35 Amendments of Jens GEIER related to 2017/2052(INI)

Jens GEIER, Carlos ZORRINHO, Constanze KREHL

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13

13. Is convinced that, unless the Council agrees to introduce new EU own resources, significantly increaseing the level of its national contributions to the EU budget~~, the introduction of new EU own resources~~ remains the only option for adequately financing the next MFF;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Draft opinion
Paragraph 12

12. Draws attention to the European Defence Fund and the recent Commission proposal for a European defence industrial development programme which is intended to cover the period 2019-2020; ~~welcomes the Commission’s intention to submit both a more substantial defence industrial development~~strongly believes that such programmes, if continued under the next MFF, should not draw funds away from other programmes and ~~a programme to support defence research a~~should only be funded by fresh money; reiterates pPar~~t of the MFF; considers that these programmes should not draw funds away from other programmes in the same heading.~~ liament’s position that any new political commitments should be financed with new appropriations and not through flexibility instruments or redeployments of appropriations from existing programmes; further reiterates that additional expenses on the Union level in the field of defence research should be compensated by savings on the national level;

2017/11/16
Committee: ITRE

Jens GEIER, Carlos ZORRINHO, Miroslav POCHE, Răzvan POPA, Constanze KREHL, Edouard MARTIN, Peter KOUROUMBASHEV, Pervenche BERÈS

Draft opinion
Paragraph 12 a (new)

12a. Calls for sufficient funding for the agencies under ITRE-remit to ensure their capacity to fulfil their tasks adequately;

2017/11/16
Committee: ITRE

Jens GEIER, Carlos ZORRINHO, Miroslav POCHE, Răzvan POPA, Constanze KREHL, Edouard MARTIN, Peter KOUROUMBASHEV, Pervenche BERÈS

Draft opinion
Paragraph 12 b (new)

12b. Notes that the next MFF will need to consider the UK’s departure from the EU and its implications for the EU budget; expresses the wish that EU programs under ITRE-remit can continue unimpeded.

2017/11/16
Committee: ITRE

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 45

45. Notes the reference to the notion of European added value presented in several Commission documents; reiterates the list of parameters identified by Parliament in its resolution6 in this context; recalls that the EU’s resources should be used to finance European public goods as well as to act as a catalyst in providing incentives for Member States at all administrative levels to take action in order to fulfil Treaty objectives and to attain common EU goals which would not be realised otherwise; agrees that the EU budget should be used to finance actions that can benefit the EU as a whole, which cannot be ensured efficiently by any single Member State alone and that can offer better value for money compared to actions taken solely at national, regional or local level; ~~__________________ 6~~against this background, expects Member states to refrain from following a “juste retour” logic that takes into account only national interests in the negotiations on the next MFF; __________________ 6 Texts adopted, P8_TA(2017)0401. Texts adopted, P8_TA(2017)0401.

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 56

56. Recalls the build-up of a backlog of unpaid bills at the end of the previous MFF that spilled over into the current one, reaching an unprecedented peak of EUR 24.7 billion at the end of 2014, mostly in the field of cohesion policy, due to the late take-off of the previous programmes, under-budgeting and insufficient payment ceilings; regrets that the focus on the absorption of this backlog linked to the 2007-2013 period resulted in deliberate efforts to delay the start of some of the 2014-2020 programmes and has contributed to the opposite trend of under- execution in the 2016 and 2017 budgets; asks the Commission and the Member States to come up with concrete measures to accelerate the implementation of the 2014-2020 programmes, and warns against a repetition of the payment crisis in the transition between two MFFs; invites national finance ministers of all Member states to attend the format of regular payments meetings between the three EU institutions, in order to have a fruitful discussion on possible measures to improve the implementation of programs under shared management;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Jens GEIER, Josef WEIDENHOLZER, Miroslav POCHE, Péter NIEDERMÜLLER, Claude MORAES, Derek VAUGHAN, Clare MOODY, Soraya POST, Eider GARDIAZABAL RUBIAL

