Activities of Karoline GRASWANDER-HAINZ related to 2017/2065(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Towards a digital trade strategy (short presentation) DE
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT Towards a digital trade strategy PDF (403 KB) DOC (87 KB)
Amendments (44)
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 9
Citation 9
– having regard to the announced Agreement in Principle on the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement of 6 July 2017,
Amendment 7 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 15
Citation 15
Amendment 13 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 20 a (new)
Citation 20 a (new)
– having regard to the upcoming 11th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO), to be held in Buenos Aires, Argentina on 10 - 13 December 2017 where E-commerce is likely to be discussed,
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas technological developments and access to the open internet enable companies, particularly SMEs,and the digitisation of the economy could enable companies, particularly start-ups, micro-enterprises and SMEs, to create new opportunities for business, to improve their capacity to export, to participate in global value-chains and to reach customers all over the globe at a faster pace and lower cost than ever before;
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas the internet and internet- based technologies play an important role in developing, ordering, producing, marketing or delivering products and services;
Amendment 22 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas counterfeiting is a global and growing phenomenon, particularly online;
Amendment 23 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas the digitisation of traditional industries affects supply chains, manufacturing and services models, which could lead to job creation in new industries, but could also lead to job losses, as more and more tasks traditionally performed by humans are either automated or off-shored, or both;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
Ca. whereas the current tax framework does not account for large online businesses who are avoiding taxes by routing most of their profits to tax havens;
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas access to a free, open and secure internet is a prerequisite for rules- based trade andthe development inof the digital economy which can contribute to rules-based trade;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas the UN’s SDGs stress that providing universal and affordable access to the Internet for people in least developed countries by 2020 will be crucial in terms of fostering development, as the development of a digital economy could be a driver for jobs and growth, e- commerce being one opportunity to increase the numbers of small exporters, export volumes and export diversification;
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas women as entrepreneurs and as workers can benefit from better access to global markets and as consumers from lower prices, still many challenges and inequalities prevent women´s participation in the global economy, as many of the women in low- and middle-income countries, still have no access to internet;
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E b (new)
Recital E b (new)
Eb. whereas electronic commerce is also booming in developing countries;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas governments around the world are engaging in digital protectionism by putting up unjustified and disproportionate barriers that hinder market access and direct investment, or create unfair advantages for domestic companies;
Amendment 44 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F a (new)
Recital F a (new)
Fa. whereas geo-blocking should be ended and no forms of unjustified discrimination based on a customer’s nationality, place of residence or place of establishment within the internal market should appear in future;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Stresses the need to bridge the digital divide in order to minimise potential negative social and development Impacts; underlines in this regard the importance to promote female participation in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), to remove barriers to lifelong learning, to close gender gaps in access to and in the use of new technologies; calls on the Commission to explore further how current trade policy and gender equality are linked and how trade can promote women´s economic empowerment;
Amendment 72 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. Notes that while intensified digital trade can lead to welfare benefits the digital economy has already shown a troubling tendency towards excessive market and power concentration; considers therefore that a digital trade strategy must be complemented by a reinforced and effective international framework for competition policy including by increased cooperation between competition authorities and strong competition chapters in trade agreements;
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Calls on the Commission to ensure that businesses and companies comply with competition rules and that there is no discrimination against competitors to the detriment of consumers’ welfare; highlights in this regard that manufacturers and retailers, acting in a competitive market, must respond to consumers’ preferences rather than stipulate the terms on which consumers may access products;
Amendment 79 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Considers that trade agreements should provide for increased cooperation between consumer protection agencies and welcomes initiatives to foster consumer trust-enhancing measures in trade negotiations such as disciplines on electronic signatures and contracts and unsolicited communications; highlights that the rights of consumers must be protected and must not be diluted in any case; stresses in this regard that the processing of services has to comply with high standards such as the protection of data and privacy, and underlines in this regard the importance of the fight against Internet crime;
Amendment 81 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2c. Recalls the need to put in place simplified, tax- and duty-free customs treatment of items sold online and returned unused, since a customer’s opportunity to return the item is a pillar of the competitiveness of e-commerce retailers; Calls on the Commission to address public concerns through better information on regulations such as data security, privacy, intellectual property protection, consumer protection and the safeguarding of cultural values;
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2d. Points out that a digital development strategy should include investment in digital infrastructure, such as internet access, devices and computers as well as in digital enterprises, including relevant trainings; stresses that such investments are particularly important for local firms, especially in developing countries to be able to interact digitally with MNEs and to access global value- chains; highlights in this regard, that sustainable development should not be seen as a barrier for investments in the digital economy, but rather as a means to achieve a rules-based investment regime that aims at sustainability and inclusiveness;
Amendment 83 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 e (new)
Paragraph 2 e (new)
2e. Underlines that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries make up the majority of businesses and employ the majority of manufacturing and service sector workers; Recalls that facilitating cross-border e-commerce can have a direct impact on improving livelihoods, fostering higher living standards and boosting economic development.
