63 Amendments of Dominique BILDE related to 2016/2143(INI)
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas sport plays a prominent role in the life of millions of EU Member State citizens;
Amendment 22 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas sport represents a significant and fast-growing sector of the EU economyies of the EU Member States and makes a valuable contribution to growth, jobs and society and to national cohesion;
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas the integrity of sport is of paramount importance, not only because of the economic interests at stake, but also because of the social role it plays, in particular in the education and personal development of young people, who are the citizens of tomorrow;
Amendment 35 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas recent corruption scandals in sport and within sports organisations have tarnished the image of sport and made it appear elitist and remote from the everyday lives of the majority of Member State citizens;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas good governance in sport refers to an appropriate regulation of sport through principles of effective, transparent, ethical and, democratic and independent management;
Amendment 44 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas sports organisations are responsible for ensuring high governance standards and should raise these further, and whereas compliance with those standards should be more closely monitored;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I
Recital I
I. whereas it is legitimate to require that any sports competition be played and decided in accordance with the internationally recognised rules of the game, in order to ensure that sporting events are run in an ethical, egalitarian and independent manner;
Amendment 60 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital J
Recital J
J. whereas sports tribunals have a central role to play in guaranteeing the universality of the rules of the game, in particular the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which was set up in 1983 and performs an essential arbitration and mediation role in the world of sport;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K
Recital K
K. whereas sport is confronted with match-fixing scandals involving moneythe laundering of proceeds from drug and arms trafficking and prostitution which have coincided with the rise of online betting;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital L
Recital L
L. whereas doping remains a threat to sport integrity and athletes’ health; whereas a large number of instances of ‘technological doping’ have been reported, in particular in cycling, with hidden motors, as well as in basketball, with shoes that are said to allow wearers to jump significantly higher;
Amendment 80 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital M
Recital M
M. whereas acts of violence and discrimination may occur in sport; whereas, furthermore, according to reports by several French agencies (the police intelligence service (SRCT), the Foundation for Aid to Victims of Terrorism, and the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS)), amateur sport is becoming an increasingly fertile breeding ground for factionalism and radicalisation; whereas young people are more vulnerable to indoctrination and psychological pressure, and whereas in France alone, 2 486 (60%) of the 4 091 radicalisation alerts received by the counterterrorism coordination unit concerned young people under the age of 25;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital N
Recital N
N. whereas athletes, who are often minors, face increasing economic pressures and are treated as commodities; whereas, in this connection, a balanced approach needs to be taken to sponsorship deals, working closely with the parents or legal guardians of under-age sportspersons in order to ensure that their best interests do not take second place to marketing imperatives;
Amendment 92 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital O
Recital O
O. whereas bad practices linked to agents and players’ transfers have led to cases of money laundering, fraud and exploitation of minors and whereas there should be better oversight of such practices and of agents;
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital P
Recital P
P. whereas grassroots sport offers opportunities to tackle discrimination, to foster social cohesion and integration and to make a strong contribution to the development of transversal skills, and whereas sport may be regarded as a means for members of the Union’s most disadvantaged communities to better their health and further their education;
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital Q
Recital Q
Q. whereas, overall, physical activity is stagnating despite a growing trend for recreational sports, such as jogging, which are practised outside any organised structure; whereas, according to a report published by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) in June 2015, the EU Member States spend an average of EUR 80.4 billion per year on treating illnesses caused by a lack of physical exercise, and whereas that expenditure is bound to increase still further unless Europeans do more exercise;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital R
Recital R
R. whereas major sports events showcase the benefits of sport and should have a positive social, economic and environmental impact; whereas, however, such events need to be organised in an economically and environmentally sustainable manner, as otherwise they can result in excessive indebtedness and the destruction of the urban landscape, leaving future generations to deal with the problems they cause;
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital S
Recital S
S. whereas the further education and training of athletes is crucial to prepare them for a career outside sport, and whereas greater efforts need to be made to foster links between sports training centres and educational establishments, as well as to encourage former sportspersons to resume their studies;
Amendment 119 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital T
Recital T
T. whereas volunteering is a fundamental condition for accessible, low- cost sports activities and events, especially at grassroots level; whereas the lessons learned when doing volunteer work should be recognised as informal skills, as such work often gives people interpersonal and organisational abilities that are a real plus point when they enter the labour market;
Amendment 122 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital U
Recital U
U. whereas sport can help strengthen dialogue with third countries and support EU Member States’ external policy;
Amendment 125 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital V
Recital V
V. whereas the media must be able to report freely and independently on sports events; whereas, however, efforts need to be made to secure more equal treatment of sporting events by broadcasters, for example by ensuring that the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games are held at the same time and can thus be broadcast at the same time;
Amendment 127 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital V a (new)
Recital V a (new)
