Activities of Liadh NÍ RIADA related to 2015/2008(BUD)
Plenary speeches (1)
Guidelines for the 2016 budget - Section III (A8-0027/2015 - José Manuel Fernandes) GA
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on general guidelines for the preparation of the 2016 budget, Section III – Commission PDF (161 KB) DOC (82 KB)
Amendments (14)
Amendment 4 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas in a period of deep economic crisis and increased divergence in the EU it is necessary to provide a significant increase in the Community budget to ensure the adequate level of resources in next year's budget to secure the EU political priorities with particular emphasis on the programs and projects aimed at boosting growth and decent employment, eradicating poverty, investing in smart, sustainable, green development; underlines that contributions to this increase should result from an increase in the payments made by Member States with the highest GNI and the highest per capita income, correcting the current biased and unfair system of contribution keys; reiterates that it is imperative to increase support to Member States, especially those already facing economic recession, for investment in infrastructure, social facilities, research, innovation and development;
Amendment 13 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas the EU budget cannot accomplish its mission if its soundness and credibility are put in question; whereas it is imperative that all commitments forming part of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2014-2020 are respected in full, and that a number of problems that have accumulated over the past years, such asin particular the situation of unpaid invoices at year- end, are resolved without any delayend, which amounted to EUR 24.7bl in December 2014, are resolved without any delay; recalls that according to article 310 TEUF, the revenue and expenditure shown in the EU budget shall be in balance;
Amendment 24 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Highlights the indisputable potential and added value of the EU budget could have in the creation of employment and the development of enterprises and entrepreneurship across the Union; acknowledgunderlines that a wide range of EU programmes, in particular the Youth Employment Initiative, including Horizon 2020, COSME and Erasmus+, could contribute directly to the attainment of the objectives; expects that the Commission will place such programmes and instruments at the heart of the Draft Budget 2016, in order to ensure that they are endowed with the necessary resources;
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Considers that a substantial public investment plan is needed, insists that a rupture is needed with the current EU polices if the problems of economic sustainable growth, unemployment, poverty, social exclusion, and (income) inequalities are to be adequately addressed; stresses that a new strategy is needed to set a new path for Europe, a path of full employment, decent jobs, living wages, social and economic cohesion and social protection for all that guarantees the highest living standards; a path that pays heed to the development needs of each Member State, particular the less developed, that promotes real convergence contributing to reduce the development gap between Member States and the existent economic, social and regional disparities;
Amendment 35 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Stresses that unemployment is the main urgency for the European Union; considers that the re-launch of Member States' economies and the creation of new jobs require a roll-back EU austerity policies so as to allow Member States to pursue the policy options that best fit their specific situation; believes therefore that the creation of decent jobs and sustainable economic growth should be the main focus of the EU budget;
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Stresses that the European Structural and Investment Funds form the biggest share of expenditure in the EU budget and are instrumental in job creation and competitivenesspromotion of growth; underlines the fact that EU cohesion policy has been instrumental in sustaining public investment in vital economic areas and has achieved tangible results on the ground that can empower Member States and regions to overcome the current crisis, increasing the appropriations for the Cohesion Fund and the Structural Funds, notably the ESF and programmes such as the Progress programme, paying particular attention to employment with rights, equal rights and opportunities, and the fight to eradicate poverty; stresses the need to endow Member-states with the tools to help its citizens to find a way out of the crisis; stresses in this regard the special need to invest in areas such as education and mobility, research and innovation micro, small and medium enterprises, in order to boost the creation of employment – in particular youth employment; calls on the Commission and the Member States to make every effort possible for the swift adoption of the remaining Operational Programmes in the coming months, so as to ensure that implementation will reach cruising speed in 2016;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Recalls that welfare services and benefits are under pressure in all Member States; underlines that policy decision at EU-level should have no adverse effects on either the availability or quality of welfare services and benefits in the Member States, nor the Member States' ability to finance them; calls therefore on the Commission to present a draft budget that strengthens the Member States' capacity to safeguard their welfare systems;
Amendment 42 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Is deeply concerned about the funding of the Youth Employment Initiative in 2016, given the frontloading of the entire financial envelope of the programme in 2014 and 2015; acknowledgunderlines that the fight against youth unemployment needs to be furthersubstantially intensified and that all funding possibilities should be considered for this purpose; recalls that 2016 will be the first year when resources under the Global MFF Margin for commitments will be made available for policy objectives related to growth and employment, in particular youth employment;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Underlines the significance of cross- border mobility as a means ofat cross-border mobility is not the key solution to high unemployment and insists that the EU budget should support Member States' initiative for job growth, in particular boosting investment and promoting the creation of jobs in regions with high unemployment; emphasises the role of life longlearning and training to enabling Europe to take advantage of the variety of people’s skills while expanding training and job opportunities for all generations; considers that emblematic and successful mobility programmes such as Erasmus+ work to the benefit of both the individuals and the economy and should therefore be exploited to the full;
Amendment 54 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Highlights that the EU austerity policy has created a downward pressure on real wages in Member States and that this will prolong the economic and social crisis; believes the budget should be used to underpin efforts to increase real wages as well as to fight social-dumping in the Member States;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. WelcomesTakes note the Investment Plan presented by, which according to the Commission, which can create the potential to mobilise EUR 315 billion of investments in infrastructures, education and research, as well as SMEs and mid-cap companies; notes that the EU budget is expected to provide the backbone of this investment plan by making available the EUR 8 billion required in commitments and payments for the provisioning of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI); considers the EU budget contribution as an opportunity to deliver a significant return on the objectives of the programmes concerned (Horizon 2020, Connecting Europe Facility) through a higher leverage effect;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. HighlightsTakes note of the complementary nature of the proposed Investment Plan and the EU budget and their joint commitment to kick- start the economy and boost job creation; stresses that the EU budget is in itself a major investment tool with a distinctiveparticular role and mission, that has provided tangible results with a clear European added value; is convinced that every effort needs to be deployed in order to ensure democratic control and accountability of the EU investment policies, create synergies not only between the Investment Plan and the EU budget but also with national budgets, in order to bridge the investment gap and maximise the effect of public spending on the real economy, prioritising investment to reduce the gap between the different levels of economic development of the regions and Member States in the EU;
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Highlights that a budgetary shift away from military and security spending and towards a civil and development oriented foreign policy is needed in order to reduce long-term military spending; reiterates its position that funds under heading 4 must be committed to a peaceful and civil foreign policy, which ensures that the European Union becomes a non-violent player in the world; calls on the Commission to prioritise the Union's role as a mediator seeking only civil and peaceful solutions to conflicts whilst ensuring that the Union's commitments to poverty eradication, sustainable development, MDGs, arms-control, NPT- regime, and nuclear disarmament are upheld;
Amendment 87 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Notes with concern that Europe, despite being one of the safest places in the world, is faced with new types of risks to its internal security which require a change of the current policies promoting social cohesion and integration while ensuring closer police and judicial cooperation and coordination and at the same time promoting stability and peace in conflict areas; recalls that the current trend towards militarising border control is ineffective and costly as well as in breach of fundamental rights including the right to seek asylum; invites the Commission to propose targeted reinforcements of the relevant programmes and instruments, thus demonstrating the EU’s pledge to tackle these threatchallenges;