Activites

• 2014/04/02 Vote in plenary scheduled
• 2013/12/10 Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • Results of vote in Parliament
  • T7-0542/2013 summary

    The European Parliament adopted amendments to the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on imports of rice originating in Bangladesh. The matter was referred back to the committee responsible. The vote on the legislative resolution was postponed. The main amendments adopted by Parliament concerned the following issues: Right to a decent income: Parliament called for this Regulation to recognises the right of small farmers and rural workers to a decent income and to a safe and healthy working environment and regarded respect for that right as fundamental in relation to achieving the general objectives of granting trade preferences to developing countries and, in particular, to least developed countries. In this regard, Members introduced a recital stressing that this Regulation must be consistent with the objectives of the Union policy in the field of development cooperation as set out in Article 208 of the Treaty, in particular the eradication of poverty and the promotion of sustainable development and good governance in the developing countries. Respect for ILO Conventions: only rice that is produced, harvested and processed in accordance with the International Labour Organisation Conventions and in particular with Conventions on: (i) Forced Labour, (ii) Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise, (iii) the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining, (iv) Equal Remuneration, (v) Abolition of Forced Labour, (vi) Discrimination, (vii) and on the Worst Forms of Child Labour, should be covered under this Regulation. Export tax: in the Commission proposal, explicit reference is made to an export tax of an amount corresponding to the reduction of the import duty which should be collected by the exporting country as an export requirement to the EU. Members stated that this is a decision to be made by the political legislators in Bangladesh and not by the European institutions. Therefore, they deleted the references and provisions to this effect. Suspension of the preferential import arrangement: the Commission should adopt an implementing act suspending the application of the preferential import arrangement once it ascertains that, during the year in progress, imports qualifying under the said arrangement have reached the quantity indicated in the Regulation. That implementing act should be adopted without applying the Committee procedure. Delegated acts: Parliament suggested limiting the empowerment of delegated acts on the Commission to a period of five years that may be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration. The delay to formulate an objection to the delegated act should be four months as opposed to two as suggested by the Commission. Committee procedure: Parliament suggested including in the Regulation a provision on the Committee procedure. The Committee should be assisted by the Committee for the Common Organisation of the Agricultural Markets. This Committee should be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.

• 2013/09/25 Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading
  • A7-0304/2013 summary

    The Committee on International Trade adopted the report by Paul MURPHY (GUE/NGL, IE) on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on imports of rice originating in Bangladesh. The committee recommended that the European Parliament’s position adopted at first reading, following the ordinary legislative procedure, should amend the Commission proposal as follows: Export tax: in the Commission proposal, explicit reference is made to an export tax of an amount corresponding to the reduction of the import duty which should be collected by the exporting country as an export requirement to the EU. Members stated that this is a decision to be made by the political legislators in Bangladesh and not by the European institutions. Therefore, they deleted the references and provisions to this effect. Suspension of the preferential import arrangement: the Commission should adopt an implementing act suspending the application of the preferential import arrangement once it ascertains that, during the year in progress, imports qualifying under the said arrangement have reached the quantity indicated in the Regulation. That implementing act should be adopted without applying the Committee procedure. Delegated acts: Members suggested limiting the empowerment of delegated acts on the Commission to a period of five years that may be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration. The delay to formulate an objection to the delegated act should be four months as opposed to two as suggested by the Commission. In order to ensure the reliability and the efficiency of the preferential import arrangement, the power to adopt delegated acts should be delegated to the Commission to establish rules making the participation in the arrangement conditional upon the lodging of a security in line with Commission Regulation (EC) No 1964/2006 of 22 December 2006 laying down detailed rules for the opening and administration of an import quota for rice originating in Bangladesh, pursuant to Council Regulation (EEC) No 3491/901. Committee procedure:  the report suggested including in the Regulation a provision on the Committee procedure. The Committee should be assisted by the Committee for the Common Organisation of the Agricultural Markets. This Committee should be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. Lastly, Members introduced a new Recital stressing that the Regulation needs to be in line with the general provisions of Article 208 of the TFEU as well as with the general objectives of sustainable economic development, decent working conditions and poverty eradication in Bangladesh.

