2008/2301(INI) | [ParlTrack]

Motion for a resolution
Recital O a (new)

Oa. whereas increased concerns over energy supply security have resulted in projects for pipelines for natural gas, as well as for liquefied natural gas which, in particular when rushed through without proper evaluation of risks and alternatives, has raised petitioners' concerns over insufficient consideration of potential serious risks for the environment and human health and safety in respect, notably, of projects in the Baltic Sea, Wales and Ireland,

Amendment 11 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital O b (new)

Ob. whereas it is evident from the examination of petitions that the lists of projects mentioned in the Annexes to Directive 85/337 on environmental impact assessments(as amended by Directive 97/11) do not cover a number of important installations and activities which have emerged after the latest amendments to the Annexes, such as, re- gasification plants and bio-diesel plants,

Amendment 12 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital O c (new)

Oc. whereas the many petitions on the Natura 2000 network have continued to show that ending loss of biodiversity constitutes a major challenge for the Union and that the Habitats and Birds Directives constitute basic and indispensable tools for fulfilling the EU's commitment to end biodiversity loss by 2010,

Amendment 13 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital O d (new)

Od. whereas the examination of petitions has also shown that the lack of sufficient sources of fresh water frequently is aggravated by other factors such as expanding demand for water due to excessive urbanisation and leisure projects, inadequate maintenance of infrastructure and prevention of leakage, intensive use of water by industrial agriculture and a pricing policy which does not encourage sustainable use of water,

Amendment 14 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital P

P. having regard to the recommendations made by the Committee on Petitions following a visit to Fos-sur-Mer, to urge the French authorities not to proceed with the construction of an incinerator plant, but to support an alternative methanisation plant, given the existing high levels of atmospheric pollution and the obligation to ensure the highest levels of health and safety of the local populationCyprus and Romania,

Amendment 15 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital Q

Q. having regard to the recommendations made by the Petitions Committee to the Romanian authorities about the need to preserve and protect the integrity of Saint Joseph's Roman Catholic Cathedral in Bucharest, and calling for the demolition of the partly-built twenty-storey office building only three metres away from the cathedral wall,deleted

Amendment 16 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital R

~~R. bearing in mind the concern expressed by the Committee on Petitions in relation to certain infrastructure projects in Bulgaria in the Rila Mountains visited during a fact-finding visit in 2008,~~deleted

Amendment 17 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital R a (new)

Ra. whereas Ms Ann Abraham, the UK Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman addressed the committee in December 2008 and presented her findings, which took her four years to complete, yet there were no proposals for remedies for the victims,

Amendment 18 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital S

S. recognising the positive and constructive cooperation with the European Ombudsman in 2008, the support provided by the Committee on Petitions for his recommendations contained in two Special Reports and the importance of his responsibilities in investigating allegations made by EU citizens of maladministration within EU institutions and bodies, and welcoming the pragmatic but necessaryhis Annual Report for 2007 and his Special Reports on complaints 1487/2005/ and 3453/2005/ with regard to the use of languages by the Council and the Commission's application of the infringement procedure respectively and welcoming the modifications to his statute approved by Parliament,

Amendment 19 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital T

T. whereas in 2008 the Committee on Petitions received 1 884 petitions, ~~an increase of approximately 20% on the number received in 2007, and whereas the resources of the Committee secretariat actually decreased during that period~~XX were declared admissible, XX were declared admissible and closed in the light of previously taken decisions, and XX were declared inadmissible, whereas the number of petitions that do not meet the conditions of Rule 191(1) of the Rules of Procedure has significantly risen since the beginning of 2007,

Amendment 2 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital C

C. bearing in mind that several of the recommendations adopted in the 2007 Annual Report are yet to be implemented by Parliament's authorities, such as the request for an urgent improvement of the administrative resources, including linguistic and legal expertise, of its Committee on Petitions in order to increase Parliament's capacity to conduct independent investigations of petitions addressed to it,

