Activities of Jordi CAÑAS related to 2021/0366(COD)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council Making available on the Union market as well as export from the Union of certain commodities and products associated with deforestation and forest degradation and repealing Regulation (EU) No 995/2010
Amendments (27)
Amendment 39 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 29
Recital 29
(29) Obligations concerning relevant commodities and products should be laid down by this Regulation in order to effectively combat deforestation, forest degradation, and to promote deforestation- free supply chains, while maintaining the competitiveness in the single market and a level playing-field among operators and traders. Obligations should be proportionate and feasible to achieve these objectives and should take into consideration the administrative burden that it entails for operators and traders.
Amendment 40 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 29 a (new)
Recital 29 a (new)
(29 a) The share of smallholders in the production of the commodities concerned can be as high as 80 %. Therefore, special attention needs to be paid to the challenges that smallholders will face with the implementation of this Regulation. The new rules should aim to minimise the burden on smallholders and prevent barriers to their access to the single market. It is therefore crucial that the operators buying from smallholders provide timely financial and technical support to help smallholders meet the new Union market access requirements.
Amendment 42 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 32
Recital 32
(32) To strengthen the Union’s contribution to halting deforestation and forest degradation, and to ensure that commodities and products from supply chains related to deforestation and forest degradation are not placed on nor exported from the Union market, relevant commodities and products should not be placed or made available on the Union market, nor exported from the Union market unless they are deforestation-free and have been produced in accordance with the relevant legislation of the country of production. To confirm that this is the case, they relevant commodities and products should always be accompanied by a due diligence statement.
Amendment 44 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 32 a (new)
Recital 32 a (new)
(32 a) Where necessary, the Commission should therefore develop guidelines laying down sector specific rules on due diligence requirements, traceability tools and liability rules in the supply chain for the different commodities. Those rules should also be harmonised as much as possible with the due diligence rules set out in [the forthcoming Sustainable Corporate Governance Directive]1a. _________________ 1a COM(2022)0071 final.
Amendment 50 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 34
Recital 34
(34) Operators placing a commodity or product concerned for the first time on the Union market or exporting a product to a third country should formally assume responsibility for the compliance of the relevant commodities or products that they intend to place on the Union market or to export by making available due diligence statements. A template for such statements should be provided by this Regulation. This is expected to facilitate enforcement of this Regulation through competent authorities and courts as well as increase compliance by operators.
Amendment 52 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 37 a (new)
Recital 37 a (new)
(37 a) The setting up and operating a due diligence system can be more challenging for SMEs, particularly due to the number and complexity of supply chains and the risks associated with the sourcing country. Therefore, Member States should provide technical and other assistance and guidance to operators, specially to SMEs, in order to facilitate compliance with this Regulation. In addition, from the entry into force of this Regulation, the due diligence requirement combined with benchmarking should allow SME operators and traders to benefit from lower costs of the simplified due diligence by opting for products stemming from low-risk supply chains.
Amendment 53 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 38
Recital 38
(38) To ensure that there is no undue administrative burden placed on operators and traders, this Regulation should be adapted so as to be harmonised with any future general due diligence requirements. Other EU legislative instruments that set out due diligence requirements in the value chain with regard to adverse human rights or environmental impacts, such as Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council1a and [the forthcoming Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence]1b should apply in so far as there are no specific provisions with the same objective, nature and effect in this Regulation which may be adapted in the light of future legislative amendments. The existence of this Regulation should not exclude the application of other EU legislative instruments that lay down requirements regarding value chain due diligence. Where such other EU legislative instruments provide for more specific provisions or add requirements to the provisions laid down in this Regulation, such provisions should be applied in conjunction with those of this Regulation. Furthermore, where this Regulation contains more specific provisions, they should not be interpreted in a way that undermines the effective application of other EU legislative instruments on due diligence or the achievement of their general aim. _________________ 1a Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2020 on the establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable investment, and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 (OJ L 198, 22.6.2020, p. 13). 1b COM(2022)0071 final.