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 65

65. Believes, therefore, that the current presentation of the headings requires some improvements, but is against any unjustified radical changes; proposes, as a result, the following structure for the MFF post-2020; Heading 1: A stronger and sustainable economy Including programmes and instruments supporting: under direct management: - research and innovation - -digital transformation of European society and economy industry, entrepreneurship and - small and medium-sized enterprises - large-infrastructure projects ~~- -~~ transport, ~~digitalisation, energy - -~~energy, space environment and climate change -mitigation and adaptation - agriculture and rural development ~~- -~~ maritime affairs and fisheries ~~- -~~ horizontal (financial) instruments - supporting investments in Europe (possible umbrella financial instrument at EU level, incl. EFSI) Heading 2: Stronger cohesion and solidarity in Europe Including programmes and instruments supporting: - economic, social and territorial - cohesion (under shared management):  investments in innovation, research, digitalisation, reindustrial~~isa~~ transition, SMEs, transport, climate change adaptation and mitigation, energy and environment employment, education, social affairs and  social inclusion~~ -~~, capacity building education, youth and life-long learning - -democracy, rule of law, fundamental rights culture, citizenship and - communication - health and food safety ~~- -~~ asylum, migration and integration, - justice and consumers - support to and coordination with national administrations - gender equality Heading 3: Stronger responsibility in the world Including programmes and instruments supporting: - human rights, democracy and the rule of law - international cooperation and development - neighbourhood - enlargement - humanitarian aid - trade - gender equality - contribution to EU trust funds and external relations facilities Heading 4: Security, peace and stability for all Including programmes and instruments supporting: - security - cybersecurity - crisis response and stability - common foreign and security policy - defence Heading 5: An efficient administration at the service of Europeans - financing EU staff - financing the buildings and equipment of EU institutions

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 70 a (new)

70a. Welcomes the recent Commission proposal to ensure the financing of the Research Fund for Coal and Steel for the upcoming years; highlights the importance of this fund for financing research in this industry sector; believes, therefore, that a longer-term solution is needed that ensures the financing beyond 2020 and also incorporates the fund to the Union budget in order to allow for the Parliament to live up to its role as budgetary control authority;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 75

75. Considers it essential to secure a sustainable and affordable energy supply in Europe; calls, therefore, for continuous support for investments ensuring the diversification of energy sources, increasing energy security and enhancing energy efficiency~~, including by CEF Energy~~ and the use of renewable energy, including by CEF Energy, which should especially focus on renewable energy infrastructure; stresses in particular the importance of providing for comprehensive support, especially for carbon-intensive regions, energy transition, transition to a low-carbon economy, the modernisation of power generation and grids, carbon capture storage and utilisation technologies, and the modernisation of district heating; considers that the transformation of the energy sector in the light of the climate objectives should be supported by the creation of an Energy Transition Fund under the next MFF that would facilitate the structural changes in energy-intensive industries and carbon- intensive electricity production plants, and create incentives for low-carbon investments and innovative solutions;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 76

76. Underlines the strategic importance of large-scale infrastructure projects such as the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay (EGNOS), the Global Satellite Navigation System (Galileo) and the Earth Observation Programme (Copernicus) for the EU’s future competitiveness; considers that the financing of these large-scale projects should be secured in the EU budget but, at the same time, ring-fenced, so as to ensure that possible cost overruns do not threaten the funding and successful implementation of other Union policies, as was the case in the previous MFF; recalls that, for this purpose, the maximum amount for these projects is currently fixed in the MFF Regulation, and calls for similar provisions in the new regulation; notes that the current planning of ITER makes necessary a Union contribution of EUR 6.07 billion within the years 2021- 2027, compared to EUR 2.99 billion in the years 2014-2020; expects these additional needs to be matched by additional resources;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 77

77. Affirms that the common agricultural policy is fundamental for food security and autonomy, the preservation of rural populations, sustainable development and the provision of high-quality and affordable food products for Europeans; points out the necessity to directly link agricultural payments to the delivery of public goods such as water, biodiversity and climate protection as well as husbandry according to animal welfare principles has increased; points out that food requirements have increased, as has the need to develop environmentally friendly farming practices and the need to tackle climate change; underlines that the CAP is one of the most integrated policies and is mainly financed at EU level and, therefore, replaces national spending;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 77

77. Affirms that the common agricultural policy is fundamental for food security and autonomy, the preservation of rural populations, sustainable development and the provision of high-quality and affordable food products for Europeans; points out that food requirements have increased, as has the need to develop environmentally friendly farming practices and the need to tackle climate change; so that EU citizens understand the rationale behind the agricultural payments; underlines that the CAP is one of the most integrated policies and is mainly financed at EU level and, therefore, replaces national spending;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 77

