Activities of Joachim SCHUSTER related to 2019/2126(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the financial activities of the European Investment Bank – annual report 2019
Amendments (23)
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Highlights the importance of the activities of the European Investment Bank (EIB) to increase the current levels of investment in the EU, which are below historical averages and insufficient to fulfil the EU’s sustainability, social and innovation ambitions; stresses that in order to achieve these ambitions, more risk- taking by the EIB may be necessary in parallel to increasing equity and the development of expertise in innovative funding instruments; calls for adequate general increase of the EIB's capitalisation of the EIB to allow for more long-term loans and the use of innovative instruments in the financing of projects with substantial potential sustainability, social and innovation gains, irrespective of the final agreement between the UK and the EIB after Brexit;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Welcomes the commitment by the Commission President-elect to turn sections of the EIB into a climate bank, and the commitments from the EIB President to increase the share of EIB financing for climate action and environmental sustainability to at least 50 % by 2025 and to align all EIB financing activities with the goals of the Paris Agreement by the end of 2020; calls on the EIB to devote remaining financing to address the technological transition, provide funds for long term research and innovation, SMEs, support the social economy and enhance social and territorial cohesion, namely by filling current investment gaps in public housing and infrastructure; calls on the Commission to present an ambitious new European Sustainable Investment Plan, including additional financial commitments, as soon as possible, and to fully support the EIB in its sustainability ambitions;
Amendment 23 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Underlines the important role of the public sector in delivering on the investment targets announced by the new European Commission to unleash €1 trillion of funding for investment in green transition over the next decade; calls, therefore on the EIB to increase technical support and long-term financing for municipalities and public enterprises and increase the funding quota of the EIB for all eligible public projects supporting the green transition up to 75%;
Amendment 25 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2 b. Calls on the Member States to create a ‘golden rule’ on public spending for investment on the social and environmental transition towards a sustainable, carbon-neutral economy, including on projects co-financed by the EIB, thereby excluding these from the calculation of national public deficits;
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2 c. Welcomes the decision taken by the Board of Directors of the EIB to end financing for most fossil fuel energy projects from the end of 2021 and to gradually increase the share of its financing dedicated to climate action and environmental sustainability, to reach 50 % of its operations as of 2025; highlights, that, in line with the EIB's future lending policy, exceptional financing for gas as transitional energy can be possible if it is used in combination with renewables, as a bridging technology to replace coal, where no other alternatives exist, when safeguards to avoid lock-in effects are put in place, and when steps are taken to ensure that the emissions trajectory remains in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement; stresses that financing for renewable energies has to be the priority;
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Stresses that in order for the EIB to become the EU’s climate bank, it should stop all financial support to fossil fuel projects by the end of 2020, andalso align all its activities, including EIF operations, with the Paris Agreement’s goals; calls on the EIB to make decarbonisation commitments a condition for companies to receive EIB support; calls on the EIB to apply the EU taxonomy framework, once it has been formally adopted, as a benchmark for its climate and environmental investments; calls on the EIB to develop a credible methodology to measure, disclose and achieve ‘Paris alignment’ of its financing operations;
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Urges the EIB and the Member States to ensure that, throughout the phase-out process, regions where the local economy and employment are highly connected to fossil fuels and lacking adequate financing are compensated with substantial investment in training and alternative economic opportunities which guarantee high quality clean jobs, thereby ensuring a smooth transition, where no one is left behind; takes the view that consistency and coordination with other EU financing instruments in this regard will be crucial;
Amendment 48 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4 a. Is concerned by the conclusions of the EU Court of Auditor’s special report 03/2019; highlights that the special report found that some EFSI support just replaced other EIB and EU financing, and that part of the finance went to projects that could have used other sources of public or private finance; further notes that it estimates that additional investment attracted by EFSI were sometimes overstated and most investments went to a few larger EU 15 Member States with well-established national promotional banks; calls on the EIB to follow up on the conclusions of the special report;