Amendment 84 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 f (new)
Paragraph 2 f (new)
2f. Recalls that the digital economy generally and digital trade specifically can cause disruption in other sectors and do not automatically lead to equitable and shared growth; stresses in this regard that the necessary social flanking measures must be put in place for them to benefit the whole society, such as strong education and training policies, active labour market policies and measures to overcome the digital divide;
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 g (new)
Paragraph 2 g (new)
2g. Recalls that the new digital labour market claims to be flexible and cost- efficient, for both clients and independent contractors; stresses in this regard, that this new flexibility often goes hand in hand with precarious working conditions and undermines hard-won legal and social standards of decent work; Calls therefore on the Commission to focus on increasing protection of workers in the field of crowd working, including minimum wage, a form of social and health insurance, privacy protection and liability insurance;
Amendment 86 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 h (new)
Paragraph 2 h (new)
2h. Stresses that rules and regulations on digital commerce must be feasible not only for online monopolists and big companies, but also for micro-enterprises, SMEs and start-ups to achieve fair competition and a level playing field in the digital economy;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Recognises that adequacy decisions, including partial and sector- specific ones, are a fundamental mechanism in terms of safeguarding the transfer of personal data from the EU to a third country; notes that the EU has only adopted adequacy decisions with four of its 20 largest trading partners; recalls that instruments other than general disciplines in trade agreements exist to enable the transfer of data from one country to another such as binding corporate rules or standard contractual clauses;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls on the Commission to prioritise and speed upcontinue with the adoption of adequacy decisions while ensuring that each individual adequacy decision is fully in line with the Union’s data protection legal framework and ensures a high level of protection for personal data; in order to facilitate the adoption of adequacy decisions; calls on, the Commission should consider the possibility to adopt, and to make public, updated and detailed binding procedures for reaching these decisions;
Amendment 99 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Recalls that the ability to access, collect, process and transfer data has become a prerequisitemore important for every type of company that delivers goods and services internationally;
Amendment 106 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Calls on the Commission to draw up ambitious rules for cross-border data transfers, including through FTAs, in full compliance with, and without prejudice to, the EU’s current and future data protection and privacy rules; stresses that any disciplines in this regard should be exempted from the scope of application of any future chapter dealing with investment protection;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Ccalls on the Commission to prohibitensure that cross-border data transfers are in compliance with the existing and future EU legal framework, in particular through adequacy decisions, and to incorporate in our trade agreements first and foremost a horizontal provision, which fully maintains the right of a Party to protect personal data and privacy, with the only condition that it must not be used with the intention to restrict data flows for reasons other than the protection of personal data, accompanied with a second provision, which prevents unjustified data localisation requirements in FTAs;
Amendment 116 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Calls on the Commission to prohibit unjustified and disproportionate data localisation requirements in FTAs;
Amendment 120 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Welcomes the Commission proposal for a regulation on a framework for the free flow of non-personal data in the European Union; Calls on the Commission to put forward its position on cross- border data transfers and unjustified and disproportionate data localisation requirements in trade negotiations before the end of the year; agreements and underlines the need to ensure consistency between EU approach on free flow of non-personal data in the European Union and the provisions on cross border data transfers and data localisation in trade agreements; in the case of trade agreements where it is not yet possible to include provisions on cross border data transfers and data localisation due to the fact that the negotiations are nearly concluded, encourages the Commission to use review clauses that would allow for a prompt alignment to EU’s horizontal approach to data transfers and data localisation.
