15 Amendments of Tomáš ZDECHOVSKÝ related to 2018/0208(COD)
Amendment 17 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 2
Recital 2
(2) These rights and values must continue to be actively promoted and enforced, shared among the citizens and peoples within the Union and be at the heart of Europe’s societies, Therefore, a new Justice, Rights and Values Fund, comprising the Rights and Values and the Justice programmes shall be created in the Union budget. At a time where European societies are confronted with extremism, radicalism, polarization and divisions, it is more important than ever to promote, strengthen and defend justice, rights and common EU values: human rights, respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law. This will have profound and direct implications for political, social, cultural and economic life in the EU. As a part of the new Fund, the Rights and Values Programme will bring together the 2014- 2020 Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme established by Regulation (EU) No 1381/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council10 and the Europe for Citizens programme established by Regulation (EU) No 390/2014 of the Council11 . The Justice programme (hereafter the 'Programme') will continue to support the development of an integrated European justice area and cross-border cooperation, in continuity with the 2014- 2020 Justice Programme established by Regulation (EU) No 1381/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council12 (hereafter 'the predecessor Programme'). _________________ 10 Regulation (EU) No 1381/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 establishing a Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme for the period 2014 to 2020 (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 62) 11 Council Regulation (EU) No 390/2014 of 14 April 2014 establishing the ‘Europe for Citizens’ programme for the period 2014-2020 (OJ L 115, 17.4.2014, p.3) 12 Regulation (EU) No 1381/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 establishing a Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme for the period 2014 to 2020 (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 62).
Amendment 19 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 3
Recital 3
(3) The Justice, Rights and Values Fund and its two underlying funding programmes will focus primarily on people and entities which contribute to make our common values, rights and rich diversity alive and vibrant. The ultimate objective is to nurture and sustain our rights- and freedoms-based, equal, inclusive and democratic society. That includes stimulating a vibrant civil society, encouraging people’s democratic, civic and social participation and to, protecting independent media, fostering the rich diversity of European society, and cultivating European identity, also based on our common history and memory. Article 11 of the EU Treaty further specifies that the institutions shall, by appropriate means, give citizens and representative associations the opportunity to make known and publicly exchange their views in all areas of Union action.
Amendment 23 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) Financing should remains one of the most important tools for the successful implementation of the ambitious goals set by the Treaties. They should be attained inter alia by establishing a flexible and effective Justice Programme which should facilitate planning and implementation of those goals.
Amendment 25 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 6
Recital 6
(6) For the gradual establishment of an area of freedom, security and justice, the Union is to adopt measures relating to judicial cooperation in civil and criminal matters based on the principle of mutual recognition of judgments and judicial decisions, which is a cornerstone of judicial cooperation within the Union since the Tampere European Council of 15 and 16 October 1999. Mutual recognition requires a high level of mutual trust among Member States. Measures to approximate the laws of the Member States in several areas have been adopted to facilitate mutual recognition and foster mutual trust. A well-functioning area of justice, where obstacles in cross-border judicial proceedings and access to justice in cross- border situations are eliminated, is also key to ensure economic growth and further integration.
Amendment 29 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 7
Recital 7
(7) Respect for the rule of law is essential for a high level of mutual trust in the area of justice and home affairs, in particular for effective judicial cooperation in civil and criminal matters which is based on mutual recognition. The rule of law is one of the common values enshrined in Article TEU 2, and the principle of effective judicial protection provided for in Articles 19(1) TEU and 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights is a concrete expression of the rule of law. Promoting the rule of law by supporting the efforts to improve the independence, transparency, accountability, quality and efficiency of national justice systems enhances the mutual trust which is indispensable for judicial cooperation in civil and criminal matters.
Amendment 31 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 8
Recital 8
(8) Pursuant to Articles 81(2)(h) and 82(1)(c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU, the Union shall support the training of the judiciary and judicial staff as a tool to improve judicial cooperation in civil and criminal matters based on the principle of mutual recognition of judgments and of judicial decisions. THarmonized training of justice professionals is an important tool to develop a common understanding of how best to uphold the rule of law. It contributes to the building of the European area of justice by creating a common judicial culture among justice professionals of the Member States. It is essential to ensure the correct and coherent application of law in the Union and mutual trust and understanding between justice professionals in cross- border proceedings. The training activities supported by the Programme should be based on sound training needs’ assessments, use state of the art training methodology, include cross-border events gathering justice professionals of different Member States, comprise active learning and networking elements and be sustainable.
Amendment 33 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) Judicial training can involve different actors, such as Member States’ legal, judicial and administrative authorities, academic institutions, national bodies responsible for judicial training, European-level training organisations or networks, or networks of court coordinators of Union law. Bodies and entities pursuing a general European interest in the field of training of the judiciary, such as the European Judicial Training Network ('EJTN'), the Academy of European Law ('ERA'), the European Network of Councils for the Judiciary ('ENCJ'), the Association of the Councils of State and Supreme Administrative Jurisdictions of the European Union ('ACA-Europe'), the Network of the Presidents of Supreme Judicial Courts of the European Union ('RPCSJUE') and the European Institute of Public Administration ('EIPA'), should continue to play their role in promoting quality training programmes with a genuine European dimension for the judiciary and judicial staff, and could therefore be granted adequate financial support in accordance with the procedures and the criteria set out in the annual work programmes adopted by the Commission pursuant to this Regulation.
