Procedure completed
2017/2071(INI) Financial activities of the European Investment Bank. Annual report
Lead committee dossier: BUDG/8/09945
Legal Basis RoP 52
| Role | Committee | Rapporteur | Shadows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lead | BUDG | GARDIAZABAL RUBIAL Eider (S&D) | MUREŞAN Siegfried (EPP), KÖLMEL Bernd (ECR), ALI Nedzhmi (ALDE), NÍ RIADA Liadh (GUE/NGL), HAUTALA Heidi (Verts/ALE), ZANNI Marco (ENF) |
| Opinion | ECON | NIEDERMAYER Luděk (EPP) | |
| Opinion | INTA | ||
| Opinion | REGI | MALETIĆ Ivana (EPP) |
Legal Basis RoP 52
Activites
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2018/02/08
Results of vote in Parliament
- Results of vote in Parliament
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T8-0039/2018
summary
The European Parliament adopted by 493 votes to 89, with 44 abstentions, a resolution on the annual report on the financial activities of the European Investment Bank (EIB). Stressing that the EIB maintained a solid financial standing in 2016 in accordance with the forecast for that year, with a net annual surplus of EUR 2.8 billion, Members called on the EIB to continue to strengthen its efforts to expand its loan activities effectively by providing technical assistance and advisory support, especially in regions with low levels of investment, in order to address regional discrepancies, while reducing administrative burdens for applicants. The economic crisis has significantly weakened economic growth in the EU. In this regard, Members expect the EIB to continue to work with the Commission and the Member States to address systemic shortcomings that prevent certain regions or countries from taking full advantage of the EIB’s financial activities. Parliament welcomed the EIB Group’s willingness to enhance EU competitiveness, provide real support for growth and job creation, and contribute to solving socio-economic challenges within and outside the EU. It said that in order to achieve the objectives of the Europe 2020 strategy, the EIB Group's activities should not only be economically sustainable, but also contribute to a smarter, greener and more inclusive EU. Climate change: Parliament pointed out that the EIB has had very mixed results on climate action, despite meeting its 25 % target by a slender margin overall. Members called on the EIB to align its activities with the objectives of the Paris Agreement by phasing out all fossil fuel projects and giving priority to energy efficiency projects and projects involving renewable energy sources. The EIB should also extend its financial support to local sustainable energy sources in order to put an end to Europe's high level of external energy dependence and ensure security of supply. Brexit: the United Kingdom provided 16.11 % of the EIB’s capital, accounting for EUR 3.5 billion of the paid-in capital and EUR 35.7 billion of the bank’s callable capital. The resolution stressed the importance of clarifying the amount of the UK contribution to the EIB budget as well as the UK’s future economic participation. It called for Member States to make sure that the departure of the UK does not result in a loss of the EIB’s ability to support the EU economy. Eastern and Southern neighbourhood: the resolution underlined the importance of EIB financing activities in the eastern and southern neighbourhood in supporting those countries which are implementing difficult economic and democratic reforms on their path towards the EU. It recalled that the main financing activities should also aim to address both urgent needs and longer-term challenges, such as rebuilding infrastructure, ensuring adequate housing and emergency response infrastructure and combating youth unemployment. Migration: Parliament welcomed the EIB's commitment to tackle the root causes of migration and to taking action in countries particularly affected by the migration crisis. It called for an increase in financial assistance for projects that would help mitigate the economic costs associated with the migration crisis while having a positive impact on citizens, refugees and other migrants in Member States that receive the largest inflows of refugees and migrants. European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI): welcoming the agreement reached on the prolongation and adjustment of the EFSI, Members expect that the revised fund and the enhanced European Investment Advisory Hub will enable the problems identified in the current scheme, namely in relation to additionality, sustainability, climate action, geographic balance and advisory hub activities, to be overcome. Cohesion policy: Parliament emphasised that the EIB, as a public financial institution which finances projects aimed at fulfilling EU policies and priorities, should contribute to economic, social and territorial cohesion, including in less developed regions. It stressed the need for broader territorial distribution of funds, including as regards the European Fund for Strategic Investment, which should always be complementary to the ESI funds, in order to achieve the objective of reducing regional disparities. The EIB should play an enhanced role for the EIB in financing social entrepreneurship and start-ups, social infrastructure growth acceleration, renewable energy, energy efficiency and circular economy projects. Compliance: Members called for country-by-country reporting without exemptions to be made a key part of the EIB’s corporate social responsibility strategy. They called on the EIB to comply with the relevant standards and applicable legislation on the prevention of money laundering and on the fight against terrorism, tax fraud and tax evasion. Transparency: Members reiterated their call to strengthen the EIB group’s overall corporate accountability and credibility. They called for the signing of an interinstitutional agreement between the EIB and Parliament on the exchange of information, including the possibility for Members to address written questions to the President of the EIB. The EIB is called on to publish all relevant documents regarding loans to the automotive industry for the development of diesel technology and explain the extent to which loans were made to car companies found to have manipulated emissions. Financial activities: the resolution stressed that the EIB Group’s financial instruments should serve projects chosen on the basis of their own merits, their potential to generate added value for the EU as a whole, and effective additionality. It insisted on the need to maintain its high credit standing. Lastly, Members called on the EIB Group to further develop its risk culture in order to improve its effectiveness and the complementarity and synergies between its interventions and various EU policies, in particular by supporting innovative companies, infrastructure projects and SMEs that are taking risks or evolving in economically disadvantaged regions or regions that lack stability.
- 2018/02/07 Debate in Parliament
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2018/01/30
Committee report tabled for plenary, single reading
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A8-0013/2018
summary
The Committee on Budgets adopted the own-initiative report by Eider GARDIAZABAL RUBIAL (S&D, ES) on the annual report on the financial activities of the European Investment Bank (EIB). The Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, exercising its prerogatives as an associated committee under Rule 54 of the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament, also expressed its opinion on this report. Members recalled that one of the main fallouts from the economic crisis has been the decline in investment in the EU and called on the EIB to further support the EU countries in order to contribute to economic recovery. The report welcomed the EIB Group’s willingness to enhance EU competitiveness, provide real support for growth and job creation, and contribute to solving socio-economic challenges within and outside the EU, by pursuing its overarching public policy goals relating to innovation, SMEs and midcap finance, infrastructure, the environment, economic and social cohesion, and the climate. Members said that in order to achieve the objectives of the Europe 2020 strategy, the EIB Group's activities should not only be economically sustainable, but also contribute to a smarter, greener and more inclusive EU. Climate change: Members called on the EIB to align its activities with the objectives of the Paris Agreement by phasing out all fossil fuel projects and giving priority to energy efficiency projects and projects involving renewable energy sources. The EIB should also extend its financial support to local sustainable energy sources in order to put an end to Europe's high level of external energy dependence and ensure security of supply. Brexit: the United Kingdom provided 16.11 % of the EIB’s capital, accounting for EUR 3.5 billion of the paid-in capital and EUR 35.7 billion of the bank’s callable capital. The report stressed the importance of clarifying the amount of the UK contribution to the EIB budget as well as the UK’s future economic participation. It called for Member States to make sure that the departure of the UK does not result in a loss of the EIB’s ability to support the EU economy. Eastern and Southern neighbourhood: the report underlined the importance of EIB financing activities in the eastern and southern neighbourhood in supporting those countries which are implementing difficult economic and democratic reforms on their path towards the EU. It recalled that the main financing activities should also aim to address both urgent needs and longer-term challenges, such as rebuilding infrastructure, ensuring adequate housing and emergency response infrastructure and combating youth unemployment. Migration: the report welcomed the EIB's commitment to tackle the root causes of migration and to taking action in countries particularly affected by the migration crisis. It called for an increase in financial assistance for projects that would help mitigate the economic costs associated with the migration crisis while having a positive impact on citizens, refugees and other migrants in Member States that receive the largest inflows of refugees and migrants. European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI): welcoming the agreement reached on the prolongation and adjustment of the EFSI, Members expect that the revised fund and the enhanced European Investment Advisory Hub will enable the problems identified in the current scheme, namely in relation to additionality, sustainability, climate action, geographic balance and advisory hub activities, to be overcome. Cohesion policy: the report emphasised that the EIB, as a public financial institution which finances projects aimed at fulfilling EU policies and priorities, should contribute to economic, social and territorial cohesion, including in less developed regions. It stressed the need for broader territorial distribution of funds, including as regards the European Fund for Strategic Investment, which should always be complementary to the ESI funds, in order to achieve the objective of reducing regional disparities. Compliance: Members called for country-by-country reporting without exemptions to be made a key part of the EIB’s corporate social responsibility strategy. They called on the EIB to comply with the relevant standards and applicable legislation on the prevention of money laundering and on the fight against terrorism, tax fraud and tax evasion. Members reiterated their call to strengthen the EIB group’s overall corporate accountability and credibility. They also called for the signing of an interinstitutional agreement between the EIB and Parliament on the exchange of information, including the possibility for Members to address written questions to the President of the EIB. Lastly, Members called on the EIB Group to further develop its risk culture in order to improve its effectiveness and the complementarity and synergies between its interventions and various EU policies, in particular by supporting innovative companies, infrastructure projects and SMEs that are taking risks or evolving in economically disadvantaged regions or regions that lack stability.
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A8-0013/2018
summary
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2018/01/24
Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
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2017/05/18
Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
Documents
- Committee report tabled for plenary, single reading: A8-0013/2018
- Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
- Results of vote in Parliament: Results of vote in Parliament
- Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T8-0039/2018
| Amendments | Dossier |
| 301 |
2017/2071(INI)
2017/10/16
ECON
104 amendments...