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Underlines that a digital trade strategy must be fully in line with the principle of net neutrality and safeguard the equal treatment of Internet traffic, without discrimination, restriction or interference, irrespective of its sender, receiver, type, content, device, service or application and recalls that traffic management measures should be allowed only in exceptional cases where they are strictly necessary, and only for as long as necessary, to comply with legal requirements, preserve the integrity and security of the network or prevent impending network congestion;
Amendment 138 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. DeploresRegrets unjustified third country practices which make market access conditional on the disclosure and transfer to state authorities of the source codes of the software that companies intend to sell; considers that such measures are disproportionate as a blanket requirement for market access; calls on the Commission to prohibit signatory governme, while there should be certain necessary public policy exemptions since source code disclosure should be mandated in cases of operation of critical infrastructure, such as nuclear power plants, to FTAs from engaging in such activities; safeguard cyber security or for patent registration; recalls also that in some cases competition authorities could require the disclosure of source code as a remedy for anti-competitive conduct which should continue to be possible;
Amendment 142 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11a. Recalls that in some cases local presence requirements are necessary to ensure effective prudential supervision or regulatory oversight and enforcement; reiterates therefore its call on the Commission to undertake limited commitments in Mode 1, in particular in the fields of digital services and financial services so as to avoid regulatory arbitrage;
Amendment 143 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 b (new)
Paragraph 11 b (new)
11b. Notes that pro-development technology transfer requirements should not be ruled out by disciplines on digital trade;
Amendment 145 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Notes that the protection of trademarks, intellectual property (IP), geographical indications (GIs) and investments in R&D is a precondition of the EU’s knowledge-based economy, and that international cooperation is key to combating the trade in counterfeited goods; recalls that legal protection, online and offline throughout the EU is needed for new creations since this will encourage investment and lead on to further innovations; stresses that access to medicines in third countries should not be challenged on the basis of IP protection; Highlights that international cooperation is key to combating the trade in counterfeited goods; stresses, however, that trade agreements are not the place to extend the level of protection for rights holders by providing for more extensive copyright enforcement powers; stresses that access to medicines in third countries should not be challenged on the basis of IP protection;
Amendment 151 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14a. Highlights that a coherent EU approach is necessary regarding the taxation of the digital economy to achieve fair and effective taxation of all companies in order to create a level playing field and recalls that the fundamental guiding principle must be that taxes are paid where the profit is made; Welcomes recent efforts by the Commission to pursue the effective and just taxation of digital multinational companies and recalls that trade Agreements should include a Tax Good Governance Clause that would reaffirm the Parties’ commitment to implementation of agreed international standards in the fight against tax evasion and avoidance, on obligations for country-by-country reporting, automatic exchange of information and the establishment of public registers of beneficial ownership;
Amendment 159 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Recalls that, since 1998, members of the WTO have upheld a moratorium on tariffs on electronic transmissions; stresses that such tariffs would entail unnecessary additional costs for businesses and consumers alike; calls on the Commission to transform the moratorium into a permanent agreement on banning tariffs on electronic transmissions subject to careful analysis of the implication in the area of 3D printing;
Amendment 162 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Calls on the Commission to use trade agreements to promote the interoperability of ICT-standards that benefit both consumers and producers, notably in the context of a secure Internet of things, while not circumventing legitimate fora for multi stakeholder governance which have served the open internet well;
Amendment 168 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Recognises that the principle of intermediary liability protections has been crucial in developing the digital economy, in creating favourable conditions for innovation and in guaranteeing freedom of speech; calls on the Commission to ensure in its trade negotiations that online intermediaries must nevercannot be made strictly liable for hosting unlawful third-party content, nor should they ever be required to monitor content proactively as part of an intermediary liability regime unless they have knowledge of the infringing nature of the content, nor should they be subject to a general monitoring requirement as part of an intermediary liability regime while appropriate specific monitoring should be called for in line with the EU e-commerce directive; underlines that these disciplines should clearly exclude criminal matters; calls therefore on the Commission to overcome the current difficulties in assigning liability and to enhance legal certainty with regard to liability in the context of emerging technologies; therefore welcomes the launching of a broad evaluation of the Products Liability Directive, to assess its overall functioning and whether its rules remain appropriate for emerging Technologies such as the Internet of Things and autonomous connected Systems;
Amendment 178 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Strongly supports the further mainstreaming of digital technologies and services in the EU’s development policy; calls on the Commission to stimulate public-private partnerships to increase investinvestments and cooperation for developments in digital infrastructure in the Global South; urges the Commission to make investments in broadband infrastructure in developing countries conditional upon respect forto achieve the establishment of a free, open and secure internet; calls on the Commission to use trade agreements to improve and promote digital rights;
Amendment 180 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)
Paragraph 20 a (new)
20a. Stresses the imperative that any digital trade strategy must be fully in line with the principle of policy coherence for development, and should in particular seek to promote and enable start-ups and Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises engaging in cross border e-commerce recalling the contribution this could make to gender equality since a great number of these companies are women owned and operated;
Amendment 182 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 b (new)
Paragraph 20 b (new)
20b. Considers that digital issues should also feature more prominently in the EU’s Aid for Trade policy to facilitate the growth of e-commerce via increased support for innovation and infrastructure and access to financing, notably via micro finance initiatives, as well as assistance in increasing online visibility for developing country e-commerce businesses, facilitating platform access and promoting the availability of e-payment solutions and access to cost-effective logistics and delivery services;
Amendment 184 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 c (new)
Paragraph 20 c (new)
20c. Stresses that any digital trade strategy, including its flanking measures, must be fully in line with and contribute to the realisation of 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; notes that SDG 4 on quality education, providing free, equitable and Quality primary and secondary education to all girls and boys, SDG 5 to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls, SDG 8.10. on promoting inclusive and sustainable economic growth, in particular via strengthened capacity of domestic financial institutions and access to financial services, as well as SDG 9.1. on developing reliable and resilient infrastructure with a focus inequitable access for all and SDG 9.3. on increasing access of small enterprises, in particular in developing countries, to financial services, including affordable credit, and their integration into value chains and markets are particularly relevant in this regard;