Activities of Lola SÁNCHEZ CALDENTEY related to 2014/2233(INI)
Plenary speeches (2)
External impact of EU trade and investment policy on public-private initiatives (A8-0182/2015 - Jan Zahradil) ES
External impact of EU trade and investment policy on public-private initiatives (short presentation)
Amendments (45)
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 2 a (new)
Citation 2 a (new)
- having regard to Article 208 TFEU, which establishes eradication of poverty as the primary objective of the EU development policy and the principle of policy coherent for development,
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 f (new)
Paragraph 2 f (new)
2f. Notes that Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) are high on the development agenda and they are increasingly being promoted as a way of closing the infrastructure financing gap in developed and developing countries alike;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 g (new)
Paragraph 2 g (new)
2g. Stresses that the use of PPPs have been problematic due to a lack of contract transparency regarding PPPs, lack of assessing methodologies and lack of clear and transparent regulatory framework to prevent corruption;
Amendment 20 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
Amendment 23 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) are high on the development agenda and they are increasingly being promoted as a way of closing the infrastructure financing gap in developed and developing countries alike;
Amendment 24 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas the EU´s support and cooperation with the private sector can and must contribute to reducing poverty and inequality and promote human rights, environmental standards and social dialogue;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
Amendment 34 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 f (new)
Paragraph 3 f (new)
3f. Stresses that the capacity of PPPs to deliver positive development outcomes cannot be assumed; PPPs should be promoted and designed in a way that delivers real results for the poor;
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 g (new)
Paragraph 3 g (new)
3g. Notes that PPPs must not be the way to transfer the risk from rich private companies taxpayers in poor countries;
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 h (new)
Paragraph 3 h (new)
3h. Notes that PPPs may be problematic as the financial risks are often disproportionately carried by the public sector, whereas profits are enjoyed by private investors;
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 i (new)
Paragraph 3 i (new)
3i. Stresses that PPPs should always comply with international agreed development principles such us the Development Effectiveness Principles and aligned with partner countries' national development and respect local knowledge and ownership are key ingredients of PPP models and implementation;
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 j (new)
Paragraph 3 j (new)
3j. Calls to consider PPPs only when other less expensive and risky financing options are not available;
Amendment 39 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
Amendment 44 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I
Recital I
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital J
Recital J
Amendment 51 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K
Recital K
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Stresses the need to stimulate decent job creation, competitiveness and productivity through new endeavours designed to stimulate the activity of economic actors in order to re-launch growth; in a sustainable way;
Amendment 58 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure that companies involved in PPPs respect corporate social responsibility (CSR) and corporate social accountability principles throughout the whole lifecycle of projects as PPPs cannot function effectively without an adequate regulatory framework;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Calls the EU to set up a regulatory framework that stimulates fair, responsible, transparent and accountable investment;
Amendment 59 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Rejects the use public-private partnerships (PPPs) as a mechanism used to enforce developing countries to privatise state-run utilities and transfer the responsibility for improving public services into private hands;
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Stresses that the use of PPPs has been problematic due to a lack of transparency regarding PPPs-contracts, lack of assessing methodologies and lack of a clear and transparent regulatory framework to prevent corruption;
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Stress the link between PPPs and the risk of debt unsustainability; Notes that PPPs must not be the way to transfer the risk from rich private companies taxpayers in poor countries;
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Acknowledges that PPP-related challenges can be overcome through principles of good governance, such as transparency of rules, decisions and implementation, respect of countries sovereign policy space to take decisions in accordance to their populations’ demands, adequate planning, medium- and long-term cost-effectiveness, stakeholdercivil society organisations (CSOs) participation, reliability, accountability, fairness, efficiency and effectiveness, corruption deterrents, expertise of officials, debt risk assessments and appropriate overall risk assessment (from geopolitical contexts to interest rates) and allocation, and adequate investment protection;
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Notes that PPPs projects are opening up developing countries’ health sector to the private sector leading to the diversion of the scarce public funds from primary healthcare services instead of strengthening the universal public healthcare delivery systems with catastrophic consequences as it was again revealed during the struggle against the Ebola disease;
Amendment 77 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Stresses that PPPs should always comply with internationally agreed development principles such us the Development Effectiveness Principles, and should aligned with the partner countries’ national development and should respect local knowledge and ownership as key ingredients of PPP models and implementation;
Amendment 78 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 c (new)
Paragraph 4 c (new)