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Acknowledges the EIB’s contribution to restoring investment activity in the EU after the economic and financial cris
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 c (new) 1c. Calls on the EIB to continue improving the assessment of projects, by using richer, more precise and refined impact indicators;
Amendment 100 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 c (new) 9c. Deplores the conditions of the reappointment of the President of the EIB in July 2017 without any clear mandate nor any proper democratic debate; believes that the European Parliament should be involved in this process;
Amendment 101 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 c (new) 9c. Asks for a country-by-country reporting without exemptions as a key part of the Corporate Social Responsibility strategy of the EIB and this before the EU adopts legislation in the field;
Amendment 102 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 d (new) 9d. Reiterates its call to the Commission to amend European legislation, including those concerning the European Investment Bank (EIB) Statute, the European Fund for Strategic Investment (EFSI) regulation, the four Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Regulations, and the five European Structural and Investment Funds (European Regional Development Fund, European Social Fund, Cohesion Fund, European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, European Maritime and Fisheries Fund) to prohibit the use of EU funding going to ultimate beneficiaries or financial intermediaries proven to be involved in tax evasion or aggressive tax planning;
Amendment 103 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 e (new) 9e. Urges the EIB group to adopt the review of its whistleblowing policy as soon as possible and to reinforce the independence, legitimacy, accessibility, predictability, equitability and transparency of its Complaints Mechanism, including by involving Directors and enhancing protection of complainants. Believes that such measures are clearly in the interest of the bank, the stakeholders and the EU institutions;
Amendment 104 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 f (new) 9f. Recommends that the new European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) examine the possibility of covering EIB operations in the EU Member States concerned as part of its activities;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 d (new) 1d. In order to keep bioeconomy investments in Europe, demonstration and flagship investment project proposals that have been positively evaluated by the Bio- Based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU) but could not be funded under the BBI JU program because of a lack of available budget, shall be eligible for ‘fast-track’ simplified procedure for EIB funding that would be limited to a financial assessment;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Stresses the need to
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Stresses the need to minimise the risk of crowding out the private sector by focusing on long-term financing otherwise unavailable to EIB clients on the markets,
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Stresses the need to minimise the risk of crowding out the private sector by focusing on long-term financing otherwise unavailable to EIB clients on the markets, or by greater risk-taking, namely by supporting the financing of projects that would not get financed otherwise; further points out that additionality of EIB financing also consists of providing technical advice and capacity-building in order to help projects to become investment-ready;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Stresses the need to minimise the risk of crowding out the private sector
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Stresses the need to minimise the risk of crowding out the private sector by focusing on long-term financing otherwise unavailable to EIB clients on the markets, or by greater risk-taking, namely by supporting the financing of projects that would not get financed otherwise, particularly in support for innovative start-ups and SMEs;
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Stresses the need to minimise the risk of crowding out the private sector by focusing on long-term financing otherwise unavailable to EIB clients on the markets, or by greater risk-taking, namely by supporting the financing of projects that would not get financed otherwise in a prudent manner;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 a (new) 2a. Considers that EIB loans should increase in nominal and real terms every year, at least as far as the investment gap caused by the financial and economic crisis and the policies of fiscal adjustment is not filled;
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 b (new) 2b. Notes that the EIB maintained solid a financial stance, according to the forecast for 2016, with a net annual surplus of EUR 2,8 billion; calls for a share of this profit to be used for financing EU aid programmes;
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Acknowledges the EIB’s contribution to restoring investment activity in the EU after the economic and financial crises; stresses that the EIB’s activities during the current period of recovery and credit availability must be carefully directed towards products and projects, thereby ensuring additionality;
Amendment 20 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 c (new) 2c. Notes that the Parliament resolution of 22 November 2016 on the Green Paper on Retail Financial Services, in its paragraph 47, calls on ‘the Commission to put forward a proposal on the creation of an “EU savings account” in order to unlock long-term financing and support ecological transition in Europe'; suggests therefore that the EIB undertakes an study on the viability of creating the said EU savings account, in order to channel individual savings to the EIB for the financing of the circular economy and the ecological transition, bio-based industries and sustainable development;
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 d (new) 2d. Considers that the EIB should continue to prioritise investments in the fight against climate, the circular economy, and bio-economy, and in particular in the recycling industry, renewable energy, sustainable and last generation biofuels that do not crowd out food supply, non-fossil fuel-based alternative transport methods, bio-based industries and biomass, green building, biotechnologies, bioplastics and organic farming;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 e (new) 2e. Encourages the EIB to, in particular, increase financing to the bio- economy sector, including bio-based industries, biotechnology and the efficient management of natural resources, particularly in crisis-affected Member States and Regions, in partnership with Bio-Based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU), the €3.7 billion Public-Private Partnership on Bio-based Industries between the European Commission and the Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC);
Amendment 23 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 f (new) 2f. Notes with concern that many biotechnological starts ups that exploit EU-financed science move to the United States for lack of private finance and venture capital in Europe; calls on the EIB to offer suitable financing alternatives to the said start-ups;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 Amendment 25 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3.
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Believes that instead of playing a partly anti-cyclical role, the key priority for the EIB should be to focus on areas where
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Believes that instead of playing a partly anti-cyclical role, the key priority for the EIB should be to focus on areas where markets fail
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Believes that instead of playing a partly anti-cyclical role, the key priority for the EIB should be to focus on areas where markets fail; underlines the need to prioritise innovation-based projects with clear added value for the EU;
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Believes that instead of playing a partly anti-cyclical role, the key priority for the EIB should be to focus on areas where markets fail due to their persistent very short term focus and inability to correctly price long term externalities;
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Acknowledges the EIB’s contribution to restoring investment activity in the EU after the economic and financial crises; stresses that the EIB’s activities during the current period of recovery and credit availability must be carefully directed towards products and projects, thereby ensuring additionality; emphasises that expanding the EIB’s financing activities is no substitute for structural reform and consolidated budgets in the Member States;
Amendment 30 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Believes that
Amendment 31 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Believes that instead of playing a partly anti-cyclical role,
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Believes that
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 a (new) 3a. Calls on the EIB to continue financial support to indigenous energy sources in order to overcome Europe's high level of external energy dependency and ensure security of supply;
Amendment 34 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 a (new) 3a. Calls on the EIB to help Member States to identify fundable projects whenever they call for financial assistance;
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 b (new) 3b. Reminds that more than 90% of EU SMEs are microenterprises providing almost 30% of employment in the private sector; microenterprises are more vulnerable to economic shocks than larger firms and may remain underserved in credit provision; believes that in the domain of access to finance, the EIB could emphasise bridging possible funding gaps for microenterprises through financial instruments and products such as microfinance facilities and guarantees;
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Emphasises that the EIB can play a positive role in reducing the negative public investment gap, but that its activities
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Emphasises that the EIB can play a positive role in reducing the negative public investment gap, but that its activities should not come into conflict with fiscal rules, as fiscal stability is a key precondition for stable and sustainable economic growth; calls on coordination of EIB’s activities in the member states with the governments’ activities, policies and objectives set in National reform programmes as well as in the Country specific recommendations;
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Emphasises that the EIB can play a
Amendment 39 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Emphasises that the EIB can play a positive role in reducing the negative public investment gap
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1.
Amendment 40 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Emphasises that the EIB can play a positive role in reducing the negative public investment gap, but that its activities should not come into conflict with fiscal rules, as fiscal stability is a key precondition for stable and sustainable economic growth; emphasises that investment, structural reforms and sound budgetary policies must be part of an overall strategy;
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Emphasises that the EIB can play a positive role in reducing the negative public investment gap
Amendment 42 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Emphasises that the EIB
Amendment 43 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Emphasises that the EIB can play a positive role in reducing the negative public investment gap
Amendment 44 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Emphasises that the EIB
Amendment 45 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Calls on the EIB, taking into account the insufficient project generation capacity in the public and private sectors and the lower borrowing capacity in some Member States, and with a view to reducing the investment shortfall in the EU, to consider an approach whereby contributions made on a one-off basis to EIB-funded projects by Member States, whether by a Member State as such or by national promotional banks classified in the general government sector or acting on behalf of a Member State, would qualify as one-off measures within the meaning of Article 5 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1466/971 a and Article 3 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1467/971 b; _________________ 1a Council Regulation (EC) No 1466/97 of 7 July 1997 on the strengthening of the surveillance of budgetary positions and the surveillance and coordination of economic policies 1b Council Regulation (EC) No 1467/97 of 7 July 1997 on speeding up and clarifying the implementation of the excessive deficit procedure
Amendment 46 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Underlines that at EU level there are major structural reasons which are increasing the investment gap between Member States; calls on the EIB to boost its technical assistance in order to address low project generation capacity and borrowing capacity in some Member States;
Amendment 47 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Considers that the EIB should move towards the development bank model by establishing, among other plans, programme strategies agreed with the Member States and within the framework of the national reform programmes and country-specific recommendations;
Amendment 48 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Emphasises the need for investment in projects fostering innovation, in order to create technological progress and achieve sustained growth;
Amendment 49 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 b (new) 4b. Points out that it is important to fund projects that intensively use labour to maximise the impact in terms of job creation; Calls on the EIB to provide detailed information on the direct and indirect jobs created by every project funded;
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1.
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 b (new) 4b. Calls on the EIB to draw up a strategy for remedying the fact that SMEs, when they are based in a country in which the economic and banking context is unfavourable, have difficulties in gaining access to project financing;
Amendment 51 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Recalls the high degree of urgency of clarifying the impact of Brexit on the EIB in order for the bank to continue to be able to perform its role;
Amendment 52 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Recalls the high degree of urgency of clarifying the impact of Brexit on the EIB in order for the
Amendment 53 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Recalls the high degree of urgency of clarifying the impact of Brexit on the EIB in order for the bank to continue to be able to perform its role; underlines in this respect the need to get asap legal certainty around ongoing projects co-financed by the EIB in the UK. Stresses at the same time the importance of getting clarity around the UK contribution in the EIB budget.
