5 Amendments of Hilde VAUTMANS related to 2020/2221(INI)
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Notes that in its study the Commission identifies 9 main criminal markets and estimates that the annual revenues of these markets represented 139 billion in 2019; Stresses in particular that the markets for trafficking in human beings for sexual exploitation and migrant smuggling represent 7.185 billion and 289 million respectively; Stresses the importance of the collection of data by the relevant agencies in order to better assess the situation.
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. HRegrets the lack of harmonisation in national legislation to combat organised crime; highlights that organised criminal groups take advantage of the different laws in individual Member States, and that the development of a harmonised anti-fraud approach at EU level is complicated by differing definitions of organised crime; reiterates therefore its previous calls for the revision of Council Framework Decision 2008/841/JHA of 24 October 2008, and the need to establish a common definition of organised crime, which should also take into account the use of new technologies and the use of violence, corruption or intimidation by criminal groups to obtain control of economic activities or public procurement, or to influence democratic processes;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Notes that the Commission's study identifies six main threats that could within five years significantly alter the way organised crime operates; highlights among these the impact of the coronavirus prompting a change in the modus operandi of organised crime cells; notes that this is also linked to the accelerated use of cryptocurrencies and non-banking payments; notes also that Europol has observed an increase in coronavirus-related criminal activity in the form of online crime, fraud or counterfeiting.
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2 b. Recalls that in order to tackle the coronavirus pandemic and to ensure the sustainable transition of our economies, the Commission is making available EUR 672.5 billion in the form of loans and grants to support the reforms and investments undertaken by the Member States through the Recovery and Resilience Facility; stresses the need to pro-actively ensure that the money is well used but also to provide the necessary resources to the control and audit institutions in order to ensure that the money is used in the interest of all European citizens.
Amendment 20 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Welcomes the start of operations of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) on 1 June 2021; reiterates the need to ensure that the EPPO has all the necessary resources to carry out its functions, in order to protect the EU’s financial interests; responsible for investigating, prosecuting and bringing to judgment crimes against the financial interests of the EU including several types of fraud, VAT fraud with damages above 10 million euro, money laundering, corruption, etc; reiterates the need to ensure that the EPPO has all the necessary resources to carry out its functions, in order to protect the EU’s financial interests; regrets that five Member States have not yet joined the EPPO; recalls the importance of cooperation with other EU bodies and agencies such as OLAF, Eurojust and Europol.