77. Affirms that the common agricultural policy is fundamental for food security and autonomy, the preservation of rural populations, sustainable development and the provision of high-quality, healthy, sustainable and affordable food products for Europeans; points out that food requirements have increased, as has the need to develop environmentally friendly farming practices and the need to tackle climate change; underlines that the CAP is one of the most integrated policies and is mainly financed at EU level and, therefore, replaces national spending;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 78

78. Expects the global amount of direct payments to be kept intact under the next MFF, as they generate clear EU added value and strengthen the single market by avoiding distortions of competition between Member States; opposes any renationalisation and any national co- financing in that respect; stresses the need to increase funding in line with responses to the various cyclical crises in sensitive sectors, to create new instruments that can mitigate price volatility and to increase funding for Programmes of Options Specifically Relating to Remoteness and Insularity (POSEI); stresses the fact that public money for public goods delivered from agriculture should be in the centre of the next MFF; concludes, therefore, that the CAP budget in the next MFF should be at least maintained at its current level for the EU-27;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 78

78. Expects the global amount of ~~direct~~CAP payments to be kept intact under the next MFF, as they generate clear EU added value and strengthen the single market by avoiding distortions of competition between Member States; opposes any renationalisation and any national co- financing in that respect; stresses the need to increase funding in line with responses to the various cyclical crises in sensitive sectors, to create new instruments that can mitigate price volatility and to increase funding for Programmes of Options Specifically Relating to Remoteness and Insularity (POSEI); concludes, therefore, that the CAP budget in the next MFF should be at least maintained at its current level for the EU-27;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Eider GARDIAZABAL RUBIAL, Jens GEIER, John HOWARTH

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 80 a (new)

80a. Takes note that OLAF repeatedly found severe cases of customs fraud in Member states which have created a significant loss of income for the Union budget; points to the ECA special report 19/2017 on import procedures and is concerned that fraudsters will continue to find the ‘weakest link’ among Member states as their points of entry to the customs union, and that losses to the Union budget will continue even during the next MFF; asks those Member states that objected to the Union legal framework for customs infringements and sanctions to reconsider their position in order to allow for a speedy solution of this problem;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Eider GARDIAZABAL RUBIAL, Soraya POST, Mercedes BRESSO, Jens GEIER, Jean-Paul DENANOT, Clare MOODY, Nicola CAPUTO

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 81

81. Stresses that cohesion policy post- 2020 should remain the main investment policy of the European Union in order to tackle complex socio-economic challenges covering all EU regions while concentrating the majority of the resources on the most vulnerable ones; believes that, beyond the goal of reducing the disparities between levels of development and enhancing convergence as enshrined in the Treaty, it should focus on the achievement of the broad EU political objectives and proposes, therefore, that under the next MFF, the three cohesion policy funds – the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Cohesion Fund – should concentrate mainly on providing support for innovation, digitalisation, reindustrial~~isa~~ transition, SMEs, transport, climate change adaptation, ~~employment and social inclusion~~and mitigation, environment, energy, infrastructuring, employment, education, including vocational education and training, social inclusion and capacity building, social inclusion and gender equality; recalls, in this context, the need for further integrated synergies in order to foster comprehensive, trans-sectorial strategies; calls, moreover, for a reinforced territorial cooperation component ~~and~~ an urban dimension for the policy and dedicated provisions for area with geographic specificities, such as rural, mountainous and remote areas;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 82

82. Considers maintaining the financing of cohesion policy post-2020 for the EU-27 at least at the level of the 2014- 2020 budget to be of the utmost importance; stresses that GDP should remain one of the parameters for the allocation of cohesion policy funds, but believes that it should be complemented by an additional set of social, environmental and demographic indicators to better take into account new types of inequalities between and within EU regions; supports, in addition, the continuation under the new programming period of the elements that rendered cohesion policy more modern and performance-oriented under the current MFF; calls for more synergies and complementarity between public investment policies by the Member States budgets and the Union budget and invites the Commission to assess ways to achieve that;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Eider GARDIAZABAL RUBIAL, Soraya POST, Jens GEIER, Maria João RODRIGUES, Luigi MORGANO