Amendment 54 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Recalls the high degree of urgency of clarifying the impact of Brexit on the EIB in order for the bank to continue to be able to perform its role; The UK subscribed 16.11% of the EIB’s capital, accounting for EUR 3.5bn of the paid-in capital and EUR 35.7bn of the Bank’s callable capital;
Amendment 55 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Recalls the high degree of urgency of clarifying the impact of Brexit on the EIB in order for the bank to continue to be able to perform its role; considers the possibility of allowing non-EU member states to become shareholders of the EIB;
Amendment 56 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Recalls the high degree of urgency of clarifying the impact of Brexit on the EIB in order for the bank to continue to be able to perform its role; suggests that Brexit provides an opportunity to reduce the EIB's capital and activities;
Amendment 57 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Recalls the high degree of urgency of clarifying the impact of Brexit on the EIB's current budget as well as the future UK economic participation in order for the bank to continue to be able to perform its role;
Amendment 58 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Recalls the high degree of urgency
Amendment 59 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 a (new) 5a. Welcomes the EIB’s commitment to support the Union's commitments under the Paris Agreement; believes that the review of the EIB’s Energy policy foreseen for 2018 should result in an ambitious action plan to align its investments with the 1.5 degrees target that would significantly reduce risks and the impacts of climate change through the phasing-out of fossil fuel projects and the prioritisation of projects increasing the energy available through renewables and energy efficiency;
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Acknowledges the EIB’s contribution to restoring investment activity in the EU after the economic and financial crises; stresses that the EIB’s activities during the current period of recovery and credit availability must be carefully directed towards pro
Amendment 60 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 b (new) 5b. Points out that the EIB has had very mixed results on climate action, even though it just met its 25% target overall; is concerned that in 16 EU Member States, EIB support for climate action did not reach even the level of 20% and that climate action investment in 2016 was predominantly located in the EU’s stronger economies with 70 per cent of EFSI support for renewable energy was concentrated in just one country – Belgium – while 80 per cent of energy efficiency investment through the EFSI was allocated to France, Finland and Germany;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 c (new) 5c. Calls on the EIB to work with small market participants and community cooperatives to undertake bundling of small scale renewable energy projects to enable them to be eligible for EIB funding;
Amendment 62 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 Amendment 63 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 6. Calls on the Commission to monitor carefully the cost and efficiency associated with the high number of financially small mandates given to the EIB; takes the view that the administrative cost associated with such a number of mandates
Amendment 64 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 6. Calls on the Commission to monitor carefully the cost and efficiency associated with the
Amendment 65 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 a (new) 6a. Stresses that the EIB should be more transparent about the projects and countries they finance outside the European Union, in particular in its annual report, and should ensure that all operations are in line with international tax transparency standards, in order to secure that financial activities do not benefit corrupt systems and individuals in third countries.
Amendment 66 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 a (new) 6a. Reminds that the EIB should play a fundamental role in the implementation of the Europe 2020 Strategy through the Horizon 2020 instrument;
Amendment 67 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 Amendment 68 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 7. Stresses the need for the EIB to prioritise external operations so that its activities especially focus on areas of high importance for the EU;
Amendment 69 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 7. Stresses the need for the EIB to
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Acknowledges the EIB’s contribution to restoring investment activity in the EU after the economic and financial crises; stresses that the EIB’s activities during the current period of recovery and credit availability in some countries and sectors must be carefully directed towards products and projects, thereby ensuring additionality, while addressing underlying investment gaps;
Amendment 70 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 7. Stresses the need for the EIB to prioritise external operations so that its activities especially focus on geographical and sectoral areas of high importance for the EU
Amendment 71 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 7. Stresses the need for the EIB to prioritise external operations so that its activities especially focus on areas of high importance for the EU; highlights in this respect the expansion of the EIB's External Lending Mandate (ELM) to step up activities in pre-accession countries, southern neighbourhood, Mediterranean region, Latin America and Asia. Highlights furthermore the great potential for EIB operations to improve the economic situation in Ukraine, which is facing great economic stress and instability due to the on-going armed conflict in Eastern Ukraine, with the direct and indirect participation of Russian military and security services;
Amendment 72 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 7. Stresses the need for the EIB to prioritise external operations so that its activities especially focus on areas of high importance for the EU; highlights the great potential for EIB operations to improve the economic situation in Ukraine, which is facing great economic stress and instability due to the ongoing armed conflict in Eastern Ukraine, with the direct and indirect participation of Russian military and security services; stresses that more EIB’s activities are needed in southeast Europe in order to increase level of investment and support accession process;
Amendment 73 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 7. Stresses the need for the EIB to prioritise external operations so that its activities especially focus on areas of high importance for the EU; highlights the great potential for EIB operations to improve the economic situation in
Amendment 74 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 7. Stresses the need for the EIB to prioritise external operations so that its activities especially focus on areas of high importance for the EU; highlights the great potential for EIB operations to improve the economic situation in
Amendment 75 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 a (new) 7a. Regrets that under the new Resilience Initiative the EIB will increase lending by EUR 6 billion to catalyse up to EUR 15 billion in additional investment for the Western Balkan and southern Mediterranean regions over the next four and a half years in addition to the EUR 7.5 billion lending already envisaged in the two regions;
Amendment 76 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 a (new) 7a. Welcomes the Council conclusions of October 10th 2017 on climate finance1a; highlights the importance of scaling up the availability of capital for green and sustainable investments; believes the EIB should make it a top priority; _________________ 1ahttp://www.consilium.europa.eu/press- releases-pdf/2017/10/47244665508_en.pdf
Amendment 77 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 a (new) 7a. Calls for an increase in financial assistance for projects that have a positive impact on refugees and other migrants, and that are located in Member States that receive the largest flows of refugees and migrants;
Amendment 78 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 b (new) 7b. Believes the EIB should support the timely implementation of the Paris Agreement along with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;
Amendment 79 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 c (new) Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 a (new) 1a. Welcomes that, according to the 28 September 2017 EIB Economics Departments brief, the cumulative investments approved by the EIB Group in 2015 and 2016 will add 2.3 % to the EU GDP by 2020 and will add 2.25 million jobs, which shows the substantial macroeconomic impact of the EIB;
Amendment 80 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 d (new) 7d. Recalls that the EU list of non- cooperative jurisdictions in taxation matters will be release by the end of 2017; believes that as soon as a country appears on this list, the EIB should freeze its cooperation with it;
Amendment 81 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 e (new) 7e. Highlights the EU list of high risk third countries in the field of money laundering; believes that as soon as a country appears on this list, the EIB should freeze its cooperation with it;
Amendment 82 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 f (new) 7f. Calls on the EIB to take into account the local context when investing in third countries; recalls that investing in third countries cannot be based only on a profit maximisation approach but also aim at generating long-term private sector-led sustainable economic growth and reduce poverty through job creations and improved access to productive resources; believes that the choice of financial intermediaries should be stricter in this regard;
Amendment 83 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 g (new) Amendment 84 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 7 h (new) 7h. Notes that out of 120 cases reported to the Fraud Investigations Division of the Inspectorate General (IG/IN) in 2016, 53% were referred by EIB Group staff; welcomes the fact that the fraud reporting mechanism on the EIB’s website is now available in 30 languages1a; believes that the EIB should follow carefully the ongoing work on the protection of whistle-blowers at EU level and consequently further improve its reporting possibilities; _________________ 1a http://www.eib.org/attachments/general/re ports/ig_fraud_investigations_activity_rep ort_2016_en.pdf
Amendment 85 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 8 8. Notes a wide variety of experiences with EFSI projects; calls for the exchange of best practices between the EIB and the Member States in order to increase the effectiveness of the Juncker plan by focusing less on achieving an arbitrary level of leverage and more on making a difference to EU citizens' lives through sustainable infrastructure and quality jobs;
Amendment 86 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 8 8. Notes
Amendment 87 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 8 8.
Amendment 88 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 8 8. Notes a wide variety of experiences with EFSI projects;
Amendment 89 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 8 a (new) 8a. Acknowledges that access to finance is still a core barrier for the growth of the cultural creative industries (CCIs); stresses the urgent need for funding initiatives to strengthen such industries; emphasises the potential from the EIB and the EFSI to support the creative sector, mainly through the financing of SMEs; Calls on the EIB to address the lack of EFSI funding to CCIs by investigating possible interactions with Creative Europe;
Amendment 9 #
1b. Encourages the EIB further expand its macroeconomic analysis capability, including research regarding the macroeconomic impact of its activities, as well as its general analytical work and sectoral studies, and the range of empirical papers and publications, thereby becoming as well a "knowledge bank";
Amendment 90 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 8 a (new) 8a. Suggests that the EIB facilitates the direct purchase of EIB bonds by EU citizens and residents, through the opening of an online sale system in its website, and/or through its commercialization by Member States NCBs, postal services and other suitable providers;
Amendment 91 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 8 b (new) 8b. Notes that, even though most EU citizens are unaware, EIB bonds are the only example of Union debt issuances;
Amendment 92 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 9. Recalls that if they are to contribute to the economic development of the EU as well as economic, social and territorial cohesion, risk transfer-based instruments cannot be risk free; stresses that the EIB and its
Amendment 93 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 9. Recalls that i
Amendment 94 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 a (new) 9a. Welcomes the EIB group Strategy on Gender Equality and Women’s Economic Empowerment released in 2017; Believes that the Gender Perspective should be applied to all EIB Group financial operations; Calls for a Gender Action Plan to be implemented soon, to set ambitious targets and to be accompanied by concrete indicators;
Amendment 95 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 a (new) 9a. Insists on the need to achieve the highest level of transparency and institutional accountability; calls on the EIB to present to the European Parliament the ongoing operations through regular meetings and giving access to information and financial documents;
Amendment 96 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 a (new) 9a. Asks the EIB to promote gender equality and corporate social responsibility through its financing offers; believes that any company requiring an EU financing should first demonstrate that it has clear measures in place in this regard;
Amendment 97 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 a (new) 9a. Calls for more comprehensive, frequent and proper parliamentary accountability of EIB, following the model of the ECB´s monetary dialogues;
Amendment 98 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 b (new) 9b. Notes that some of the projects managed by the European Investment Bank involved Mossack Fonseca and that the European Commission blocked 18 projects in 2016, preventing €1billion to end up in tax havens; Calls on the Commission to make public an annual report on the use of EU funds as well as EIB and EBRD money transfers to offshore structures, including the number and nature of projects blocked, the reasons for blocking them and follow-up actions taken to ensure no EU funds directly or indirectly help tax avoidance and tax fraud;
Amendment 99 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 9 b (new) 9b. Believes the communication of the EIB group, in cooperation with its relevant national partners, should be improved in order to raise the SMEs awareness of their financing possibilities and to better inform the citizens of the local and concrete projects financed by the EU;
source: 612.188
2017/10/27
REGI
76 amendments...
