Activities of Paloma LÓPEZ BERMEJO related to 2018/0227(COD)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Digital Europe programme for the period 2021-2027 PDF (2 MB) DOC (398 KB)
Amendments (37)
Amendment 81 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 6 a (new)
Recital 6 a (new)
(6a) Among these challenges, we should attach particular importance to favouring and promoting a digital transformation which is inclusive terms of gender, age and region. Measures to improve workers’ digital skills and to prevent an increase in wage polarisation and inequality are very important.
Amendment 97 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) The general objective of the Programme should be to support the digital transformation of industry and to foster better exploitation of the industrial potential of policies of innovation, research and technological development, for the benefit of businesses, workers and citizens all over the Union. The programme should be structured into five Specific Objectives reflecting key policy areas, namely: high- performance computing, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, advanced digital skills, and deployment, best use of digital capacities and interoperability. For all these areas, the Programme should also aim at better aligning Union, Member States and regional policies, and pooling of private and industrial resources in order to increase investment and develop stronger synergies.
Amendment 102 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 11
Recital 11
(11) A central role in the implementation of the Programme should be attributed to Digital Innovation Hubs, which should stimulate the broad adoption of advanced digital technologies by industry, by public organisations and academia. A network of Digital Innovation Hubs should ensure the widest geographical coverage across Europe59. A first set of Digital Innovation Hubs will be selected based on Member States’ proposals and then the network will be enlarged through an open, transparent and competitive process. The Digital Innovation Hubs will serve as access points to latest digital capacities including high performance computing (HPC), artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, as well as other existing innovative technologies such as Key Enabling Technologies, available also in fablabs or citylabs. They shall act as single-entry points inpreferential points of contact for accessing tested and validated technologies and promote open innovation. They will also provide support in the area of advanced digital skills. The network of Digital Innovation Hubs should also contribute to the participation of the outermost regions in the Digital Single Market. _________________ 59 As indicated in the Communication on Digitising European Industry (COM(2016) 180 final)
Amendment 108 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 12
Recital 12
(12) The Programme should be implemented through projects reinforcing essential digital capacities and their wide use. This should involve co-investments with Member States and, when needduly justified, the private sector. This should notably require reaching a critical mass in procurement to obtain better value for money and guarantee that suppliers in Europe stay at the forefront of technology advancements.
Amendment 115 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 15
Recital 15
(15) To achieve maximum flexibility throughout the lifetime of the programme and develop synergies between its components, each of the specific objectives may be implemented through all instruments available under the Financial Regulation. The delivery mechanisms to be used are direct management and indirect management when Union financing should be combined with other sources of financing or when execution requires the setup of commonly governed structures. In cases of indirect management, the Commission will ensure that all quality and safety standards required for the direct management of the programme are maintained and respected.
Amendment 120 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 18
Recital 18
(18) For the high performance computing specific objective a joint undertaking is deemed the most suited implementation mechanism, in particular to coordinate national and Union strategies and investments in high performance computing infrastructure and research and development, pool resources from public and private funds, and safeguard the economic and strategic interests of the Union63. Moreover, high performance computing competence centres in Member States will provide high performance computing services to industry, especially SMEs and start-ups, academia and public administrations. _________________ 63 Impact Assessment accompanying the document "Proposal for a Council Regulation on establishing the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking" (https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single- market/en/news/proposal-council- regulation-establishing-eurohpc-joint- undertaking-impact-assessment)
Amendment 125 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 19 a (new)
Recital 19 a (new)
(19a) In addition to the purely technological aspects, artificial intelligence poses an organisational challenge for industry and the public sector. Ensuring an inclusive and socially sustainable digital transition means involving employees and trade union organisations in this process of transformation in all phases of implementation of new technological resources.
Amendment 131 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 22 a (new)
Recital 22 a (new)
(22a) With abuses by some of the global leaders in the field of information technology having been exposed and denounced, the public sector has an essential role to play to ensure the highest possible level of protection for the freedom and privacy of EU citizens.