4c. Warns that the PPPs projects make it impossible to achieve the goal of food sovereignty as the PPPs harm small farmers by requiring developing countries to change their policies to facilitate the expansion of agribusiness and land grabbing in exchange of investment;
Amendment 81 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Recalls that the delivery of high-quality, cost-effective public services to the public is essential in order to ensure successful implementation and viabilityfor reaching sustainable development; recalls that the complex choice of models and contracts has an impact on a project’s evolution; warns that at some stages PPPs have been used to exploit loopholes in fiscal accounting and reporting, which has led Eurostat to adopt targeted accounting rules; highlights the need for an adequate institutional framework combining political commitment, good governance and adequate underlying legislation;
Amendment 84 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Stresses the increasing potential of PPPs to foster innovative solutions mobilising long-term private finance and domestic resources for development objectives, given that massive investments are required in developing countries in terms of infrastructure, water supply and energy, the majority of which will need to come from the private sector; believes thatBelieves that that only if properly regulated PPPs canould also generate innovation in technologies and business models, and build mechanisms for holding the private sector accountable;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Notes that PPPs are high on the development agenda and they are increasingly being promoted as a way of closing the infrastructure financing gap in developed and developing countries alike;
Amendment 89 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Paragraph 6 b (new)
6b. Stresses the need for the EU trade policy to respect developing country policy space for the maintenance of robust import tariffs that facilitate creation of skilled and decent jobs within local manufacturing and agro-processing industries as possible enablers of higher domestic value added, industrial growth and diversification which is a key component of economic and social upgrading; stresses that, opposite to the negative impacts of PPPs, which allow private partners to have their risk almost completely covered by governments by transferring the business risk to the public sector, the increase of the public-public partnership is a mechanism to rehabilitate or improve government-operated infrastructure enterprises;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 c (new)
Paragraph 6 c (new)
6c. Calls to consider PPPs only when other less expensive and risky financing options are not available
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 d (new)
Paragraph 6 d (new)
6d. Stress the capacity of PPPs to deliver positive development outcomes cannot be assumed; PPPs should be promoted and designed in a way that delivers real results for the poor;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Calls on EU bodies to encourage EU companies participating in PPPs in third countries, in particular in least-developed countries, to work in accordance with the principle of policy coherence so that development cooperation objectives are taken into consideration; calls on the Commission, furthermore, to encourage sustainable investdevelopments and promote projects focused on poverty reduction, environmental protection, waste management or the use of renewable energies, for instance;
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
Amendment 107 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Calls on the Commission to monitor EU businesses abroad and draw conclusions on success stories, models and good practices, with a view to drawing up guidelines, and to consider creating virtual documentation centres or observatories, to promote user-friendly platforms and networks for informing EU SMEs about opportunitievelop a legally binding framework ensuring accountability of the EU companies for their actions in developing countries in cases when they violate standards on human rights, gender equality, decent work, union rights, environmental protection, universal access to participate in PPPs abroad and to provide technical support as regards the legal framework and expected challengesquality public services, social protection, public and universal health coverage, universal access to medicines, and food and product safety; also calls on the Commission to promote the use of clear and comprehensive accounting rules at the international level so as to reduce the uncertainties associated with PPPs, while at the same time promoting sound budgetary policies and the sustainability of projects;
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9a. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure that companies involved in PPPs respect corporate social responsibility (CSR) and corporate social accountability principles throughout the whole lifecycle of projects as PPPs cannot function effectively without an adequate regulatory framework;
Amendment 116 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Given that in order to attract cross- border private-sector funds into PPPs, it is paramount to provide sufficient assurances that long-term investment will benefit from a clear, stable and secure environment, good governance and effective dispute settlement; calls on the Commission and the Council to collaborate to ensure that the necessary legal set-up in this area exists and is transparent, effective and cost- efficient (the new EU competence for investment allows synergies between investment and government procurement in a way that adds value in terms of market access and protection of acquired rights and assets);
Amendment 118 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 5
Subheading 5
PPPs outside the EU: new decent jobs and growth opportunities for EU companiesequitable and sustainable growth
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Is convinced that increased participation by EU companies in large- scale international PPPs would lead to substantial benefits in terms of decent job creation, productivity, competitiveness, technology and innovation development in Europe; recalls that the report ‘Internationalisation of European SMEs’ highlights the positive link between internationalisation and innovation in terms of product, service and processes;
Amendment 126 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12