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Underlines the EIB’s important role in the implementation of cohesion policy
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present an additional special chapter in its annual report dedicated to EIB activities aimed at the implementation of cohesion policy including Interreg related activities by Member States, and to include detailed information on the use of loans and financial instruments in cohesion policy projects and programmes;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present an additional special chapter in its annual report dedicated to EIB activities aimed at the implementation of cohesion policy
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present an additional special chapter in its annual report dedicated to EIB activities aimed at the implementation of cohesion policy
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present an additional special chapter in its annual report dedicated to EIB activities aimed at the implementation of cohesion policy by Member States, and to include detailed information on the use of loans in cohesion policy projects and programmes
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present an additional special chapter in its annual report dedicated to EIB activities aimed at the implementation of cohesion policy by Member States, and to include detailed information on the use of loans in cohesion policy projects and programmes and their effective contribution to cohesion policy objectives, including the EU2020 Strategy and horizontal principles of gender equality, sustainable development and climate change mitigation and adaptation;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present an additional special chapter in its annual report dedicated to EIB activities aimed at the implementation of cohesion policy by Member States, and to include detailed information on the use of loans in cohesion policy projects and programmes; calls on the creation of aggregate EU-level data, which could give an overview of co- financing to Cohesion Policy projects and investments provided by the EIB;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present an additional special chapter in its annual report dedicated to EIB activities aimed at the implementation of cohesion policy by Member States, and to include detailed information on the use of loans in cohesion policy projects and programmes; underlines that in these economic and social circumstances many EU member- states are far behind in their target to meet the Europe 2020goals.
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present an additional special chapter in its annual report dedicated to EIB activities aimed at the implementation of cohesion policy by Member States, and to include detailed information on the use of loans in cohesion policy projects and programmes, with reference also to the concrete capacity to mobilise and attract private resources;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present an additional special chapter in its annual report dedicated to EIB activities aimed at the implementation of cohesion policy by Member States, and to include detailed information on the use of loans in cohesion policy projects and programmes, including details on the geographical distribution of the support granted;
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 a (new) 2a. Highlights the importance of the EIB in complementary financing cohesion policy objectives as well as its advisory role through activities aimed at strengthening project preparation capacities, financial and technical advice for local and regional authorities and support in developing financial instruments. as well as loans for national co-financing of ESI Funds.
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Underlines th
Amendment 20 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Emphasises that the EIB
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3.
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Emphasises that the EIB, as an institution
Amendment 23 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Emphasises that the EIB, as an institution through which the EU finances projects aimed at fulfilling EU policies, should contribute to economic, social and territorial cohesion; underlines that decent job creation, positive cost-benefit analysis, additionality, growth acceleration, social cohesion, climate change and environmental protection should be the main selection criteria of the above mentioned projects; notices however that, according to the geographical breakdown of lending by country in which projects are located, five Member States received 54.11 % of the total loans granted in 2016;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Emphasises that the EIB, as an institution through which the EU finances projects aimed at fulfilling EU policies, should contribute to economic, social and territorial cohesion; notices however that, according to the geographical breakdown of lending by country in which projects are located, five Member States received 54.11 % of the total loans granted in 2016; urges the EIB and the Commission to examine the reasons of this uneven distribution as well as its effects on achieving cohesion policy objectives, and to report back to the European Parliament with their results before mid-2018;
Amendment 25 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Emphasises that the EIB, as an institution through which the EU finances projects aimed at fulfilling EU policies, should contribute to economic, social and territorial cohesion; notices however that, according to the geographical breakdown of lending by country in which projects are located, five Member States received 54.11
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Emphasises that the EIB, as an institution through which the EU finances projects aimed at fulfilling EU policies, should contribute to economic, social and territorial cohesion; notices however that, according to the geographical breakdown of lending by country in which projects are located, five Member States received 54.11 % of the total loans granted in 2016; Moreover, more efforts should be made by the EIB to cope with Article 309 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and strengthening its support for less developed regions.
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Emphasises that the EIB, as an institution through which the EU finances projects aimed at fulfilling EU policies, should contribute to economic, social and territorial cohesion; notices however that, according to the geographical breakdown of lending by country in which projects are located, five Member States received 54.11 % of the total loans granted in 2016; emphasises the need for greater territorial distribution of allocated funds and calls for improved role of the EIB in financing of social entrepreneurship and start-ups;
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Emphasises that the EIB, as an institution through which the EU finances projects aimed at fulfilling EU policies, should contribute to economic, social and territorial cohesion; notices however that, according to the geographical breakdown of lending by country in which projects are located, five Member States received 54.11 % of the total loans granted in 2016; points out, moreover, that over 10% of EIB financial support was lent to non-EU countries;
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the increased use of financial instruments;
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Underlines the
Amendment 30 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the increased use of financial instruments; emphasises th
Amendment 31 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the increased use of financial instruments
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the increased use of financial instruments; emphasises that the level of use of financial instruments, which should be concentrated in those sectors in which they have proven to have produced greater results and higher added value compared to grants, is still very low and that Member States point to the complexity of the procedures as one of the reasons for that;
Amendment 34 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the increased use of combining financial instruments with grants; emphasises that the level of use of financial instruments is still very low and that Member States point to the complexity of the procedures as one of the reasons for that; Therefore, the combination of financial instruments with grants should take place only when a financial instrument alone cannot achieve its objectives.
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the increased use of financial instruments; emphasises that the level of use of financial instruments is still very low and that Member States and the regions point to the complexity of the procedures
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the increased use of financial instruments; considers that this requires stronger involvement of the European Parliament, especially its Committee for Regional Development, in scrutinising the EIB's activities; emphasises that the level of use of financial instruments is still very low and that Member States point to the complexity of the procedures as one of the reasons for that;
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the increased use of financial instruments; emphasises that the level of use of financial instruments is still very low and that Member States point to the complexity of the procedures as one of the reasons for that; welcomes the fact that provision of advisory support and technical assistance on FIs has been implemented through the fi-compass initiative; calls on simplification of the procedures regarding the use of FIs; urges the Commission and the EIB to address the capacity issue through various platforms, which can contribute to capacity building of financial intermediaries in Member States;
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in
Amendment 39 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the increased use of financial instruments; emphasises that the level of use of financial instruments is still very low and that Member States point to the complexity of the procedures as one of the reasons for that; calls on the EIB and Member States to identify ways of simplifying the procedures that hinder access to financing, and to ensure that information on financial instruments reaches beneficiaries;
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Underlines the EIB’s important
Amendment 40 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Underlines the need for management cost and fees to be set in accordance with the CPR and based on a comprehensive assessment of EIB’s performance as fund manager of FIs with ESIF participation measured not only in terms of the successful disbursement of the initial endowment or the amount of private capital raised, but also on the basis of the actual returns on investments, following the recommendation in the ECA SR 19/20161a; _________________ 1a European Court of Auditors Special Report 19/2016 Implementing the EU budget through financial instruments — lessons to be learnt from the2007-2013 programme period
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Notes with concern the drive towards using financial instruments with a high risk profile; notes in particular the EIB's so-called special activities, which are high-risk and are supposed to be even encouraged in 2017 with a view to the reorganisation of procedures relating to quasi-equity investment operations and new instruments;
Amendment 42 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Stresses that increasing the proportion of financial instruments in cohesion policy must on no account replace the current grant system; takes the view that each Member State must be able to set the proportion between financial instruments and grants, since there is no universal formula that is favourable to all;
Amendment 43 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Underlines that the use of financial instruments should remain at the discretion of managing authorities; opposes therefore any binding target for the use of financial instruments in the future cohesion policy as the need for and form of financial instruments largely depends on the sector and the market to be financed;
Amendment 44 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 b (new) 4b. Considers that, as the European Union's bank, the EIB should step up its efforts to ensure that financial intermediaries it engages with do not make use of or engage in tax avoidance structures, in particular aggressive tax planning schemes or practices not complying with tax good governance criteria as set out in EU legislation including Commission recommendations and communications; the EIB should also make sure that financial intermediaries are not involved in corruption, money laundering, organised crime or terrorism;
Amendment 45 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 b (new) 4b. Underlines that the increased use of financial instruments in cohesion policy requires stronger involvement of the European Parliament in scrutinising the EIB’s activities in order to allow for better assessing the implications and consequences of the EIB’s role;
Amendment 46 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 b (new) 4b. Stresses the importance of an appropriate level of information and visibility regarding financial instruments in the Member States, so as to enable maximum use to be made of the opportunities offered by them;
Amendment 47 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 c (new) 4c. Recalls that ESI Funds and the EFSI are of a complementary nature, since the first ones aim at reducing economic, social and territorial inequalities while the latter one has been designed to overcome the current investment gap in the EU;
Amendment 48 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 d (new) 4d. Is concerned by the proposal to facilitate the combination of ESI Funds with the EFSI by way of derogating to applicable requirements for financial instruments under the current Common Provisions Regulation; opposes the idea to allow ESI Funds to take a subordinated position to the EFSI;
Amendment 49 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5.