Amendment 54 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 39
Recital 39
(39) Operators falling within the scope of other EU legislative instruments that set out due diligence requirements in the value chain with regard to adverse human rights or environmental impacts should be in a position to fulfil the reporting obligations under this Regulation by including the required information when reporting under the other EU legislative instrument, in order to avoid supply chain disruptions and reduce negative impacts on third countries, trade partners, and in particular smallholders.
Amendment 55 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 44 a (new)
Recital 44 a (new)
(44 a) The customs union has been a cornerstone of the European Union, which is one of the largest trading blocks in the world. The customs union is fundamental for successful Union integration and for the proper functioning of the internal market, for the benefit of businesses and consumers. Thus, a fully coordinated and efficient clearance process of relevant commodities and products requires a streamlined Union regulatory environment for international trade that delivers long-term benefits to the Union and its residents in all policy areas, supports the effectiveness and good-functioning of the internal market and safeguards consumer protection. In this context, problems concerning the interoperability of authorities responsible for Union non-customs regulatory formalities and customs authorities are major obstacles to progress on completing the digital single market and achieving integrated and coordinated customs and border management.
Amendment 56 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 45
Recital 45
(45) In order to optimise and unburden the control process of relevant commodities and products entering or leaving the Union market, it is necessary to set up electronic interfaces that allow the automatic data transfer between customs systems and the Information System of competent authorities. The EU Single Window environment for customs is the natural candidate to support such data transfers. The interfaces should be highly automated and easy-to-use, and additional burden for customs authorities and costs for economic operators should be limited. Moreover, in view of the limited differences between the data to be declared respectively in the customs declaration and the due diligence statement, it is appropriate to propose also a ‘business-to- government’ approach whereby traders and economic operators make available the due diligence statement of a relevant commodity or product via national single window environment for customs and this statement is transmitted automatically to the Information System used by competent authorities. Customs authorities and competent authorities should contribute to determine the data to be transmitted and any other technical requirement.
Amendment 60 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 46
Recital 46
(46) The risk of non-compliant commodities and products being placed on the Union market varies depending on the commodity and product as well as on its country of origin and production. Operators sourcing commodities and products from countries or parts thereof that present a low risk of growing, harvesting or producing relevant commodities and products in violation of this Regulation should be subject to fewer obligations, thereby reducing compliance costs and administrative burden, while preventing barriers to the access of smallholders in third countries to the market and maintaining the competitiveness of the Single Market. Commodities and products from high-risk countries or parts thereof should be subject to enhanced scrutiny by the competent authorities.
Amendment 70 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1
Article 4 – paragraph 1
1. Operators shall exercise due diligence prior to placing relevant commodities and products onfor the first time on the Union market or prior to their export from the Union market in order to ensure their compliance with Article 3(a) and (b). To that end, they shall use a framework of procedures and measures, hereinafter referred to as a ‘due diligence’, as set out in Article 8.
Amendment 72 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 3
Article 4 – paragraph 3
3. BThe operator who places a product for the first time on the Union market, by making available the due diligence statement, the operator assumes responsibility for the compliance of the relevant commodity or product with the requirements of this Regulation. Operators shall keep record of the due diligence statements for 5 years from the date of making available via the information system referred to in Article 31.
Amendment 73 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 3 a (new)
Article 4 – paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. The operator who places a product for the first time on the Union market shall share the due diligence statements with subsequent operators and traders in the supply chain.
Amendment 76 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 6
Article 4 – paragraph 6
6. Operators that have received new information, including substantiated concerns verified by the operator as referred to in paragraph 5a, that the relevant commodity or product that they have already placed on the market is not in conformity with the requirements of this Regulation shall immediately inform the competent authorities of the Member States in which they placed the relevant commodity or product on the market. In the case of exports from the Union market, the operators shall inform the competent authority of Member State which is the country of production.
Amendment 83 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1
Article 7 – paragraph 1
In case a natural or legal person established outside the Union places on the Union market relevant commodities and products intended for commercial use, the first natural or legal person established in the Union who buys or takes possession of such relevant commodities and products shall be considered operator within the meaning of this Regulation. This first placer is responsible to ensure that it is deforestation-free, and that any operator downstream is able to check its origin via a robust chain of custody.