Amendment 20 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1

1. Welcomes the involvement and contribution of petitioners at each meeting of the Committee on Petitions which allows for a direct and open dialogue with European Parliament representatives and continues to encourage individual EU citizens and community associations to come forward with issues which concern the area of activity of the European Union and which affect them directly, believing that this process enables the European Parliament as an institution to monitor the implementation of Community law in the Member States and to better defend and promote the fundamental rights of all EU citizens as defined in the EU Treaty;

Amendment 21 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1

1. Welcomes the involvement of petitioners at each meeting of the Committee on Petitions and continues to encourage individual EU citizens and community associations to ~~come forward with issue~~petition the Parliament with complaints which concern the area of activity of the European Union ~~and which affect them directly~~, believing that this process enables the European Parliament as an institution to play a significant role in monitoring the application of Community law by the Member States and to better defend ~~and promote~~ the fundamental rights of all EU citizens as defined in the EU Treaty;

Amendment 22 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2

2. Urges EUnational and regional parliaments as representatives of citizens to remain vigilant in relation to the way in which Member States apply the Treaties and EU legislative acts, notably as regards issues related to the environment, social and employment rights, the free movement of persons, goods and services, financial services, citizens' fundamental rights including their right to legitimately acquired property, recognition of their professional qualifications and all forms of discrimination; and calls on the European institutions to communicate effectively with the citizens so that they are aware of their rights and the duties of the national and local institutions;

Amendment 23 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3

3. Emphasises that, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, Parliament cannot regard as admissible petitions which seek to appeal against decisions of competent authorities or judicial bodies of Member States; emphasises, moreover, that complaints need to meet the conditions of Rule 191(1) of Parliament's Rules of Procedure before they can be registered as petitions;

Amendment 24 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3

3. Emphasises that, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, Parliament cannot regard as admissible petitions which seek to appeal against decisions of competent authorities or judicial bodies of Member States and that such information is communicated in a clear and understandable way to the petitioners;

Amendment 25 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3

3. Emphasises that the European Parliament cannot deem as admissible, petitions which seek to appeal against decisions of competent member state authorities or judicial bodies, acting under the principle of subsidiarity, that is, when neither Community law nor the basic principles on which the Union is founded are relevant;

Amendment 26 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)

3a. Calls for the recommendations adopted in the 2007 Annual Report which have not yet been implemented to be implemented within a reasonable timeframe;

Amendment 27 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4

4. Calls on all Member States and their national, regional and local institutions to fully cooperate with the responsible committee of the European Parliament and with the Commission when investigating allegations or proposals contained in petitions, on a loyal and constructive basis, with a view to finding solutions to issues raised through the petitions process;

Amendment 28 #

Manolis MAVROMMATIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4

4. Calls on the European Commission, all Member States and their national, regional and local institutions, together with their Permanent Representations, to fully cooperate with the responsible committee of the European Parliament when investigating allegations or proposals contained in petitions, on a loyal and constructive basis, with a view to finding solutions to issues raised through the petitions process;

Amendment 29 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)

4a. Considers that the recognition of the essential role and competence of national, regional and local authorities in proposing and implementing programmes and projects within the objectives of European cohesion funding must be accompanied by effective verification that authorities on all levels of government assume their respective responsibilities in assuring that European funding is not used for purposes which contravene EU law or the policies covered by the funding;

Amendment 3 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital C

C. whereas several of the recommendations adopted in the 2007 Annual Report have yet to be implemented by Parliament's authorities, such as, for instance, closer cooperation with SOLVIT in the field of petitions and complaints regarding the internal market, and the establishment of a common EU portal for European citizens,

Amendment 30 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)

~~1 Resolution of 20 April 2004, P5_TA(2004)0309).~~6a. Recalls that Parliament has emphasised in its resolution on the Commission communication on Article 7 of the EU Treaty that respect for and promotion of the values on which the Union is founded and defence of democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights are a particular responsibility for Parliament as the directly elected representative of European citizens and that Parliament took the view that "ignoring the possible need for penalties must create the impression that the Union is not prepared or is not in a position to use all the means at its disposal to defend its values";1 Or. en

Amendment 31 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)