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Underlines the EIB’s important role in the implementation of cohesion policy through activities aimed at strengthening project preparation capacities, consultancy and analysis services and loans for national co-financing; calls on the Commission and the EIB to cooperate better and coordinate their efforts to ensure a better understanding with all stakeholders on the financing of projects, the exchange of best practices, the promotion of financial instruments;
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5.
Amendment 51 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management sectors
Amendment 52 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management
Amendment 53 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management sectors, which indicates an appropriate thematic concentration; underlines that projects supporting the revitalisation of rural and other less populated, less accessible and underdeveloped areas should have
Amendment 54 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management sectors, which indicates thematic concentration; underlines that projects supporting SMEs and the revitalisation of rural and other less populated, less accessible and underdeveloped areas should
Amendment 55 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management sectors, which indicates thematic concentration; is concerned, however, by the low levels of investments in social infrastructure and the social economy and is of the opinion that rebalancing of the Bank's financing priorities is required; underlines that projects supporting the revitalisation of rural and other less populated, less accessible, deindustrialized and underdeveloped areas should have priority in all sectors;
Amendment 56 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management sectors, which indicates thematic concentration; underlines that priority should be given in all sectors to projects supporting the revitalisation of rural a
Amendment 57 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management sectors, which indicates thematic concentration; notes that more than 25% of current investments through EFSI, totalling EUR 30 billion, target the energy and environment sectors; underlines that projects supporting the revitalisation of rural and other less populated, less accessible and underdeveloped areas should have priority in all sectors;
Amendment 58 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management sectors, which indicates thematic concentration; underlines that projects supporting the revitalisation of rural and other less populated, less accessible and underdeveloped areas should have priority in all sectors, including cross-border projects focusing on the shared needs and circumstances of the communities concerned; stresses that such projects must help to prevent depopulation in these areas while also encouraging other people to settle there;
Amendment 59 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management sectors, which indicates thematic concentration; underlines that projects supporting the revitalisation of rural and other less populated, less accessible and underdeveloped areas should have priority in all sectors
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. Underlines the EIB’s important role in the implementation of cohesion policy through activities aimed at strengthening project preparation capacities, consultancy and analysis services and loans for national co-financing; calls for this activity to be further promoted and disseminated in all European regions, including those which do not benefit from the Cohesion Fund;
Amendment 60 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Welcomes the fact that, in 2016, more than 50 % of the total approved loans were invested in the transport, energy, industry and water and waste management sectors, which indicates thematic concentration; underlines that projects supporting the revitalisation of rural and other less populated, less accessible and underdeveloped areas should have priority in all sectors; highlights the important role of the EIB plays in supporting the objectives of the URBAN Agenda for the EU with EU 21 bn of urban financing in 2016;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 a (new) 5a. Asks the EIB to adopt the OECD Rio climate markers used for tracking and monitoring climate expenditures from the ESI Funds in order to better take into the EIB activities related to cohesion policy in the assessment of the role of ESI Funds in tackling climate change;
Amendment 62 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 a (new) 5a. Calls on the EIB to encourage the use of instruments that can contribute to urban regeneration, including those aimed at making buildings more energy- efficient, earthquake-proof and structurally sound;
Amendment 63 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 a (new) 5a. In 2016, urban financing has amounted to around 21 bn EUR. However, EIB should better link its financing with the Urban Agenda and Cohesion Policy objectives and have a real complementary role at urban level.
Amendment 64 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 a (new) 5a. Emphasises the importance of the complementary role of national banks and institutions in promoting the implementation of financial instruments tailored to meet local needs;
Amendment 65 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 Amendment 66 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 6. Regrets the lack of communication and data available on the role of the EIB at each stage of the implementation cycle of cohesion policy and the limited understanding of the ways in which EIB lending activities contribute to cohesion policy.
Amendment 67 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 6. Regrets the lack of data available on the role of the EIB at each stage of the implementation cycle of cohesion policy and the limited understanding of the ways
Amendment 68 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 6. Regrets the lack of data available on the role of the EIB at each stage of the implementation cycle of cohesion policy and the limited understanding of the ways in which EIB lending activities contribute to cohesion policy, and stresses the need for better information for beneficiaries at local and regional level on the role of the EIB, in order to improve the level of use of the EIB loans available in regions that have accessed these instruments to a lesser extent.
Amendment 69 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 6. Regrets the lack of data available on the role of the EIB at each stage of the implementation cycle of cohesion policy and the limited understanding of the ways in which EIB lending activities contribute to cohesion policy, including the real added value of its activities compared to more traditional forms of support such as grants.
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 a (new) 1a. Is concerned that the increasing role of the EIB and financial instruments in cohesion policy might undermine its performance-based and result-oriented approach since, as a bank, the role of the EIB is primarily to absorb funds, leverage additional investments and ensure adequate return-on-investment;
Amendment 70 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 6. Regrets the lack of data available on the role of the EIB at each stage of the implementation cycle of cohesion policy and the limited understanding of the ways in which EIB lending activities contribute to cohesion policy; underlines the need for greater transparency on the role of EIB and impact of allocated funds as well as increased projects visibility.
Amendment 71 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 6. Regrets the lack of data available on the role of the EIB at each stage of the implementation cycle of cohesion policy and the limited understanding of the ways in which EIB lending activities contribute to cohesion policy
Amendment 72 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 a (new) 6a. Regrets that despite the EU's pledge to phasing out fossil fuel subsidies by 2020 as part of the EU2020 Strategy, the EIB alone has provided for 5.3 billion euros for fossil fuel projects in twelve Member States over the 2014-2016 period; believes that the EIB should take ambitious measures, in the context of the review of its energy policy foreseen for 2018, to phase-out fossil fuel projects and prioritise energy efficiency projects within its portfolio;
Amendment 73 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 a (new) 6a. Deplores the support given to activities that have a heavy impact and are still linked to fossil fuels, such as gas, the Milazzo refinery and ArcelorMittal steel plants; condemns the support given to the Mose project in Venice, which is costing billions and is having problems relating to malfunctioning and delivery delays, with investigations under way for bribes and corruption; regrets also the will to support a costly and harmful construction project such as the TAP;
Amendment 74 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 a (new) 6a. Notes that the finance of SMEs has limited results to the real economy; therefore, calls the EIB to increase its capital with a special targeting to innovative SMEs and local and regional infrastructure projects.
Amendment 75 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 b (new) 6b. Welcomes the commitment of the EIB to support the implementation of the Paris Agreement, including by increasing its climate action lending activities above its 25% target; regrets however that those investments are almost exclusively concentrated in more developed regions; calls on the EIB to double its efforts so that transition and less developed regions can also benefit from the potentials of renewable energy, energy efficiency and circular economy in terms of job creation and sustainable development;
Amendment 76 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 6 b (new) 6b. Notes the high and widespread number of funding instruments for SMEs, but highlights the lack of specific data concerning the costs and management of those products, not to mention the final figures effectively used by beneficiaries.
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Calls on the EIB to present
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2.
source: 612.287
2017/11/06
BUDG
121 amendments...
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution Citation 1 a (new) – having regard to the 2016 Activity Report of the European Investment Bank,
Amendment 10 #
Motion for a resolution Recital B B. whereas the EIB Group financial activities include both lending own resources and fulfilling the various mandates granted to it with the support of the EU budget and third parties such as EU Member States;
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 b (new) 26b. Recommends that the new European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) examine the possibility of covering EIB operations in the EU Member States concerned as part of its activities;
Amendment 101 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 28 28. Believes that the EIB Group’s financial instruments should serve projects chosen on the basis of their own merits, their potential to generate added value for the EU as a whole, and effective additionality, especially in areas where markets fail to finance and support projects, finding the right balance between a potentially higher risk profile and the fundamental need to maintain its high credit standing;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 29 29. Warns, in this respect, that market- driven instruments risk shifting the focus of the EU budget from EU public common
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 29 29. Warns, in this respect, that market- driven instruments risk shifting the focus of the EU budget from EU public common goods and expects the EIB Group to reinforce its reporting to the Commission on the quality as opposed to the quantity of its financing in the context of the financial instruments;
Amendment 104 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 29 29. Warns, in this respect, that market- driven instruments risk shifting the focus of the EU budget from EU public common goods and e
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 29 a (new) 29a. Notes that in order to make full use of the additional risk bearing capacity, the EIB group has developed various new products that will allow for higher risk taking (e.g. subordinated debt, equity-type, risk sharing with banks), and has reviewed its credit risk policy and eligibilities to allow for increased flexibility;
Amendment 106 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 30 30. Calls on the EIB Group to further develop its risk culture in order to improve its effectiveness and the complementarity and synergies between its interventions and various EU policies, in particular by supporting innovative companies, infrastructure projects and SMEs that are taking risks or evolving in economically disadvantaged regions or regions that lack stability, in line with the recurrent and longstanding objective of easier access to financing for SMEs, but without compromising the principles of sound management or jeopardizing the EIB’s high credit standing;
Amendment 107 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 30 a (new) 30a. Notes the significant increase in indirect financing operations for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs); notes with concern the highly opaque character of such operations and the fact that they are carried out through speculative investment funds geared towards maximum short-term profit, which is entirely at odds with the objective of supporting the real economy and SMEs; recalls that SMEs are the backbone of Europe’s economy, that they provide 85 % of all new jobs, and that more effective, direct, and transparent funding mechanisms should therefore be identified;
Amendment 108 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 30 a (new) 30a. Notes with concern the highly opaque character of the indirect financing operations for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the fact that they are carried out through speculative investment funds geared towards maximum short-term profit, which is entirely at odds with the objective of supporting the real economy and SMEs; recalls that SMEs are the backbone of Europe’s economy, that they provide 85 % of all new jobs, and that more effective, direct, and transparent funding mechanisms should therefore be identified;
Amendment 109 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 30 a (new) 30a. Notes that the support of the EIB group to SMEs and midcaps amounted to record EUR 33.6 billion and supported the creation of 4.4 million jobs in 2016; highlights the importance of continuous EIB Group support towards SMEs and midcaps by enhancing their access to finance; emphasises that SMEs are the backbone of the European economy and should remain the principal target of the EIB Group lending activities by further reinforcing financing instruments for SMEs and midcaps;
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution Recital D D. whereas the EIB maintained a solid
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 30 a (new) 30a. Calls on the EIB to draw up a strategy for remedying the fact that SMEs, when they are based in a country in which the economic and banking context is unfavourable, have difficulties in gaining access to project financing;
Amendment 111 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 30 a (new) 30a. Calls on the EIB group to further rely on financially sound intermediaries, such as NPBIs, for the instruction of certain types of projects, which would not endanger its high credit standing;
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 30 b (new) 30b. Considers that many EIB group governance rules are designed to safeguard its high credit standing, but that very few information is available on how close the EIB group is from a lower rating;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 31 31. Underlines that the
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 31 31. Underlines that the
Amendment 115 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 31 31. Underlines that the
Amendment 116 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 32 32. Believes that in cases where stressed financial market conditions would prevent the realisation of a viable project or
Amendment 117 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 32 a (new) Amendment 118 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 32 b (new) 32b. Expresses concern with regard to the EIB’s possible funding of the Trans- Adriatic Pipeline project, which does not comply – to a varying extent in the transit countries Albania, Greece and Italy – with the minimum environmental and social standards laid down by the Equator Principles; regrets that the EBRD has already allocated EUR 500 million in funding and takes the view that the project is not appropriate for investment by the EIB and neither should it be considered for funding by any bank that aspires to making socially and environmentally responsible investments;
Amendment 119 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 33 a (new) 33a. Calls on the EIB, taking into account the insufficient project generation capacity in the public and private sectors and the lower borrowing capacity in some Member States, and with a view to reducing the investment shortfall in the EU, to consider an approach whereby contributions made on a one-off basis to EIB-funded projects by Member States, whether by a Member State as such or by national promotional banks classified in the general government sector or acting on behalf of a Member State, would qualify as one-off measures within the meaning of Article 5 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1466/971 a and Article 3 of Council Regulation (EC) No 14971 b; __________________ 1a Council Regulation (EC) No 1466/97 of 7 July 1997 on the strengthening of the surveillance of budgetary positions and the surveillance and coordination of economic policies. 1b Council Regulation (EC) No 1467/97 of 7 July 1997 on speeding up and clarifying the implementation of the excessive deficit procedure.