Amendment 36 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14
Recital 14
(14) Pursuant to Article 67 TFEU, the Union should constitute an area of freedom, security and justice with respect for fundamental rights, to which access to justice is instrumental. In order to facilitate effective access to justice, and with a view to foster the mutual trust which is indispensable for the good functioning of the area of freedom, security and justice, it is necessary to extend financial support to activities of other authorities than judicial authorities and legal practitioners, as well as ofincluding civil society organisations and academia, which contribute to these objectives.
Amendment 38 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 16
Recital 16
(16) Actions covered by this Regulation should contribute to the creation of a European area of justice, increasing cross- border cooperation and networking and achieving the correct, coherent and consistent application of Union law. Funding activities should also contribute to a common understanding of the Union’s values, the rule of law, to better knowledge of Union law and policies, to sharing know-how and best practices in using judicial cooperation instruments by all concerned stakeholders, as well as to a proliferation of interoperable digital solutions underpinning seamless and efficient cross-border cooperation, and should provide a sound analytical basis to support the development, enforcement and proper implementation of Union law and policies. Union financial intervention allows for those actions to be pursued consistently across the Union and brings economies of scale. Moreover, the Union is in a better position than Member States to address cross-border situations and to provide a European platform for mutual learning.
Amendment 41 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 17
Recital 17
(17) The Commission should ensure overall consistency, complementarity and synergies with the work of Union bodies, offices and agencies, such as EUROJUST, EU-LISa, OLAF and the European Public Prosecutor Office, and should take stock of the work of other national and international actors in the areas covered by the Programme.
Amendment 43 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 18
Recital 18
(18) It is necessary to ensure the viability, visibility and the European added value of all actions and activities carried out within the Programme, their complementarity to Member States’ activities, and their consistency with other Union activities. In order to ensure efficient allocation of funds from the general budget of the Union, consistency, complementarity and synergies should be sought between funding programmes supporting policy areas with close links to each other, in particular within the Justice, Rights and Values Fund – and thus with the Rights and Values Programme- and between the Programme and the Single Market Programme, Border management and Security, in particular the Asylum and Migration ('AMIF') and the Internal Security Funds, Strategic Infrastructure in particular the Digital Europe Programme, the Erasmus+ Programme, the Framework Programme for research and innovation, the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance, and the LIFE Regulation13 . _________________ 13 Regulation (EU) No 1293/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on the establishment of a Programme for the Environment and Climate Action (LIFE) and repealing Regulation (EC) No 614/2007 Text with EEA relevance
Amendment 44 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 21
Recital 21
(21) The types of financing and the methods of implementation under this Regulation should be chosen on the basis of their ability to achieve the specific objectives of the actions and to deliver desired results, taking into account, in particular, the costs of controls, the administrative burden, and the expected risk of non- compliance. This should include consideration of the use of lump sums, flat rates and unit costs, as well as financing not linked to costs as referred to in Article 125(1) of the Financial Regulation.
Amendment 46 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 22
Recital 22
(22) In accordance with the Financial Regulation, Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council15 , Council Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2988/9516 Council Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2185/9617 and Council Regulation (EU) 2017/193918 the financial interests of the Union are to be protected through proportionate measures, including thecomplete transparency of the Programme financing and selection procedures, prevention, detection, correction and investigation of irregularities and fraud, the recovery of funds lost, wrongly paid or incorrectly used and, where appropriate, the imposition of administrative sanctions. In particular, in accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 and Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) may carry out administrative investigations, including on- the-spot checks and inspections, with a view to establishing whether there has been fraud, corruption or any other illegal activity affecting the financial interests of the Union. In accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) may investigate and prosecute fraud and other criminal offences affecting the financial interests of the Union as provided for in Directive (EU) 2017/1371 of the European Parliament and of the Council19 In accordance with the Financial Regulation, any person or entity receiving Union funds is to fully cooperate in the protection of the Union’s financial interests, to grant the necessary rights and access to the Commission, OLAF, the EPPO and the European Court of Auditors (ECA) and to ensure that any third parties involved in the implementation of Union funds grant equivalent rights. _________________ 15 Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 September 2013 concerning investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1073/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Regulation (Euratom) No 1074/1999,(OJ L248, 18.9.2013, p. 1. 16 Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 of 18 December 1995 on the protection of the European Communities financial interests (OJ L 312, 23.12.95, p. 1). 17 Council Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 of 11 November 1996 concerning on-the-spot checks and inspections carried out by the Commission in order to protect the European Communities’ financial interests against fraud and other irregularities (OJ L292,15.11.96,, p. 2). 18 Council Regulation (EU) 2017/1939 of 12 October 2017 implementing enhanced cooperation on the establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (‘the EPPO’) (OJ L283, 31.10.2017,, p. 1). 19 Directive (EU) 2017/1371 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 July 2017 on the fight against fraud to the Union’s financial interests by means of criminal law (OJ L 198, 28.7.2017, p. 29).
Amendment 53 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 9 – paragraph 1
Article 9 – paragraph 1
1. An action that has received a contribution under the Programme may also receive a contribution from any other Union programme, including Funds under shared management, provided that the contributions do not cover the same costsdouble funding is avoided. [The cumulative financing shall not exceed the total eligible costs of the action and the support from different Union programmes may be calculated on a pro-rata basis].
Amendment 55 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 12 – paragraph 3
Article 12 – paragraph 3
3. The performance reporting system shall ensure that correct data for monitoring programme implementation and results are collected efficiently, effectively, and in a timely manner. To that end, proportionate reporting requirements shall be imposed on recipients of Union funds and Member States.