Amendment 96 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1
Article 10 – paragraph 1
1. Operators which intend to place the relevant commodities and products for the first time on the Union market or export them from the Union market shall verify and analyse information collected in accordance with Article 9 and any other relevant documentation, and on this basis carry out a risk assessment to establish whether there is a risk that the relevant commodities and products intended to be placed on or exported from the Union market are non- compliant with the requirements of this Regulation. If the operators cannot demonstrate that the risk of non- compliance is negligible, they shall not place the relevant commodity or product on the Union market nor export it.
Amendment 109 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – point j a (new)
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – point j a (new)
(j a) certification or other third-party- verified schemes covering the commodities or products in the scope of the regulation;
Amendment 120 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 8
Article 10 – paragraph 8
Amendment 126 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 12 a (new)
Article 12 a (new)
Article 12 a Guidelines 1. From the entry into force of this Regulation, the Commission shall present sector specific guidelines on how due diligence systems as referred to in Article 11(1) can be established and make due diligence statements as referred to in Article 4(2) available in order to be compliant with all the requirements of this Regulation. 2. The Commission shall, for each sector covered by this Regulation, provide guidance on how operators and traders can fulfil the conditions referred to in Article 3 of this Regulation. 3. The guidelines shall be developed in cooperation with stakeholders from the Union and trading partners. 4. The guidelines shall be clear and understandable for all operators and traders and provide the suitable information on the use of the simplified due diligence as referred to in Article 12. 5. The Commission shall regularly, and at least every two years, review and if appropriate update those guidelines.
Amendment 135 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 22 – paragraph 2 – introductory part
Article 22 – paragraph 2 – introductory part
2. For the purposes of paragraph 1, the corrective action required to be taken by the operator or trader shall include at least one or more of, as the first step, be to immediately seek to rectify any formal non-compliance, in particular with the requirements of Chapter 2 of this Regulation, and as the following steps where non-compliance has not been rectified, the corrective action shall be in the following order:
Amendment 141 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 22 – paragraph 2 – point d
Article 22 – paragraph 2 – point d
(d) destroyonating the relevant commodity or product or donating it to charitable or public interest purposes.
Amendment 144 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 22 – paragraph 2 – point d a (new)
Article 22 – paragraph 2 – point d a (new)
(d a) destroying the relevant commodity or product.
Amendment 156 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 24 – paragraph 10
Article 24 – paragraph 10
10. Customs authorities may destroy ashould donate the non-compliant relevant commodity or product to charitable or public interest purposed and only may destroy it, as a last resort measure, upon the request of the competent authorities or where they deem it necessary and proportionate. The cost of such measure shall be borne by the natural or legal person holding the relevant commodity or product. Articles 197 and 198 of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 shall apply accordingly. Upon request of competent authorities, non-compliant relevant commodities and products may alternatively be confiscated and placed by customs at the disposal of the competent authorities.
Amendment 157 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 1
Article 26 – paragraph 1
1. The Commission shall develop an electronic interface based on the EU Single Window Environment for Customs to enable the transmission of data, in particular the notifications and requests referred to in Article 24, paragraphs 5 to 8, between national customs systems and the information system referred to in Article 31, including automatic transmission of data when changes are made in either system. This electronic interface shall be in place at the latest fourtwo years from the date of adoption of the relevant implementing act referred to in paragraph 3.
Amendment 162 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 2 – point a
Article 26 – paragraph 2 – point a
(a) Traders and oOperators to make available the due diligence statement of a relevant commodity or product via national single window environment for customs referred to in Article 8 of Regulation [PO to check the reference number and article number after the proposal is adopted] and receive feedback thereon from competent authorities; and
Amendment 164 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 26 – paragraph 2 – point a a (new)
Article 26 – paragraph 2 – point a a (new)
(a a) The transmission of information on any subsequent changes relating to operators, traders and their authorized representatives as well as to commodities or products originating from a specific geo-location to the information system referred to in Article 31 of this Regulation in order to ensure that all Member States have access to and get notifications about the latest updated information.