Amendment 12 #
Motion for a resolution Recital D D. whereas the EIB maintained a solid
Amendment 120 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 34 a (new) 34a. Underlines that the EFSI is failing to ensure the quality, additionality, economic and social benefits and sustainability of the projects financed; deplores the fact that the list of projects chosen to receive funding under the EFSI includes infrastructure installations with dubious additionality, regrets that in many cases the EIB has failed to take action on reports from local authorities, stakeholder communities and civil society groups; calls on the EIB to withdraw funding wherever there is any suspicion of infringements; takes the view that EFSI-funded loans should be additional to ordinary EIB investment;
Amendment 121 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 37 37. Expects the
Amendment 13 #
Motion for a resolution Recital D D. whereas the EIB maintained a solid
Amendment 14 #
Motion for a resolution Recital E E. whereas the EIB should continue to strengthen its efforts to expand its loan activities effectively by providing technical assistance and advisory support, especially in regions with low investment capacity, in order to address regional discrepancies, while reducing administrative burdens for
Amendment 15 #
Motion for a resolution Recital E E. whereas the EIB should continue to strengthen its efforts to expand its loan activities effectively by providing technical advisory, especially in regions with low levels of investment
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution Recital E E. whereas the EIB should continue to strengthen its
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution Recital F F. whereas the EIB, as the institution responsible for the management of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), should maintain the pursuit of a high-quality, geographically balanced asset portfolio, with long-term economic benefits that generate quality jobs, by selecting projects of proven financial viability and economic and social utility, on the basis of an appropriate independent ex-ante assessment, and should make this its main priority across the whole EU territory;
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution Recital F F. whereas the EIB
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution Recital F a (new) Fa. whereas the European Investment Fund (EIF) should play a key role in complementing the EIB’s interventions as the EU’s specialist vehicle for venture capital and guarantees aimed primarily at supporting SMEs and thus leading to further European integration and economic, social and territorial cohesion;
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution Citation 1 b (new) – having regard to the 2016 Financial Report and the 2016 Statistical Report of the European Investment Bank,
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution Recital G G. whereas safeguards against fraud, including tax fraud and money laundering, and risks of financing terrorism are contained in the EIB Group contractual provisions included in the contracts signed by the EIB group and its counterparties; whereas the EIB Group
Amendment 21 #
Motion for a resolution Recital I I. whereas the EIB Group should maintain a high credit standing as a fundamental asset of its business model and a high-quality, solid asset portfolio with sound investment projects under the EFSI, by selecting projects of proven financial viability and economic and social utility, on the basis of an appropriate independent ex-ante assessment, and all financial instruments in its portfolio;
Amendment 22 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 1 1. Stresses that the current crisis
Amendment 23 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 1 1. Stresses that the
Amendment 24 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 1 1. Stresses that the current crisis has significantly weakened economic growth in the EU and that one of the main contributing factors is the decline in investment in the EU; underlines that the fall in
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 3. Welcomes the EIB Group’s willingness to enhance EU competitiveness, provide real support for growth and job creation, and contribute to solving current political challenges within and outside the EU, by pursuing its overarching public policy goals relating to innovation, SMEs and midcap finance, infrastructure, the environment, economic and social cohesion, and the climate; recalls that these objectives also necessitate the provision of public goods; insists that, in order to achieve the Europe 2020 strategy objectives successfully, all EIB Group activities should not only be economically sustainable, but also contribute to a smarter, greener and more inclusive EU; considers it desirable, in this context, that the projects funded should be the subject of an independent ex-ante assessment based not only on economic criteria but also on social and environmental criteria and that an ex-post assessment should be made to check that these criteria have been respected;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 3. Welcomes the EIB Group’s willingness to enhance EU competitiveness, provide real support for growth and job creation, and contribute to solving current political challenges within
Amendment 27 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 3. Welcomes the EIB Group’s willingness to enhance EU competitiveness, provide real support for growth and job creation, and contribute to solving current political challenges within and outside the EU, by pursuing its overarching public policy goals relating to innovation, SMEs and midcap finance, infrastructure, the environment, economic and social cohesion, and the climate; recalls that these objectives also necessitate the provision of public goods; insists that, in order to achieve the Europe 2020 strategy objectives successfully, all EIB Group activities should not only be economically sustainable, but also contribute to a smarter, greener and more
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 3. Welcomes the EIB Group’s willingness to enhance EU competitiveness, provide real support for growth and job creation, and contribute to solving
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 a (new) 3a. Welcomes in this regard the EC work strand of combining different financing sources, including EFSI, centrally managed EU level financial instruments, ESI Funds programme resources, Member States resources as well as National Promotional Institutions resources, so that more risky projects and projects with limited access to finance could be serviced to the benefit of SMEs;
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution Citation 1 c (new) – having regard to the September 2016 Evaluation of the Functioning of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) of the European Investment Bank,
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 4 4. Welcomes the fact that the EIB has affirmed its commitment to supporting the fulfilment of the Paris Agreement;
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 4 4. Welcomes the fact that the EIB has
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 4 4. Welcomes the fact that the EIB has affirmed its commitment to supporting the fulfilment of the Paris Agreement;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 4 4. Welcomes the fact that the EIB has affirmed its commitment to supporting the fulfilment of the Paris Agreement; believes that the review of the EIB’s energy
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Deplores the fact that the list of projects chosen to receive funding under the EFSI includes infrastructure installations with serious environmental impact and dubious additionality, such as biorefineries, steelworks, regasification and gas storage facilities and motorways; criticises the fact that in many cases the EIB has failed to take action on reports from local authorities, stakeholder communities and civil society groups of environmental and social legislation being breached by funding recipients and by the projects financed, claiming that it was not its responsibility to carry out the necessary investigations; calls on the EIB, with reference to the precautionary principle, to withdraw funding wherever there is any suspicion of environmental infringements and damage to society or to local communities;
Amendment 35 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Points out that the EIB has had very mixed results on climate action, even though it just met its 25% target overall; is concerned that in 16 EU Member States, EIB support for climate action did not reach even the level of 20% and that climate action investment in 2016 was predominantly located in the EU’s stronger economies with 70 per cent of EFSI support for renewable energy was concentrated in just one country – Belgium – while 80 per cent of energy efficiency investment through the EFSI was allocated to France, Finland and Germany;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 5 5.
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 5 a (new) 5a. Calls in this respect to enhance the EIB’s external mandate in order to respond to the current challenges, which the EU is facing; is particularly concerned by the lack of progress in the legislative procedure aiming at revising the external lending mandate due to Council’s rigidity; is convinced that the revised level proposed by the Commission will not allow to maintain the current level of financing, thus endangering the activities of the EIB in various areas, especially in the Eastern Neighbourhood; urges therefore the Council to accept the Parliament’s proposal, increasing the ceilings of the ELM to the optimal level which would allow the EIB to continue lending at the current level;
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 5 a (new) 5a. Recalls the high degree of urgency of clarifying the impact of Brexit on the EIB in order for the bank to continue to be able to perform its role; believes that, while the UK, in terms of investment, should be treated as any other Member State prior to its formal departure from the Union, the EIB is right to condition investment on assurances that investment eligibility criteria, notably on environmental standards, will be met for the full duration of such investments;
Amendment 39 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 5 b (new) 5b. Stresses the importance of the EIB’s financing activities in the Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood; asks the EIB to increase its lending mandate towards the Eastern Neighbourhood in order to support those countries that are implementing difficult economic and democratic reforms on their path towards the EU; recalls that the main financing activities should also aim at addressing both urgent needs and longer term challenges such as rebuilding infrastructure, ensuring adequate housing and emergency response infrastructure as well as combating youth unemployment;
Amendment 4 #
Motion for a resolution Citation 17 a (new) – having regard to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations,
Amendment 40 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 6 6. Considers that the EIB, as the ‘EU bank’ incorporated and governed by the Treaties and the relevant Protocol annexed thereto, must live up to this unique status, which brings with it unique rights and responsibilities; observes that the EIB plays a key role in implementing an ever greater number of financial instruments leveraging EU budgetary funds; recalls, however, that the funding of projects of public interest is often founded on poor distribution of the financial risks of the investment, to the detriment of the public sector and to the sole advantage of the private sector, and may therefore lead to considerable losses for the public coffers, but with no real added value for society;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 7 7.