Va. whereas the eSports industry is enjoying rapid growth in Europe, is currently valued at USD 300 million and, according to a study conducted by SuperData Research, is likely to grow at an average rate of 14% per year; whereas, by way of an example, on the French market gaming sites have attracted 1.5 million individual visitors in 2016, and that number is expected to double by 2018; whereas the Commission should carry out a study into the potential and risks of this new industry and the opportunities it offers;
Amendment 142 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Recalls that good governance must be a condition for the autonomy of sports organisations, in compliance with the principles of transparency, independence, accountability and democracy;
Amendment 145 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Stresses the need for a zero- tolerance policy on corruption in sport; , involving closer cooperation between countries and sports organisations with a view to ensuring better scrutiny and imposing exemplary penalties;
Amendment 148 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Underlines that the application of good governance principles in sport is a key factor to help eradicate corruption and other malpractices, in order to give sport a positive image;
Amendment 154 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on sports organisations to ensure that bidding to host major events abides by good governance standards and fundamental rights, and guarantees a sustainable legacy, in particular in environmental, economic and social terms;
Amendment 163 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Urges Member States to make public funding for sport subject to compliance with minimum governance standards; stresses, in this connection, the need for transparency with regard to the amount of funding allocated and to the origin of any funding that comes from abroad;
Amendment 169 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Supports the initiatives taken by sports organisations to improve governance standards in sport and believes that individual sports organisations and federations should be given the opportunity to achieve good governance themselves before any further binding rules are laid down;
Amendment 177 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls on sports organisations to put forward by early 2018, and subsequently implement, concrete proposals to enhance their governance;
Amendment 182 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Reiterates that Member States should, where necessary, establish a specific criminal offence dealing with match-fixing and ensure that match-fixing and corruption in sport are subject to judicial proceedings;
Amendment 187 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Stresses that information-sharing between sports bodies, state authorities and licensed betting operators is essential to detect, investigate and prosecute match- fixing and that better coordination and support for all the parties concerned is required in order to ensure effective cooperation;
Amendment 191 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Urges the Commission and the Member States who have not done so to sign and ratify the Council of Europe Convention on the manipulation of sports competitions and the Commission to do likewise;
Amendment 197 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Supports education and information programmes on the threat of match-fixing and doping; stresses that training programmes focusing on the risks of doping must include materials on technological doping;
Amendment 207 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Calls on the Member States to ensure that information-sharing between state authorities and anti-doping agencies is effective; stresses that doping scandals must not be brushed under the carpet or dishonestly used for political purposes;
Amendment 212 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Calls on the Member States and the Commission to work closely with WADA and the Council of Europe in order to prevent and fight doping effectively; suggests, further, that the competent authorities carry out a study into technological doping, the methods used and the impact of the practice on high- level sport;
Amendment 221 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Welcomes the new Council of Europe Convention on spectator violence and calls onsuggests that the Member States to sign and ratify it without delay;
Amendment 226 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Notes that the threat of terrorism requires new efforts to ensure operational safety and security at sports events; points out that in France, for example, over the past year the threat of terrorism has caused many sporting events to be cancelled; takes the view that everything possible should be done to eliminate this obstacle to the organisation of events which are fundamental to social cohesion and personal development; urges national authorities, therefore, to take all the measures required to combat the threat which terrorism poses to sporting events, in particular by deploying more security personnel;
Amendment 233 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Condemns strongly all forms of discrimination in sport and underlines the need to prevent such behaviour; draws attention, in that connection, to the sectarianist tendencies observed in some local sporting associations, which can foster the radicalisation of young persons in search of an identity; insists, therefore, that local and national authorities take action against any sporting association identified as a potential hotbed of radicalisation;
Amendment 234 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Recalls the need to boost the fight against human trafficking in sport, in particular the trafficking of children; emphasises, in that connection, the key role played by parents in providing an upbringing which focuses on well-being, balance and safeguarding the overriding interests of the child, in particular in the face of the commodification of under-age athletes, image rights and children’s physical and psychological health;
Amendment 240 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Welcomes investment in sport provided it is transparent, subject to strict controls and not detrimental to the integrity of competitions and athletes; emphasises, in that connection, the enormous potential benefits, but also the dangers, of investing in new technologies; calls, therefore, for a campaign to raise awareness of technological doping;
Amendment 249 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Stresses that athletes must be protected from abusive practices such as third-party ownership which raise numerous questions of integrity and broader ethical concerns; emphasises, in that connection, the need to protect under-age athletes more effectively and, with that aim in view, the key role to be played by parents, who must not be excluded from their children’s upbringing on the grounds that the latter are being prepared for a professional sporting career;
Amendment 259 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Reiterates its attachment to the European organised sports model, where federations play a central role, insofar as it balances the numerous diverging interests between all stakeholders, such as players, clubs, leagues, associations and volunteers, with appropriate and democratic representation in decision-making, and makes for greater social cohesion;