Amendment 53 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4 b. Recalls that EIB funding should provide additionality to projects that would otherwise not be financed and support projects in line with EU goals in areas where markets fail to invest, to provide long-term financing as well as to encourage investments especially in regions and sectors where it is most needed;
Amendment 54 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 c (new)
Paragraph 4 c (new)
4 c. Points out further that additionality of EIB financing also consists in providing technical advice and capacity-building in order to help projects to become investment-ready and ensure quick mobilization of resources, often faster than in the private sector;
Amendment 55 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 d (new)
Paragraph 4 d (new)
4 d. Insists on the need to reduce the uneven geographical distribution of the EIB’s financing and guarantee a strong focus on less developed regions that are not properly reached by EIB financing, since economic and social cohesion in the EU is one of the EIB’s objectives; welcomes in this regard the EIB’s announcement to establish an Energy Transition package to provide extra support to those Member States presenting more challenging transition problems;
Amendment 56 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 e (new)
Paragraph 4 e (new)
4 e. Calls on the Commission to ensure that InvestEU’s sustainability-proofing methodologies are fully consistent with the EU’s sustainability objectives;
Amendment 57 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 f (new)
Paragraph 4 f (new)
4 f. Calls on Member States to proceed with reforms of the EIB governance structure in order to ensure more democratic scrutiny of its operations, allow the European Parliament to have a substantial say in its investment strategy and ensure adequate oversight, where appropriate, by national parliaments;
Amendment 58 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 g (new)
Paragraph 4 g (new)
4 g. Takes the view that, for the EIB to become the EU’s Climate Bank and play a role in the just transition, it needs to advance mechanisms to better incorporate the input from various stakeholders, such as climate experts, trade unions and NGOs along its investment strategy;
Amendment 59 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on the EIB group to be more transparent about its economic operations, its use of the EU budget guarantee, the additionality of EIBits operations and on possible future plans for a development subsidiary at the EIB, and; calls for the EIB group to improve its accountability on these issues; calls for a memorandum of understanding between the EIB and Parliament to improve access to EIB documents and data related to strategic orientation and financing policies in the future in order to strengthen the Bank’s accountability.highlights, in this regard, the need to carry out ex-ante and ex-post evaluation on the projected and achieved economic, social and environmental impact and on the general macroeconomic impact of EIB investment; stresses that the results of such impact analysis should be made available to the public;
Amendment 70 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5 a. Calls for a memorandum of understanding between the EIB and Parliament to improve access to EIB documents and data related to strategic orientation and financing policies in the future in order to strengthen the Bank’s accountability;
Amendment 78 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5 b. Is appalled by recent reports linking EIB-financed projects in infrastructure, energy, and other development activities with human rights abuses and threats to the safety and wellbeing of human rights defenders; welcomes the attention that the EIB has devoted to integrating human rights into its operations, but calls on the EIB to step up this approach by putting in place robust human rights due diligence, ensure consultation of affected communities, grant information and enable a safe and participatory process, namely through contractual clauses;
Amendment 83 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 c (new)
Paragraph 5 c (new)
5 c. Is concerned about reports linking EIB investment with fraud and corruption in Member States, despite zero tolerance policy of bank; calls on the EIB needs to devise an anti-corruption action plan to enable stronger controls by the Board and ensure that adequate resources are destined to independently monitor and control projects, assess and mitigate risks;
Amendment 85 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 d (new)
Paragraph 5 d (new)
5 d. Calls on the EIB to step up its due diligence obligations in line with EU Anti- Money Laundering legislation, and provide a complete regulatory framework to allow the Bank to effectively prevent involvement in illegal activity and ensure a proper sanctioning regime for failure to comply with EU law;
Amendment 88 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 e (new)
Paragraph 5 e (new)
5 e. Takes the view that project contracts should clearly foresee pull-out possibilities in case of serious mismanagement and/or corruption claims;
Amendment 90 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 f (new)
Paragraph 5 f (new)
5 f. Takes the view that European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) should in the future have the mandate to prosecute criminal activity with regards to EIB funds in the EU Member States which are members of the EPPO;
Amendment 91 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 g (new)
Paragraph 5 g (new)
Amendment 94 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 h (new)
Paragraph 5 h (new)
5 h. Calls on the EIB to enact stringent standards on financial intermediaries by determining specific benchmarks to select intermediaries in light of tax, transparency, environmental and social concerns;