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Activities of Izaskun BILBAO BARANDICA related to 2022/0269(COD)

Shadow opinions (1)

OPINION on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on prohibiting products made with forced labour on the Union market
2023/07/19
Committee: PECH
Dossiers: 2022/0269(COD)
Documents: PDF(272 KB) DOC(148 KB)
Authors: [{'name': "Rosa D'AMATO", 'mepid': 124835}]

Amendments (20)

Amendment 78 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 6 a (new)
(6a) Fisheries Agreements with third countries are an essential instrument to guarantee the working conditions of third-country workers in the European fleet.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 79 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 6 b (new)
(6b) Forced labour in non-cooperating countries is sometimes linked to IUU fishing, which is why the fight against IUU fishing is essential to eliminate forced labour.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 83 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 18 a (new)
(18a) The Commission should analyse the situation of non-cooperating countries in the fisheries sector and its impact on the European sector.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 105 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point j
(j) ‘producer’ means the producer of agricultural and fisheries products as referred to in Article 38(1) TFEU or of raw materials;
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 107 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1
Economic operators shall not place or make available on the Union market products that are made with forced labour, coming from IUU fishing, nor shall they export such products.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 114 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 27 to supplement this Regulation by providing further details on the risk- based approach Member States has to use pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article. Such delegated acts shall further complement the work done by the Network in accrodance with Article 24, especially in relation to ensuring the effective and uniform application of this Regulation.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 115 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. The competent authorities may request information from third countries on fisheries issues where they have reasonable grounds for suspecting that products from forced labour are being introduced.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 117 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Competent authorities may ask diplomatic representations of the Union in relevant third countries to provide information and support.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 120 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 4 – point c
(c) an order for the economic operators that have been subject to the investigation to donate the products concerned to charitable organisations or organisations that benefit public interest or where donation is not possible, recycle the products concerned or when neither of these two options are possible, dispose of the respective products in accordance with national law consistent with Union law.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 122 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 5 – point c
(c) that any product remaining with the economic operator concerned is donated the products concerned to charitable organisations or organisations that benefit public interest or where donation is not possible, recycle the products concerned or when neither of these two options are possible, disposed of in accordance with national law consistent with Union law at the expense of the economic operator.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 124 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 8 – paragraph 1
1. Competent authorities shall provide economic operators affected by a decision adopted pursuant to Article 6(4) the possibility of requesting a review of that decision within 15 working days from the date of receipt of that decision. In case of perishable goods, animals and plants, that time limit shall be 5 working days. The request for review shall contain information which demonstrates that the products are placed or made available on the market or to be exported in compliance with Article 3.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 125 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. The Commission shall set up a mechanism for the submission of information pursuant to paragraph 1. That mechanism shall be available in all official languages of the institutions of the Union, and it shall be user friendly and free of charge.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 126 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. In order to ensure uniform conditions for the submission of information, the Commission shall adopt implementing acts establishing templates for the submission of information. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 29.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 129 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 11 – paragraph 1
1. The Commission shall call upon external expertise to provide an indicative, non-exhaustive, verifiable and regularly updated database of forced labour risks in specific geographic areas, including non- cooperating third countries or with respect to specific products including with regard to forced labour imposed by state authorities. The database shall be based on the guidelines referred to in Article 23, points (a), (b) and (c), and relevant external sources of information from, amongst others, international organisations and third country authorities.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 133 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 13 – paragraph 1
1. The Commission shall ensure efficient cooperation among the competent authorities of the Member States as well as with non-cooperating third countries through facilitating and coordinating the exchange and collection of information and best practices with regard to the application of this Regulation.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 135 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 – paragraph 1
Where customs authorities identify a product entering or leaving the Union market that may, in accordance with a decision received pursuant to Article 15(3), be in violation of Article 3, they shall suspend the release for free circulation or the export of that product. Customs authorities shall immediately notify the relevant competent authorities of the competent Member State of the suspension and transmit all relevant information to enable them to establish whether the product is covered by a decision communicated pursuant to Article 15(3).
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 137 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 20 – paragraph 1
Where the release for free circulation or export of a product has been refused in accordance with Article 19, customs authorities shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the product concerned is donated to charitable or public interest purposes. If such products cannot be donated, they should be recycled, and if that is not possible, they should be disposed of in accordance with national law consistent with Union law. Articles 197 and 198 of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 shall apply accordingly.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 138 #
Proposal for a regulation
Chapter III a (new)