Amendment 269 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Welcomes the efforts of the Commission and all concerned stakeholders to promote social dialogue in sport, and calls for exchanges of best practice in order to foster such dialogue;
Amendment 275 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Calls on the establishment of public transparency registers for the payment of sports agents;
Amendment 280 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Welcomes initiatives which encourage gender equality in decision- making roles in sport, but emphasises that women should be chosen for such roles on the basis of their abilities, not their sex;
Amendment 290 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25
Paragraph 25
25. Believes that sport builds bridges across cultures and ethnic and social divides, and emphasises that this is why sports associations and federations should endeavour to combat any form of sectarianism in sport;
Amendment 295 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26
Paragraph 26
Amendment 303 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27
Paragraph 27
27. Recognises the importance of grassroots sport in preventing and fighting radicalisation; insists, however, that the competent national authorities must be able to investigate sports associations which are likely to encourage or which are suspected of encouraging radicalisation;
Amendment 307 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28
Paragraph 28
28. Supports effective dual career systems and access to further education and training for athletes; draws attention, in that connection, to the importance for under-age athletes of continuing their education, with a view to safeguarding their future and ensuring that they have a post-sport career;
Amendment 331 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30
Paragraph 30
30. Underlines that participation in sport in schools and universities, as well as by older people, is vital; points out, in that connection, that according to a Eurobarometer survey 42% of EU citizens never do sport or physical exercise and that some 500 000 deaths per year in Europe are thought to be the result of diseases (such as type-2 diabetes and heart conditions) associated with a lack of physical activity;
Amendment 337 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 31
Paragraph 31
31. Highlights that sport should be better promoted among socially excluded groups in the EU Member States, in particular persons suffering from a physical or mental disability and persons facing geographic exclusion, such as the inhabitants of rural and mountain regions;
Amendment 344 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32
Paragraph 32
32. Stresses that disabled people should have access to all sports facilities; urges Member States to invest, if necessary, in facilities which make it easier for persons with a disability to practise sport, so that sport really is for all, whether at school, in public venues or during people’s leisure time;
Amendment 354 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33
Paragraph 33
33. Calls on the Member States and the Commission to ensure that children practise sport in a safe environment; expresses concern, therefore, at the impact of the austerity policies imposed by the EU authorities on the Member States, which have led to a drastic reduction in investment in school and sports facilities;
Amendment 361 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 34
Paragraph 34
34. Supports the European Week of Sport and calls on all EU institutions and Member States, in keeping with their respective powers and the subsidiarity principle, to further promote this initiative while ensuring it is accessible to the widest possible audience;
Amendment 367 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 35
Paragraph 35
35. Considers that traditional sports are part of the European cultural heritage; and that it is important, therefore, to safeguard their diversity and their specifically national character;
Amendment 373 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 36
Paragraph 36
36. Calls on the Commission to allocate more funds to sport under ERASMUS+monitor the sound financial and administrative management of the funds earmarked for sport under ERASMUS+, in particular by ensuring that these funds are not used for non-sporting purposes, with a focus on grassroots sport and education, to enhance its visibility and to improve the mainstreaming of sport into other funding programmes;
Amendment 382 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 37
Paragraph 37
37. Supports measures promoting the mobility of volunteers in sport, but emphasises that steps should be taken to ensure that this mobility does not undermine the status of volunteers and does not add to the skills drain, thereby depriving some territories which are regarded as less attractive, such as rural areas, of human resources which are vital to the survival of local sporting associations;
Amendment 386 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 38
Paragraph 38
Amendment 397 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 39
Paragraph 39
39. Welcomes the contribution made by national lotteries to grassroots sport and calls on Member States to make licensed betting operators subject to a mandatory and proportionate fair financial return to the grassroots;
Amendment 399 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 40
Paragraph 40
40. Maintains that the selling of TV rights on a centralised, exclusive and territorial basis with equitable sharing of the revenue is essential for the sustainable funding of sport at all levels and to ensure a level playing field; takes the view that the territoriality principle is the principle underpinning the funding of the arts, and in particular the audiovisual sector, and urges that it should be retained when the Commission next revises the directives governing the audiovisual sector and copyright;
Amendment 401 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 41
Paragraph 41
41. Emphasises that infringements of intellectual property rights in sport threaten its long-term funding; stresses the fundamental nature of intellectual property rights, and calls on the Commission, when it next revises the directive on copyright, to reassert the indivisibility of that principle;
Amendment 404 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 42
Paragraph 42
42. Recommends thatUrges the Member States introduce possibilities forto study the scope for and the possible impact of introducing VAT exemption in grassroots sport and tax breaks for volunteers active in sport;
Amendment 411 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 43
Paragraph 43
43. Considers that sustainability and environmental protection should be an integral part of sports events; emphasises, in that connection, that lessons must be learnt from the past, in particular as regards the organisation of Olympic events, which have plunged some countries into serious debt, and urges that any country which bids for such an event should base its proposal on realistic impact assessments which look beyond short-term political considerations and consider the possible social and environmental consequences of organising such an event;
Amendment 416 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 44
Paragraph 44
44. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, and to the national, European, and international and national sports federations and leagues.