and its internal organisation;
Amendment J #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 6
Citation 6
– having regard to the Secretary-General’s report to the Bureau of September 2002s regarding the cost of maintaining three places of work of September 2002 and August 2013,