14 Amendments of Tomas TOBÉ related to 2020/2129(INL)
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph -1 (new)
Paragraph -1 (new)
-1. Stresses that it is the responsibility of states and governments to safeguard human rights in their countries and that this responsibility shall not be transferred to private actors; recalls that due diligence is primarily a preventive mechanism and that companies should be first and foremost required to identify risks or adverse impacts and adopt policies and measures to mitigate them;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Acknowledges that there is sufficient strong evidence that shows that the voluntary efforts of Union companies to prevent and mitigate the negative impacts of their behaviour on developing countries have failed asin the Union are not yet sufficient to prevent and mitigate violations of human rights of individuals, in particular worker’s rights, and of local communities are still taking place at the end of the supply chain;
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. Points out that well calibrated, and ideally “Union certified”, third party certification schemes, because of their in- build broad stakeholder participation, have big potential to pave the way to supply chains which are sustainable in respect of human rights and environmental standards; stresses that developing countries should be supported to implement and spread best practice;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Believes that there is stronga need for a mandatory, harmonised framework at Union level to ensure a level playing field for business and welcomes the Commission’s ongoing work on legislation requiring that Union companies conduct due diligence on respect for human rights and environmental obligations throughout their supply chains; based on an impact assessment and a careful evaluation which has concluded that it is functional and applicable to all actors on the market with more than 500 employees and welcomes the Commission’s ongoing work on legislation requiring that Union companies conduct due diligence on respect for human rights and environmental obligations; draws attention to the risk that companies might withdraw from third countries - which will result in job losses and in loss of cooperation partners for smallholders in developing countries - if new requirements prove to impose excessive administrative burdens and uncontrollable risks; considers nevertheless that a multilateral framework is preferable and asks the Commission to participate in negotiations on a UN treaty;
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Calls on the Commission to apply a human rights-based approach to the future legislation which shall be designed, implemented, monitored and evaluated respecting the core human rights principles of transparency and access to information, inclusion and non- discrimination with a special focus on the most vulnerable;
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Stresses that all human rights should be covered by the future legislation; considers that emphasis should be placed on workers and trade union rights, women, children or indigenous people; stresses that full alignment withany new legislation should be based on existing legal obligations and standards at European and international level should be sought; is of the opinion that the legislation should address all types of human rights abuses;
Amendment 55 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Highlights that the obligation to respect and protect human rights, and the environment and to avoid the risk of corrupshould focus on the first tier of the supply chain outside of the Union and on direct contractual business relation should be embedded throughout whole global value chains, products, services and business relationshipsips; calls for better legal frameworks and better implementation and monitoring of human rights and environmental standards and protection of human rights and environmental protection defenders in developing countries and affirms the Union’s readiness to support developing countries in institution-building and training of legal and administrative experts through development aid as well as through political dialogue;
Amendment 64 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Is of the opinion that theany new legislation should firstly apply to all sectors, to all types of enterprises, whether public or private, and of all size across the Union; considers that the focus should be placed on the risks; with larger risks for abuses, learning from the experience of implementation of the Regulation (EU) 2017/821 of the European Parliament and of the Council1a; notes in this regard that that regulation has yet to come into full force; considers that obligations under any new legislation must reflect the size of companies and the nature of their type of operations; stresses that the focus should be placed on the risks; __________________ 1aRegulation (EU) 2017/821 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2017 laying down supply chain due diligence obligations for Union importers of tin, tantalum and tungsten, their ores, and gold originating from conflict-affected and high-risk areas (OJ L 130, 19.5.2017, p. 1).
Amendment 81 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Is of the opinion that theany future legislation should establish mandatory andlay down standards for effective corporate due diligence processes covering companies’ activities and their business relationships, including their supply and subcontracting chains; considers that OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises should serve as the basis for such standards;
Amendment 93 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Underlines the need to design a sound monitoring system and to provide competent authorities (at Union and at national level) with effective instruments to monitor thand enforce compliance with thesuch legislation, in particular at local level; stresses the importance of harmonised monitoring and enforcement across the Union to establish a level-playing field between Member States;
Amendment 95 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Considers that Member states should provide for sanctions applicable to infringements of the national provisions adopted in accordance with future due diligence legislation and should take all the measures necessary to ensure that those sanctions are enforced; stresses that the sanctions provided for should take into account the severity and repeated nature of the infringements committed and be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.
Amendment 105 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Expresses the opinion that the future legislation should establish a comprehensive system of liability that could includes administrative, civil and criminal liability, ands appropriate, while respecting differences in legal system of Member States, including through a sanctioning mechanism to enforce compliance with the new legislation and ensure enforcement, including through penalties and sanctions of all nature;
Amendment 109 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Stresses that access toprovisions on effective remedy is crucialshould be included; considers that the legislation should obligeset appropriate standards for companies to have an effective grievance mechanism that should be transparent, accessible, predictable, safe, trustworthy and accountable; considers, in addition, that such mechanism should provide for effective judicial remedies to victims of human rights violations, environmental damage and corruption abuses, individually and through collective actions; believes that special protection should be provided to human rights defenders and its lawyers;
Amendment 122 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Is convinced that it is crucial to makehat the sustainable development chapters of free trade agreements moreshould remain enforceable and that the new legislatCommission should explore ways of integrating the due diligence requirements into those chapterprovisions in free trade agreements.