Activites

• 2014/04/03 Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • T7-0285/2014
• 2014/04/02 Debate in Parliament
  • Debate in Parliament
• 2014/03/24 Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading
  • A7-0238/2014 summary

    The Committee on International Trade adopted the report by Paweł ZALEWSKI (EPP, PL) on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the reduction or elimination of customs duties on goods originating in Ukraine. The committee supported this legislative proposal without amendment and proposed that the Parliament endorse its position at first reading, taking over the Commission proposal, without further modification, given the urgency of the situation in Ukraine. Indeed, Ukraine has gone through dramatic political times in recent months and its new government needs strong and immediate European assistance to fight off external pressures and to overcome economic and financial hardships. Members considered that the proposal presents a number of concrete benefits. By reducing temporarily and unilaterally its trade barriers on the imports of Ukrainian goods into the EU to level agreed bilaterally in the EU-Ukraine Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), the proposal will help Ukrainian companies in increasing their exports' volumes and in diversifying their exports' destinations.

• 2014/03/20 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
• #3304
• 2014/03/17 Council Meeting
• 2014/03/13 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
• 2014/03/11 Legislative proposal published
  • COM(2014)0166 summary

    PURPOSE: to propose reductions or temporary eliminations of customs duties on goods originating in Ukraine. PROPOSED ACT: Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council. ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: the European Parliament decides in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure and on an equal footing with the Council. BACKGROUND: Ukraine is a priority partner country within the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and the Eastern Partnership. The European Union and Ukraine negotiated in 2007-2011 an Association Agreement, including a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), which was initialed by both parties in 2012. Under the provisions of the DCFTA, the European Union and Ukraine are to establish a free trade area over a transitional period of a maximum of 10 years starting from the entry into force of the Association Agreement. Following the recent unprecedented events in the country and the security, political and economic challenges faced by Ukraine, on 6 March 2014, the European Council stated its intention to support the economic stabilisation of the country by means of a package of measures, including the granting of autonomous trade preferences which is detailed in this proposed Regulation. It is appropriate not to await the entry into force of the Association Agreement's provisions on a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area, but to anticipate its implementation by means of autonomous trade preferences and to start unilaterally the reduction or elimination of Union customs duties on goods originating in Ukraine. CONTENT: this proposal seeks to reduce temporarily and unilaterally its trade barriers (whether tariffs, quotas or tariff rate quotas) on the imports of Ukrainian goods into the EU to level agreed bilaterally in the EU-Ukraine Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area. Conditions for entitlement to the preferential arrangements: entitlement to benefit from the preferential arrangements shall be subject to: compliance with the rules of origin of products and the procedures related thereto; participation by Ukraine in effective administrative cooperation with the Union in order to prevent any risk of fraud; abstention by Ukraine from introducing new duties or charges having equivalent effect and new quantitative restrictions or measures having equivalent effect for imports originating in the Union or from increasing existing levels of duties or charges or from introducing any other restrictions from the day of the entry into force of this Regulation. Temporary suspension: where the Commission finds that there is sufficient evidence of failure to comply with the conditions set out above it may suspend in whole or in part the preferential arrangements provided for in this Regulation. Where imports of a product originating in Ukraine and included in Annex I cause or threaten to cause serious difficulties to Union producers of like or directly competing products the Commission may reintroduce the normal Common Customs Tariff duties with regard to such imports. The Commission had assessed that, thanks to the DCFTA, Ukrainian exporters would save EUR 487 million annually due to reduced EU import duties, which represented a removal of 98.1% of duties in trade value. BUDGETARY IMPLICATION: the European Union will see a loss of customs revenue corresponding to EUR 487 million (gross) annually. However, those figures are estimates, having regard to the economic situation of Ukraine and can change.

  • DG {'url': 'http://ec.europa.eu/trade/', 'title': 'Trade'}, DE GUCHT Karel

Documents

• Legislative proposal published: COM(2014)0166
• Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading: A7-0238/2014
• Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T7-0285/2014

Amendments

Dossier

3

2014/0090(COD) 2014/03/19 INTA 3 amendments... Amendment 1 # Helmut SCHOLZ Draft legislative resolution Paragraph 1 1. Adopts its position at first reading, taking overRejects the Commission proposal; Amendment 2 # Vital MOREIRA, George Sabin CUTAȘ, Bernd LANGE, David MARTIN, Mario PIRILLO, Peter SKINNER Proposal for a regulation Recital 3 (3) In order to prevent any risk of fraud, the entitlement to benefit from autonomous trade preferences should be conditional on the compliance by Ukraine with the relevant rules of origin of products and the procedures related thereto as well as involvement in effective administrative cooperation with the Union. Moreover, Ukraine should abstain from introducing new duties or charges having equivalent effect or new quantitative restrictions or measures having equivalent effect or from increasing existing levels of duties or charges or from introducing any other restrictions. A serious deterioration in respect for the fundamental principles of democracy and human rights in Ukraine, including core labour rights, should constitute reasons for a temporary suspension of the preferences. In the event of failure to comply with any of these conditions the Commission should be empowered to suspend temporarily all or part of the preferences. Amendment 3 # Vital MOREIRA, George Sabin CUTAȘ, Bernd LANGE, David MARTIN, Mario PIRILLO, Peter SKINNER Proposal for a regulation Article 2 – paragraph 1 a (new) Without prejudice to the conditions set out in paragraph 1, entitlement to benefit from the preferential arrangements introduced by Article 1 is subject to respect for human rights, including core labour rights, and the fundamental principles of democracy by Ukraine. If Ukraine adopts measures restricting human rights and workers' rights, the Commission shall immediately propose to repeal this Regulation. source: PE-532.275

History

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