Amendment 139 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 27 a (new)
Recital 27 a (new)
(27a) Parliament also drew attention to the significant gender gap that exists in employment and training in the ICT sector, with strong negative implications for equality in the labour market. In addition, Parliament expressed its concern about the impact of digitalisation on working conditions and on changes in the labour market. Parliament called for safe and decent working conditions and appropriate training to improve the digital skills of the workforce in particular and of society as a whole.
Amendment 140 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 28
Recital 28
(28) The advanced digital technologies supported by this Programme, such as high performance computing, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence are now sufficiently mature to move beyond the research arena and be deployed, implemented and scaled- up at Union level. Just as the deployment of these technologies require a Union response so does the skills dimension. Training opportunities in advanced digital skills need to be scaled up, increased and made accessible throughout the EU. Failing this could impede the smooth deployment of advanced digital technologies and hamper the overall competitiveness of Union's economy. Moreover, as the Commission’s own studies have highlighted (in particular, its Communication on the Mid-Term Review on the implementation of the Digital Single Market Strategy) national and regional inequalities have persisted and could increase in the coming years. For this reason, it essential that the proposals incorporate objectives aimed at reducing the digital divide between countries and regions. It is also necessary to carry out a specific assessment of the different programmes involved in the digitalisation of European society in order to maximise both their usefulness and their resources. The Commission will submit an evaluation and proposal in this respect within a period of one year at the latest. The actions supported by this programme are complementary to those supported by the ESF, ERDF and Horizon Europe programmes.
Amendment 153 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 33 a (new)
Recital 33 a (new)
(33a) Promoting digital infrastructure in the least-favoured regions is key for promoting inclusion. Reducing the ‘digital divide’ in terms of use of and access to digital infrastructure and services between administrations, individuals, households, business and geographical areas should be a central objective. The digital divide prevents administrations, especially local authorities, from fully exploiting the benefits that digital technology can offer. This can contribute to increasing income disparities and stimulate unequal economic growth in the longer term.
Amendment 156 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 38
Recital 38
(38) The European Economic and Social Committee welcomed the communication on "Digitising European Industry" and considered it, together with accompanying documents, as "the first step in a vast European work programme to be carried out in close mutual cooperation between all interested public and private parties".72 The Economic and Social Committee also noted [1] that ‘most of the employment effects of digitalisation remain unacknowledged and thus are poorly addressed by relevant policies’. The same communication also highlighted the need for collective bargaining and the involvement of workers to be promoted in order to counter the rise in income inequalities driven by digitalisation. [1] Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on ‘The effects of digitalisation on the services sector and employment in relation to industrial change’ (2016/C 013/24) _________________ 72
Amendment 164 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point e
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point e
(e) '‘European Digital Innovation Hub' means legal entity designated ora new or existing legal entity or legal entities selected in an open, transparent and competitive procedure in order to fulfil the tasks under the Programme, in particular providing access to technological expertise and experimentation facilities, such as equipment and software tools to enable the digital transformation of the industry.
Amendment 174 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
1. The Programme has the following general objective: to support the digital transformation of the European economy and society and bring its benefits to European citizens, workers and businesses. The Programme will:
Amendment 180 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point b a (new)
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point b a (new)
(ba) promote criteria and practices favouring an inclusive and socially sustainable use of digitalisation.