7a. Recalls that Parliament has considered that allegations of serious infringements of Community law, which the Committee on Petitions has deemed well founded in the course of the examination of petitions but which the Member State concerned refuses to admit and which are likely to set a precedent at the national level, should ultimately be examined by the ECJ in order to ensure consistency and coherence in Community law and the reality of the internal market;1

Amendment 32 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)

17a. Acknowledges that infringement proceedings, even where successful, may not result in immediate remedy regarding the specific concern raised by individual petitioners, a situation which frequently undermines public confidence in the ability of the EU institutions to meet their expectations; Or. el Resolution P6-0040/2005

Amendment 33 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8

8. Calls on the Commission to be more ready to actively prevent breaches of Community law by raising the importance and significance attached to the "precautionary principle", and expresses its concern that, under questioning, many Commission officials fail to recognise the importance of this principle to EU citizens who alert the institutions to the risk of abuse or denial by Member States, notably in the environmental field when large infrastructure projects may be planned;deleted

Amendment 34 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)

8a. Takes the view that, as there are clear indications that the objective of ending biodiversity loss in the EU by 2010 cannot be achieved, urgent action must be taken in order to render the application of the Habitats and Birds Directives more effective and calls on the Commission to do its utmost to ensure that the directives are applied by the Member States in a manner which is consistent with this objective;

Amendment 35 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)

8a. Calls on the Parliament and the Commission to promote to Member States the importance of forward thinking - especially in the area of planning approval - in helping to prevent potential breaches of provisions of Community law that have been adopted but are not as yet in force;

Amendment 36 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9

9. Recognises that ~~well-meaning petitioners are not always right and that solutions may~~ solutions for petitioners sometimes cannot be found for their complaints due to weaknesses in the applicable Community legislation itself;

Amendment 37 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)

9a. Is concerned by the large number of petitions before this committee seeking voting rights for resident ‘non’-citizens of Latvia in local elections; recalls that the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Committee, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe's Parliamentary Assembly have recommended making it possible for non- citizens to participate in local elections; urges the European Commission to closely monitor and encourage the regularisation of the status of ‘non’- citizens in Latvia, many of whom were born in Latvia;

Amendment 38 #

Inés AYALA SENDER

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)

9a. Notes that many petitions received by the European Parliament from individuals and associations largely concern matters which do not constitute an infringement of Community law and should therefore be resolved by exhausting all legal channels of redress existing in the Member States concerned and once all appropriate action has been taken at national level the appropriate appeals body is the European Court of Human Rights;

Amendment 39 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 b (new)

9b. Calls on the Commission to bring forward a proposal, as a matter of urgency, to remove the legal loophole which allows misleading business directories to continue to operate; the problem could be resolved by altering the wording of Annex A(21) to the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (2005/29/EC), specifically by replacing the word 'consumer' by the words 'target of the practice';

Amendment 4 #

Manolis MAVROMMATIS

Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)

Da. whereas the institution of the 'Citizens' Initiative' under the Treaty of Lisbon will result in even greater public participation in the activities and work of the European Union,

Amendment 40 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 c (new)

9c. Notes that the One-Seat Petition signed by 1,5 million people, which seeks to have the European Parliament meet in one location, has not yet been fully addressed; recommends that the Petitions Committee deal with this matter as a priority during the next mandate;

Amendment 41 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 d (new)

9d. Notes that the issues raised in the Jugendamt petitions concerning children being taken into care, have not yet been fully addressed and need to be considered afresh early in the next parliamentary term;

Amendment 42 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10

10. Therefore, calls on responsible legislative committees to ~~bear in mind proposals or suggestions which may from time to time be made by the Committee on Petition~~continue their efforts regarding the application by Member States of specific EU legislation, with a view to possible revision or further investigation;

Amendment 43 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)

11a. Recalls Parliament's request to the Commission to step up its monitoring of the implementation of Directive 2006/114/EC on misleading and comparative advertising with regard to misleading business-directory companies and to report to Parliament on the feasibility and possible consequences of extending the scope of Directive 2005/29/EC;

Amendment 44 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)