IIIa Chapter IIIa Non-cooperating third countries Article 21a Identification of non-cooperating third countries 1.The Commission, in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 29(2), shall identify the third countries that it considers as non-cooperating third countries in fighting the use of forced labour. 2.The identification set out in paragraph 1 shall be based on the review of all information obtained pursuant to Chapters II and III, or, as appropriate, any other relevant information, such as trade information obtained from national statistics and other reliable sources. 3.A third country may be identified as a non-cooperating third country if it fails to discharge the duties incumbent upon it under international law to take action to prevent, deter and eliminate the use of forced labour. 4.For the purposes of paragraph 3, the Commission shall take into account: (a) whether the third country concerned effectively cooperates with the Community, by providing a response to requests made by the Commission to investigate, provide feedback or follow-up in matters concerning the use of forced labour; (b) whether the third country concerned has taken effective enforcement measures in respect of the economic activity found responsible for the use of forced labour, and in particular whether sanctions of sufficient severity to deprive the offenders of the benefits accruing from the use of forced labour have been applied; (c) the history, nature, circumstances, extent and gravity of the manifestations of forced labour considered; (d) relevant information that the Commission has gathered under Regulation (EC) No 1005/2008; (e) for developing countries, the existing capacity of their competent authorities. 5.For the purposes of paragraph 3, the Commission shall also consider the following elements: (a) the ratification of, or accession of the third countries concerned to, international instruments, relevant for combating the use of forced labour and in particular relevant conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO); (b) any act or omission by the third country concerned that may have diminished the effectiveness of applicable laws, regulations or international conservation concerning combating the use of forced labour. 6.Where appropriate, specific constraints of developing countries, in particular in respect to monitoring, control and surveillance, shall be duly taken into consideration in the implementation of this Article. Article 21b Démarches in respect of countries identified as non-cooperating third countries 1.The Commission shall, without delay, notify countries concerned of the possibility of being identified as non- cooperating third countries in accordance with the criteria laid down in Article 21a.It shall include in the notification the following information: (a) the reason or reasons for the identification with all available supporting evidence; (b) the opportunity to respond to the Commission in writing with regard to the identification decision and other relevant information, for example, evidence refuting the identification or, where appropriate, a plan of action to improve and the measures taken to rectify the situation; (c) the right to ask for, or to provide, additional information; (d) the consequences of its identification as non-cooperating third country, as provided in Article 21f. 2.The Commission shall also include in the notification referred to in paragraph 1 a request that the third country concerned take any necessary measures for the cessation of the activities having been identified to be using forced labour and the prevention of any future such activities, and rectify any act or omission referred to in Article 21a(5)(b). 3.The Commission shall, by more than one means of communication, transmit its notification and request to the third country concerned.The Commission shall seek to obtain confirmation from that country that it has received the notification. 4.The Commission shall give to the third country concerned adequate time to answer the notification and a reasonable time to remedy the situation. Article 21c Establishment of a list of non-cooperating third countries 1.The Council, acting by qualified majority on a proposal from the Commission, shall decide on a list of non- cooperating third countries. 2.The Commission shall, without delay, notify the third country concerned of its identification as a non-cooperating third country and of the measures applied in accordance with Article 21f, and shall request it to rectify the current situation and to advise on the measures taken to ensure compliance with conservation and international obligations in relation to combating the use of forced labour. 3.Following a decision taken pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article, the Commission shall, without delay, notify it to the Member States and shall request them to ensure the immediate implementation of the measures laid down in Article 21f.Member States shall notify the Commission of any measures they have taken in response to this request. Article 21d Removal from the list of non-cooperating third countries 1.The Council, acting by qualified majority on a proposal from the Commission, shall remove a third country from the list of non-cooperating third countries if the third country concerned demonstrates that the situation that warranted its listing has been rectified.A removal decision shall also take into consideration whether the identified third countries concerned have taken concrete measures capable of achieving a lasting improvement of the situation. 2.Following a decision taken pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article, the Commission shall, without delay, notify Member States of the lifting of the measures laid down in Article 21f in respect of the third country concerned. Article 21e Publicity of the list of non-cooperating third countries The Commission shall publish the list of non-cooperating third countries in the Official Journal of the European Union and take any measure necessary to ensure publicity of this list, including placing it on its website.The Commission shall regularly update the list and shall provide for a system to automatically notify updates to Member States and any member of the civil society that should so request.Furthermore, the Commission shall transmit the list of non-cooperating third countries to relevant international organisations for the purposes of enhancing cooperation between the Union and those organisations aimed at preventing, deterring and eliminating the use of forced labour. Article 21f Action in respect of non-cooperating third countries The importation into the Union of products from the non-cooperating third country shall be prohibited. In the event that the identification of a non- cooperating third country pursuant to Article 21a is justified by the lack of appropriate measures adopted by this third country in relation to preventing, deterring and eliminating the use of forced labour affecting specific types of products, products from a specific supplier or region the prohibition of importation may only apply in relation to these products;
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 146 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 24 – paragraph 3 – point e a (new)
(ea) ensure good collaboration and exchange of information with authorities involved in implementing rules in relation to IUU-fishing and traceability for fisheries- and aquaculture products.
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH
Amendment 150 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 30 a (new)
Article30a Review 1. By [five years after the date of application] and every five years thereafter, the Commission shall carry out an evaluation of this Regulation taking account of its objectives and shall submit a report thereon to the European Parliament and to the Council. 2. The report shall assess whether this Regulation achieved its objective, in particular with regard to reducing the number of products on the Union market made with forced labour , improving cooperation between competent authorities and strengthening the controls on products entering the Union market and the synergies with other Union legislations, such as Regulation (EC) No 1005/2008, Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009 and Regulation (EU) No 1379/2013, while taking into account the impact on business, in particular on SMEs. 3. The report shall be accompanied, where appropriate, by a legislative proposal. 4. The Commission shall continuously monitor the implementation of this Regulation. The monitoring shall be based on a scientific and transparent methodology and shall take into account information provided by stakeholders
2023/06/01
Committee: PECH