Amendment 184 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) deploy, coordinate at the Union level and operate an integrated world-class exascale77 supercomputing and data infrastructure in the Union that shall be accessible on a non-commercial basis to public and private users and for publicly funded research purposes as long as it can be shown that there is no commercial intent; _________________ 77 Billions of billions of floating operations per second
Amendment 221 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
The financial intervention by the Union under Specific Objective 4. Advanced Digital skills shall support the development of advanced digital skills in areas supported by this programme, thus contributing to increase Europe's talent pool, fostering greater professionalism, especially with regard to high performance computing, big data analytics, cybersecurity, distributed ledger technologies, robotics and artificial intelligence. The design and delivery of courses in whatever form shall be subject to the highest standards of quality and recognition, in order to ensure adequate training processes in line with the objectives pursued. In general, public training centres will be prioritised. The financial intervention shall pursue the following operational objectives:
Amendment 247 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point c a (new)
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point c a (new)
(ca) promote digital training in rural areas and small communities, especially for persons over 50 years of age;
Amendment 249 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point c b (new)
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point c b (new)
(cb) promote digital training, taking particular account of training needs in the area of disabilities;
Amendment 252 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) ensure that the public sector and areas of public interests, such as health and care, education, judiciary, transport, energy, environment, cultural and creative sectors, can deploy and access state-of-the- art digital technologies, in particular high performance computing, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity; ensure that workers in the sectors concerned together with their trade union organisations are involved from the start in the design and implementation of digital technologies;
Amendment 269 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point g
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point g
(g) ensure a continuous capacity at the Union level to observe, analyse and adapt to fast-evolving digital trends, as well as sharing and mainstreaming best practices; specifically call for Eurofound, as a specialised agency, to draw up a biannual study on the impact of digitalisation on the labour market;
Amendment 278 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 2
Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 2
Amendment 279 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Amendment 280 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 4
Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 4
Amendment 285 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 12 – paragraph 1
Article 12 – paragraph 1
1. Actions carried out under the Programme shall comply with the applicable security rules and in particular the protection of the classified information against unauthorised disclosure, including compliance with any relevant national and Union law. In case of actions carried out outside the Union, it is necessary that, in addition to the compliance with above requirements, a security agreement must have been concluded between the Union and the third country in which the activity is conducted.
Amendment 286 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 12 – paragraph 5
Article 12 – paragraph 5
Amendment 291 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 13 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Article 13 – paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. The Commission shall look into ways of improving the overall efficiency of programmes offering resources in the field of digitalisation. Such improved efficiency and functionality may mean merging existing projects.
Amendment 316 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 16 – paragraph 3 – point b
Article 16 – paragraph 3 – point b
(b) the need to ensure by the initial network a coverage of the needs of industry, ensuring the participation of workers, and areas of public interest and a comprehensive and balanced geographical coverage. This means taking particular care not to increase the digital divide in geographical terms.
Amendment 322 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 16 – paragraph 4
Article 16 – paragraph 4
4. Additional Digital Innovation Hubs shall be selected on the basis of an open and competitive process, in such a way to ensure the widest geographical coverage across Europe. The number of entities of the network shall be proportional to the population of a given Member States and there aim shall be to ensure that there be at least one Digital Innovation Hub per Member Statcountry during the first year of implementation of the programme. To address the specific constraints faced by the EU outermost regions, specific entities may be nominated to cover their needs.
Amendment 323 #
4. Additional Digital Innovation Hubs shall be selected on the basis of an open, transparent and competitive process, in such a way to ensure the widest geographical coverage across Europe. The number of entities of the network shall be proportional to the population of a given Member States and there shall be at least one Digital Innovation Hub per Member State. To address the specific constraints faced by the EU outermost regions, specific entities may be nominated to cover their needs.
Amendment 325 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 16 – paragraph 5
Article 16 – paragraph 5
5. The Digital Innovation Hubs may receive funding in the form of grants. from the Member States.
Amendment 332 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 16 – paragraph 6 – point d a (new)
Article 16 – paragraph 6 – point d a (new)
(da) Digital Innovation Hubs which receive funding shall develop worker participation mechanisms for all processes.
Amendment 344 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 20 – paragraph 1 – point h a (new)
Article 20 – paragraph 1 – point h a (new)
(ha) its inclusive nature in terms of gender;
Amendment 345 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 20 – paragraph 1 – point h b (new)
Article 20 – paragraph 1 – point h b (new)
(hb) its inclusive nature in terms of disabilities;
Amendment 346 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 20 – paragraph 1 – point h c (new)
Article 20 – paragraph 1 – point h c (new)
(hc) its capacity to improve the digital skills of workers affected or concerned;
Amendment 350 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 2
Article 25 – paragraph 2
2. The interim evaluation of the Programme shall be performed once there is sufficient information available about the implementation of the Programme, but no later than fourtwo years after the start of the implementation of the Programme.
Amendment 351 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 25 – paragraph 5
Article 25 – paragraph 5
5. The Commission shall communicate the conclusions of the evaluations accompanied by its observations, to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. In particular, the Commission shall submit its interim evaluation to Parliament for consideration.