Amendment 42 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 7 7. Notes that according to the Corporate Operational Plan 2017-2019 the value of the EIB loans signed is forecast to rise once again in 2019 (to EUR 76 billion, following a fall from EUR 77 billion in 2014 to EUR 73 billion in 2016); points out that the current context should encourage the bank to adopt more ambitious objectives and to increase the loans signed by the EIB; recalls that the EIB should play a fundamental role in the implementation of the Europe 2020 strategy through
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 7 7. Notes that, according to the Corporate Operational Plan 2017-2019 , the value of the EIB loans signed is forecast to rise once again in 2019 (to EUR 76
Amendment 44 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 7 7. Notes that the value of the EIB loans signed is forecast to rise once again in 2019 (to EUR 76 billion, following a fall from EUR 77 billion in 2014 to EUR 73 billion in 2016); points out that the current context should encourage the bank to adopt more ambitious objectives and to increase the loans signed by the EIB; recalls that the EIB should play a fundamental role in the implementation of the Europe 2020 strategy through
Amendment 45 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 8 8. Welcomes the EIB’s commitment to tackling the
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 8 8. Welcomes the EIB’s commitment to tackling the
Amendment 47 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 8 8. Welcomes the EIB’s commitment to tackling the phenomenon of forced displacement and migration and taking action in countries particularly affected by the migration crisis, including by strengthening humanitarian action and providing support for economic
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 8 8.
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 8 8. Welcomes the EIB’s commitment to tackling the
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A A. whereas the EIB is considered to be the ‘
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 9 a (new) 9a. Points out with concern that Turkey is the primary beneficiary of non- EU EIB funding, and that the EIB itself is the primary external funding institution in Turkey; stresses the need to make EIB funding conditional on the upholding of human rights and fundamental freedoms, democracy and the rule of law by beneficiary countries;
Amendment 51 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 Amendment 52 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 11 11. Expects a rapid agreement to be reached on the prolongation of EFSI
Amendment 53 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 11 11. Expects a rapid agreement to be reached on the prolongation
Amendment 54 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 11 11.
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 11 11. Expects a rapid agreement to be reached on the prolongation of EFSI action, and that the revised fund will enable the problems identified in the previous version, namely in relation to additionality, sustainability, climate action, geographic balance and advisory hub activities, to be overcome;
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 11 11. Expects
Amendment 57 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 11 11. Expects
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 12 a (new) 12a. Deplores the involvement of the EIB in large-scale infrastructure projects lacking in real added economic and social value for the local population; calls on the EIB to finance only those projects whose implementation is not financially or socially controversial, as demonstrated by a thorough ex-ante assessment and an adequate cost-benefit analysis;
Amendment 59 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 13 a (new) 13a. Notes the conclusions of the Court of Auditors, which observes that hitherto only a limited number of financial instruments have been successful in providing revolving financial support and that in general the financial instruments have not succeeded in attracting private capital; draws attention to the need to provide ab initio clear and concrete estimated leverage for the funds of financial instruments;
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A A. whereas the EIB is considered to be the ‘financial arm of the EU’ and the
Amendment 60 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 13 a (new) 13a. Points out the importance of ensuring the efficient and responsible management of resources, with the objective of safeguarding the bank’s financing capacity for the coming years;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 14. Recalls that the EIB’s NCJ Policy needs to be ambitious; notes that relying on the common EU list of third country jurisdictions that fail to comply with tax good governance standards, which is expected to be endorsed by the Council of the EU by the end of 2017 and which will prevail over other lead organisations’ lists in the case of conflict, is a positive but insufficient step, and calls for country-by- country reporting without exemptions to be made a key part of the EIB’s corporate social responsibility strategy,
Amendment 62 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 14. Recalls that the EIB’s NCJ Policy needs to be ambitious;
Amendment 63 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 14. Recalls that the EIB’s N
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 14. Recalls that the EIB’s NCJ Policy needs to be ambitious; notes that relying on the common EU list of third country jurisdictions that fail to comply with tax good governance standards, which is expected to be endorsed by the Council of the EU by the end of 2017 and which will prevail over other lead organisations’ lists in the case of conflict, is a positive but insufficient step
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 14. Recalls that the EIB’s NCJ Policy needs to be ambitious; notes that relying on the common EU list of third country jurisdictions that fail to comply with tax good governance standards, which is expected to be endorsed by the Council of the EU by the end of 2017 and which will prevail over other lead organisations’ lists in the case of conflict, is a positive
Amendment 66 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 a (new) 14a. Points out that the lengthy corruption investigations concerning the scandal of the MOSE system concluded on 14 September 2017 with a judgment from the Court of Venice which sentenced two leading figures who were directly involved in the scandal to four years’ imprisonment and the confiscation of EUR 9 575 000; regrets that between 2011 and 2013 the EIB disbursed three loans, for a value of EUR 1.2 billion, for the implementation of the MOSE project, the last of which was granted after the national authorities had opened investigations for corruption; calls on the EIB to ensure that its zero-tolerance policy towards fraud is implemented as strictly as possible and to withdraw all its funding from the MOSE project and the projects linked to it through the system of companies and beneficiaries involved in the implementation of projects in the Veneto Region, and in particular the stretch of the A4 motorway known as Passante di Mestre, with regard to which investigations are still under way for tax fraud, corruption and organised crime infiltration, and the third lane of the A4 motorway in the section between Venice and Trieste; urges the EIB to conduct appropriate internal investigations concerning the selection of beneficiaries and the disbursement and management of its funds, and to publish the results;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 a (new) 14a. Notes that projects managed by the European Investment Bank involved Mossack Fonseca and that the European Commission blocked 18 projects in 2016, preventing €1billion to end up in or transit through non cooperative jurisdictions; Calls on the Commission to publish an annual public report on the use of EU funds as well as EIB and EBRD money transfers to offshore structures, including the number and nature of projects blocked, explanatory comments on the rationale for blocking projects and follow-up actions taken to ensure no EU funds directly or indirectly help tax avoidance and tax fraud;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 15 15.
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 15 15.
Amendment 7 #
Motion for a resolution Recital B B. whereas the EIB Group financial activities include both lending own resources and fulfilling the various mandates granted to it with the support of the EU budget and third parties such as the EU Member States;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 15 15. Asks the EIB to take greater account of the tax impact in countries where investment is made and of how this investment contributes to economic development and
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 16 16. Considers that using criteria for selecting financial intermediaries and being in possession of up-to-date information on beneficial ownership of companies, including trusts, foundations and tax havens, are best practices to be permanently followed; invites the EIB Group to further reinforce its contractual conditions by integrating a clause on or reference to good governance in order to mitigate risks to integrity and reputation; insists on the need for the EIB to establish a thorough public list of selection criteria for financial intermediaries, so as to step up the EU’s commitment to combating tax abuse and to prevent more effectively the risks of corruption and infiltration by criminal groups;
Amendment 72 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 16 16. Considers that using criteria for selecting financial intermediaries and being in possession of up-to-date information on beneficial ownership of companies, including trusts, foundations and tax havens, are best practices to be permanently followed; welcomes the fact that the EIB identifies during the due diligence process the beneficial owners of such companies; invites the EIB Group to further reinforce its contractual conditions by integrating a clause on or reference to good governance in order to mitigate risks to integrity and reputation;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 16 16. Considers that using criteria for selecting financial intermediaries and being in possession of up-to-date information on beneficial ownership of companies, including trusts, foundations and tax havens, are best practices to be permanently followed; notes the fact that the EIB identifies during the due diligence process the beneficial owners of such companies; invites the EIB Group to further reinforce its contractual conditions by integrating a clause on or reference to good governance in order to mitigate risks to integrity and reputation;
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 17 17.
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 17 17. Welcomes the EIB's efforts to carry out due diligence on EIB Group counterparties and operations, including on-going monitoring activities and controls, so as to ensure that the EIB does not unwittingly facilitate corruption, fraud, collusion, coercion, money laundering, tax fraud, harmful tax practices, or the financing of terrorism, notably through the publication of regular activity reports by the Office of the Chief Compliance Officer (OCCO) and its close cooperation with the EIB Inspectorate General; calls on the EIB to align itself with the new rapid alert and exclusion system planned by the Commission;
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 18. Welcomes the EIB Group’s cooperation and exchanges with the different Commission services on the measures contained in the anti-tax avoidance package, with a view to clarifying the scope and key elements of the legislative package, the EIB Group’s role and involvement, and its engagement in dialogue with civil society organisations (CSOs) on these issues, at the level of both the EIB Group’s Board of Directors and the EIB’s services, such as the OCCO; calls on the EIB to better integrate tax avoidance as part of its due diligence checks;
Amendment 77 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 a (new) 18a. Reiterates that the EIB shall revise its Policy on preventing and deterring prohibited conduct in EIB activities, which should set in stone the necessity for the EIB to stop financing and/or approving further loan disbursements to projects under ongoing national or OLAF investigation for corruption and fraud. In this regard, asks for further clarity about the status of the EIB’s and OLAF’s investigation into EIB loans to Volkswagen;
Amendment 78 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 19 a (new) 19a. Recalls that transparency in the implementation of EU policies not only leads to strengthening the EIB group’s overall corporate accountability and credibility, with a clear overview of the type of financial intermediaries and final beneficiaries, but also contributes to enhancing the effectiveness and sustainability of the funded projects alongside a zero-tolerance approach to fraud and corruption in its loan portfolio; calls on the EIB group to align itself with the new rapid alert and exclusion system planned by the Commission;
Amendment 79 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 20.