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 84

84. Emphasises in particular the continuous need to fight unemployment and exclusion, especially among young people, and calls, therefore, for a ~~doubling~~full implementation of the EU Youth Guarantee, multiplying by six of the Youth Employment Initiative envelope in the next programming period~~; considers that~~ and, making it accessible to all unemployed young people; underlines the need of an improved regulation in order to safeguard non-discriminatory participation in the programme for young people coming from a disadvantaged socio-economic background; expects Member states to do their utmost to implement corresponding policies; considers that alongside continued support for internal demand, investment to boost education and training, especially the development of digital skills, remains one of the top priorities of the EU;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Eider GARDIAZABAL RUBIAL, Claude MORAES, Péter NIEDERMÜLLER, Ramón JÁUREGUI ATONDO, Luigi MORGANO, Soraya POST, Petra KAMMEREVERT, Jens GEIER

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 85

85. Expresses support for programmes in the areas of democracy, rule of law, fundamental rights, culture, education, media, youth, sports ~~and~~, citizenship and civil society that have clearly demonstrated their European added value and enjoy lasting popularity among beneficiaries and without which it is not possible to develop a common European conscience; advocates, therefore, continuous investment in the Education and Training 2020 framework through the Erasmus+, Creative Europe and Europe for Citizens programmes in order to pursue reaching out people of all ages, and especially young people, to young people and providing them with valuable competences and life skills through lifelong learning, learner-centred and non-formal and informal education, as well as informal learning opportunities; calls in particular for at least tripling of the Erasmus+ envelope in the next MFF with the aim of reaching many more young people ~~and learners across Europe,~~primarily those coming from a disadvantaged socio-economic background, and learners across Europe, beyond university students, with a particular attention to people with disabilities, enabling them to participate in the programme without their own resources and achieving the full potential of the programme; recommends, moreover, the continuation of the European Solidarity Corps and reiterates its support for strengthening the external dimension of the Erasmus+ and Creative Europe programmes; recommends setting up an internal European Democracy Fund for the strengthened support of civil society and NGOs working in the fields of democracy and human rights;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Eider GARDIAZABAL RUBIAL, Jens GEIER, Elly SCHLEIN

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 86

86. Expects that in the post-2020 period, the European Union will move from crisis-management mode to a permanent, European policy in the field of asylum and migration; stresses that the actions in this field should be covered by a dedicated instrument, i.e. the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund; emphasises that the future fund, as well as the relevant Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) agencies, must be equipped with an adequate level of funding for the whole of the next MFF to address the comprehensive challenges in this area; believes, furthermore, that the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) should be complemented by additional components tackling this issue under other policies, in particular by the cohesion funds and the instruments financing external actions, as no single tool could hope to address the magnitude and complexity of needs in this field; recognises, moreover, the importance of cultural, educational and sports programmes in integrating refugees and migrants into European society; asks the Commission to assess whether the role of European cities within the European asylum policy could be strengthened by introducing an incentive scheme that offers financial support for refugee accommodation and economic development directly to cities in return for receiving refugees and asylum seekers;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 88

88. Stresses that the world is confronted with multiple challenges including conflicts, cyber-attacks, terrorism, disinformation, natural disasters, climate change and environmental degradation, human rights violations and protracted crises; believes that the Union has a particular political and financial responsibility which is founded on rules- based foreign policy, cooperation with partner countries, poverty eradication and crisis response; believes, therefore, that it is necessary for the Union to increase funding to UNRWA;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 93

93. Believes that the next MFF must support the establishment of a European Defence Union; awaits, following the Commission’s announcements in this area, the relevant legislative proposals, including a dedicated EU defence research programme and an industrial development programme complemented by Member States’ investment in collaborative equipment; recalls that increased defence cooperation, the pooling of research and equipment and the elimination of duplications could lead to considerable efficiency gains, often estimated at around EUR 26 billion per year; believes, therefore, that additional spending on the EU level should be compensated by savings on the national level;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 95

95. Considers that a strong, efficient and high quality public administration is indispensable to the delivery of Union policies and to rebuild trust and strengthen dialogue with ci~~tizen~~vil society organisations and citizens at all levels; underlines the role of the institutions made up by democratically elected members in that respect; recalls that, according to the Court of Auditors, the EU institutions, bodies and agencies have implemented the 5 % reduction in staff as set out in their establishment plans; takes the view that they should not be subject to a further horizontal reduction approach of this kind; expresses its fierce opposition towards a repetition of the so-called redeployment pool for agencies;

2018/02/01
Committee: BUDG