• 2013/09/17 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
• 2012/04/20 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
• 2012/04/16 Legislative proposal published
  • COM(2012)0172 summary

    PURPOSE: to align Council Regulation (EEC) No 3491/90 on imports of rice originating in Bangladesh with the differentiation between delegated and implementing powers of the Commission introduced by Articles 290 and 291 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). PROPOSED ACT: Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council. IMPACT ASSESSMENT: there is no need for an impact assessment since the proposal to align Council Regulation (EEC) No 3491/90 to the Lisbon Treaty is an inter-institutional matter that will concern all Council Regulations. LEGAL BASIS: Article 207 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). CONTENT: the proposal is limited to adapting the provisions on preferential imports of rice originating in Bangladesh to new requirements introduced by the Lisbon Treaty.  It aims to identify the delegated and implementing powers of the Commission in Council Regulation (EEC) No 3491/90 and establish the corresponding procedure for adoption of these acts. In order to ensure the reliability and the efficiency of the preferential import arrangement, the Commission will have the power to adopt delegated acts to establish rules making the participation in the arrangement conditional upon the lodging of a security. The Commission shall, by means of implementing acts, adopt the necessary measures concerning: ·        the administrative method to be used for the management of the preferential import arrangement; ·        the means for determining the origin of the product covered by the preferential import arrangement; ·        the form and period of validity of the certificate of origin referred to in the Regulation; ·        the nature of the proofs required to establish that the export tax referred to in the Regulation has been paid ; ·        the period of validity of the import licences, where appropriate; ·        the amount of the security required to be lodged in accordance with the Regulation; ·        the notifications to be made to the Commission by Member States. BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS: the proposal has no implications for the EU budget.

  • DG {'url': 'http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/agriculture/', 'title': 'Agriculture and Rural Development'}, CIOLOŞ Dacian

Documents

• Legislative proposal published: COM(2012)0172
• Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading: A7-0304/2013
• Results of vote in Parliament: Results of vote in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T7-0542/2013

Amendments

Dossier

5

2012/0085(COD) 2013/07/23 INTA 5 amendments... Amendment 13 # Bernd LANGE Proposal for a regulation Recital 7 (7) To ensure that the advantages of the preferential import arrangements are limited only to rice originating in Bangladesh, a certificate of origin should be issued and an export tax of an amount corresponding, at the minimum, to the reduction of the import duty should be collected by the exporting country, Amendment 14 # Bernd LANGE Proposal for a regulation Recital 7 a (new) (7a) To ensure that this regulation is in line with the general provisions set out in Article 208 of the Treaty, only rice that is produced in accordance with the provisions of GSP+ should benefit from this regulation; Amendment 15 # Daniel CASPARY, Paweł ZALEWSKI Proposal for a regulation Recital 7 a (new) (7a) This Regulation is part of the Union's common commercial policy, which must be consistent with the objectives of the Union policy in the field of development cooperation, laid down in Article 208 of the TFEU, in particular the eradication of poverty and the promotion of sustainable development and good governance in the developing countries. As such it should also comply with World Trade Organisation (WTO) requirements, in particular with the Decision on Differential and More Favourable Treatment, Reciprocity and Fuller Participation of Developing Countries (the 'Enabling Clause'), adopted under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1979, under which WTO Members may accord differential and more favourable treatment to developing countries, Amendment 16 # Daniel CASPARY Proposal for a regulation Recital 7 b (new) (7b) This regulation is also based on the recognition of the right of small farmers and rural workers to a decent income and to a safe and healthy working environment as fundamental in relation to achieving the general objectives of granting trade preferences to developing countries and least developed countries in particular. The Union aims to define and pursue common policies and actions in order to foster the sustainable economic, social and environmental development of developing countries, with the primary aim of eradicating poverty. In this context, ratification and effective implementation of core international conventions on human and labour rights, environmental protection and good governance are essential, as reflected by the special incentive arrangement providing for additional tariff preferences under Regulation (EU) No 978/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 applying a scheme of generalised tariff preferences1, _______________ 1 OJ L 303, 31.10.2012, p. 1. Amendment 17 # Bernd LANGE Proposal for a regulation Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point a (a) that proof is provided that an export tax of an amount corresponding, at the minimum, to the reduction referred to in paragraph 1 has been collected by Bangladesh source: PE-516.647

History

(these mark the time of scraping, not the official date of the change)