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution Recital B B. whereas the EIB Group financial activities include both lending own resources and fulfilling the various mandates granted to it with the support of the EU budget and third parties such as EU Member States;
Amendment 80 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 20. Welcomes the fact that the EIB Group’s transparency policy is based on a presumption of disclosure and that everyone can access EIB Group documents and information; recalls its recommendation for the publication on the EIB Group website of non-confidential documents, such as
Amendment 81 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 20. Welcomes the fact that the EIB Group’s transparency policy is based on a presumption of disclosure and that everyone can access EIB Group documents and information; recalls its recommendation for the publication on the EIB Group website of non-confidential documents, such as Corporate Operational Plans for previous years, interinstitutional agreements and memorandums, and urges the EIB Group not to stop there, but to continue
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 a (new) 20a. Suggests that the EIB group should follow the example set by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank group and start disclosing information about the high-risk sub-projects it finances via commercial banks (the main intermediaries/financial vehicles used by the EIB group to fund SMEs);
Amendment 83 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 b (new) 20b. Welcomes the disclosure upon request of all EIB group held project documents; asks the EIB group to define guidelines for non-sensitive and basics information that could be disclosed in relation with demands related to proactive project level disclosure;
Amendment 84 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 21 21. Calls for the EIB Group’s disclosure policy to ensure an increasingly high level of transparency as regards the principles governing its pricing policy and governance bodies; welcomes, in this regard, the disclosure of the minutes of the meetings of the EIB Group’s Board of Directors of January 2017, the public register of documents, and the publication of project data via the International Aid Transparency Initiative4 ; calls for the publication of the minutes of management committee meetings; __________________ 4 European Parliament resolution of 28 April 2016 on the European Investment Bank (EIB) – Annual Report 2014.
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 21 a (new) 21a. Calls on the EIB to ensure public access to documents concerning the results of internal inquests, reports and audits, particularly when they relate to issues of public interest or projects in which tax abuse or fraud and corruption have been identified, and to make all information fully accessible to Parliament;
Amendment 86 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 21 a (new) 21a. Calls on the EIB to publish Results Measurement Sheets for individual projects outside the EU and Three Pillars Assessment Sheets for projects in the EU in order to strengthen the Bank’s transparency at project level;
Amendment 87 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 21 b (new) 21b. Reiterates the recommendations of paragraphs 71 and 74 of resolution (2016/2098(INI)) concerning high risk sub-projects supported via commercial banks, and on contracts and sub- contracts, deplores the lack of action of the EIB in this regard;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 22 22. Urges the EIB Group to adopt the whistleblowing policy review that has already been announced, which is to update the previous policy dating from 2009; to reinforce the independence, legitimacy, accessibility, predictability, equitability and transparency of its Complaints Mechanism, including by involving Directors and enhancing protection of complainants; believes that such measures are clearly in the interest of the bank, the stakeholders and the EU institutions;
Amendment 89 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 22 22.
Amendment 9 #
Motion for a resolution Recital B B. whereas the EIB Group financial activities include both lending own resources and fulfilling the various mandates granted to it with the support of the EU budget and third parties such as EU Member States;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 22 22.
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 22 22.
Amendment 92 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 22 a (new) 22a. Reiterates its request for information on the contracting and subcontracting system to be made public and easily accessible, and for Parliament to be guaranteed access to the associated financial information and documentation in all cases;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 23 23. Calls for the revision of the
Amendment 94 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 24 24. Calls on the EIB Group to put a continuous emphasis on performance scrutiny via performance assessments and proven impact; encourages it to continue to refine its monitoring indicators, more specifically its indicators of additionality, with a view to assessing impact as early as possible in the project generation phase and providing the Board with sufficient information on the impact envisaged, in particular with regard to the contribution of projects to EU policies, for example their effect on employment (during both implementation and operation); urges the EIB to reinforce the ex-ante and ex-post assessment of the impact of its projects outside the EU, including by developing indicators to measure the social, economic and environmental effects of its own financing operations, in order to ensure that projects generate real added value for sustainable economic, social and environmental development inclusive for local communities; points out, furthermore, that the performance of EIB Group financing cannot be assessed on the basis of an appraisal of its financial impact alone, and calls, therefore, for the right balance to be maintained between the operational targets defined in terms of
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 24 24. Calls on the EIB Group to put a continuous emphasis on performance scrutiny via performance assessments and proven impact; encourages it to continue to refine its monitoring indicators, more specifically its indicators of additionality, with a view to assessing impact as early as possible in the project generation phase and providing the Board with sufficient information on the impact envisaged, in particular with regard to the contribution of projects to EU policies, for example their effect on economic indicators, such as growth or employment (during both implementation and operation); points out, furthermore, that the performance of EIB Group financing cannot be assessed on the basis of an appraisal of its financial impact alone, and calls, therefore, for the right
Amendment 96 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 24 24. Calls on the EIB Group to put a continuous emphasis on performance scrutiny via performance assessments and proven impact; encourages it to continue to refine its monitoring indicators, more specifically its indicators of additionality, with a view to assessing impact as early as possible in the project generation phase and providing the Board with sufficient information on the impact envisaged, in particular with regard to the contribution of projects to EU policies, for example their effect on employment (during both implementation and operation); points out, furthermore, that the performance of EIB Group financing cannot be assessed on the basis of an appraisal of its financial impact alone, and calls, therefore, for the right balance to be maintained between the operational targets defined in terms of business volume and the non-financial EIB Group staff objectives; urges, for instance, that the performance assessments indicate what specific objectives within the framework of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) are targeted by the project
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 a (new) 26a. Notes that in many EIB’s countries of operations, human rights, in particular freedom of expression, assembly, and association are under attack, from violent crackdowns on protests and criminalization of speech, to arbitrary arrests and detention of human rights defenders, as well as restrictions on civil society organizations. Calls on the EIB to adopt a Human Rights Action Plan to implement the objectives of the EU Strategic Framework on Human Rights and Democracy, the EU Action Plan for Human Rights and Democracy and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights in order to prevent negative impacts of EIB projects on human rights, to ensure its projects contribute to the enhancement and realisation of human rights, and to provide remedies in case of human rights violations;
Amendment 98 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 a (new) 26a. Welcomes the publication of its ReM+ framework methodology, but believes that the assessed results themselves should be disclosed for any operation and for the environmental and social impact assessments at the level of projects or subprojects, following up the good practice of the disclosure of the scoreboard of indicators;
Amendment 99 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 b (new) 26b. Welcomes the adoption by the EIB group of high transparency and accountability standards for its SME lending activity, with mandatory reporting from financial intermediaries on each SME that benefitted from EIB group support to take these results into account when considering subsequent transactions with the same intermediary;
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2018-01-15T00:00:00New
2018-03-12T00:00:00 |
2017-10-27Show (2) Changes | Timetravel
| activities/0/committees/0/shadows/4 |
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| committees/0/shadows/4 |
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2017-10-12Show (2) Changes | Timetravel
| activities/0/committees/0/shadows/2 |
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| committees/0/shadows/2 |
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2017-10-05Show (2) Changes | Timetravel
| activities/0/committees/0/shadows/3 |
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| committees/0/shadows/3 |
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2017-09-28Show (1) Changes | Timetravel
| activities/1 |
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2017-09-23Show (2) Changes | Timetravel
| activities/0/committees/0/shadows |
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| committees/0/shadows |
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2017-09-08Show (1) Changes | Timetravel
| other/0 |
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2017-07-13Show (6) Changes | Timetravel
| activities/0/committees/1/rapporteur/0/group |
Old
S&DNew
EPP |
| activities/0/committees/1/rapporteur/0/mepref |
Old
4f1ac8c4b819f25efd0000f0New
53b2de38b819f205b00000e5 |
| activities/0/committees/1/rapporteur/0/name |
Old
GUALTIERI RobertoNew
NIEDERMAYER Luděk |
| committees/1/rapporteur/0/group |
Old
S&DNew
EPP |
| committees/1/rapporteur/0/mepref |
Old
4f1ac8c4b819f25efd0000f0New
53b2de38b819f205b00000e5 |
| committees/1/rapporteur/0/name |
Old
GUALTIERI RobertoNew
NIEDERMAYER Luděk |
2017-07-07Show (4) Changes | Timetravel
| activities/0/committees/1/date |
2017-05-29T00:00:00
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| activities/0/committees/1/rapporteur |
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| committees/1/date |
2017-05-29T00:00:00
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| committees/1/rapporteur |
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2017-06-02Show (4) Changes | Timetravel
| activities/0/committees/0/date |
2017-05-31T00:00:00
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| activities/0/committees/0/rapporteur |
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| committees/0/date |
2017-05-31T00:00:00
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| committees/0/rapporteur |
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2017-05-26Show (3) Changes | Timetravel
| activities/0 |
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| procedure/dossier_of_the_committee |
BUDG/8/09945
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| procedure/stage_reached |
Old
Preparatory phase in ParliamentNew
Awaiting committee decision |
2017-05-25Show (2) Changes | Timetravel
| committees/3/date |
2017-04-25T00:00:00
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| committees/3/rapporteur |
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2017-05-23Show (1) Changes | Timetravel
| procedure/title |
Old
Financial Activities of the European Investment Bank. Annual ReportNew
Financial activities of the European Investment Bank. Annual report |
2017-05-20Show (5) Changes
| activities |
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| committees |
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| links |
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| other |
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| procedure |
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