12a. Endorses the Ombudsman's call to the Council to expand the language options of the websites of its Presidencies to the most widely spoken languages of the European Union with the aim of ensuring that citizens have direct access to the activities of the Council's Presidencies; refers in this respect to the French Council Presidency, which published its official website in compliance with the Ombudsman's recommendations;

Amendment 45 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)

13a. Endorses the Ombudsman's call to the Commission, with reference to the implementation of the Working Time Directive, to handle complaints by citizens in conformity with principles of good administration in the field of the Commission's discretionary powers regarding the opening of infringement procedures;

Amendment 46 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)

14a. Welcomes the constructive cooperation between the Ombudsman and the EU within the appropriate institutional framework ; endorses the Ombudsman's repeated calls for the need of a Code of Good Administrative Behaviour, common to all EU institutions and bodies, as approved by Parliament on 6 September 2001; is of the view that the Ombudsman, the Commission and the Parliament should develop a common EU portal for the treatment of complaints addressed to the EU institutions;

Amendment 47 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)

15a. Urges the implementation by all parties of UN Security Council Resolution 550 ( 1984 ) on the Cyprus issue, which would lead to the full restoration of property to its legitimate owners in Varosha; in case there are no visible results by the end of 2008, the committee responsible might consider bringing the issue of the Famagusta petitioners to plenary;

Amendment 48 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)

16a. Calls on the Romanian authorities to adopt measures to conserve and safeguard Romania's cultural and architectural heritage, pursuant to Article 151 of the EC Treaty, referring to Parliament's Written Declaration P6_TA(2007)0435 on St Joseph's Roman Catholic Cathedral; with reference to the problems on restitution of property confiscated under the Communist regime, points out that, under Article 295 of the EC Treaty, property ownership is a matter of national competence;

Amendment 49 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)

17a. Requests the French authorities to prepare an epidemiological assessment to determine the impact on the area close to Fos-Berre, in the immediate vicinity of the incinerator plant under construction at Fos-sur-Mer; recognises that Directive 1999/30/EC does not prohibit the construction of an incinerator in an area already affected by atmospheric pollution, but, under Directives 1999/30/EC and 96/62/EEC, measures are to be taken to ensure compliance with European standards on atmospheric pollution;

Amendment 5 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital G

G. whereas failure to cooperate actively and in a timely manner with the work of the responsible committee in the interest of the correct application of Community law raises doubts about the desire and intent of the Member State concerned to correctly apply EU policies and objectives and therefore exposes the authorities to measures in the form of sanctions and penalties which are available under the terms of the Treaties as well as to public criticism,

Amendment 50 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 a (new)

18a. Recalls the recommendations in the Committee's Annual Report of 2007 with a view to reconsidering the administrative proceedings on the treatment of petitions, such as, for instance, the transfer of the registration of petitions to the Petitions Committee secretariat, close cooperation with SOLVIT, further enhancement of the Petitions Database, the development of an EU portal for European citizens etc; welcomes the drafting by Members of a Code of Good Practice for the treatment of petitions, which would come into force at the beginning of the next parliamentary term;

Amendment 6 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital I

I. recognising the constructive contribution made to the petitions process by the services of the Commission, which regularly provide, at the request of the responsible committee, preliminary assessments of many petitions received, ~~and noting that in 2008 this has also involved an increased workload for the officials concerned, notably in the Commission's DG Environment and DG Internal Market,~~

Amendment 7 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital J a (new)

Ja. whereas Parliament has considered that it would be legitimate for it to make use of its powers under Article 230 of the EC Treaty, if this were necessary in order to put an end to a serious infringement of Community law which has been revealed in the course of the examination of a petition and where a significant difference of interpretation persists, despite efforts to resolve it, between Parliament and the Commission, as regards the action required under Community law for the protection of citizen's rights in the case concerned,

Amendment 8 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital L a (new)

La. whereas, under Article 230 of the EC Treaty, Parliament has the right to bring actions before the Court of Justice of the European Communities (ECJ) under the same conditions as the Council and the Commission and, pursuant to Article 201 of the EC Treaty, Parliament is empowered to exercise control over the activities of the Commission and thus has at its disposal both the legal and the political instruments to respond more effectively to citizens' legitimate concerns,

Amendment 9 #