21 Amendments of Margarida MARQUES related to 2022/2147(INI)
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
A a. whereas the outermost regions are especially vulnerable to negative impacts of climate change, like extreme weather events, rising sea levels or heat waves; whereas the outermost regions have an exceptionally high biodiversity value and focus should be put in protecting and restoring ecosystems;
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
A b. whereas the decarbonisation of the maritime and aviation sector is necessary to achieve the goals set out in the European Green Deal and the European Climate Law, sufficient time to adapt to such a transition should be given to the outermost regions;
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas the outermost regions are highly dependent on transport, especially air and maritime connections, with additional costs with regard to the import and export of goods and the transport of passengers, and that, in the case of archipelagos, double insularity exacerbates these challenges;
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Underlines the very specific social challenges that ORs face with higher unemployment rates and lower GDP per capita than the EU average; welcomes the Commission’s emphasis on addressing poverty, fostering equality and inclusion and access to adequate housing, water, internet and affordable transport and energy and healthcare as well as, on implementing the European Pillar of Social Rights; calls for additional support to be provided on top of the current financial programming;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
B a. whereas the blue economy sector plays a vital role in the economic growth and prosperity of outermost regions, that, due to their insularity, are especially dependent on blue economy-based activities, such as maritime transport, shipping, and tourism, with ports being important hubs for the transport of goods and passengers;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion
Recital B b (new)
Recital B b (new)
B b. whereas the tourism sector is highly important for the economies of these regions and that boosting this sector can have positive repercussions in terms of employment levels and economic growth;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
C a. whereas the COVID-19 pandemic had severe negative impacts in the economies of the outermost regions, in particular sectors related with blue economy, of which outermost regions are highly dependent; whereas coastal and maritime tourism represents 60% of the employment in the blue economy and which needs highly qualified and skilled professionals; whereas the promotion of these “blue jobs” can boost the tourism sector and help in raising employment levels in the outermost regions;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Underlines the key role of cohesion policy in unlocking ORs’ potential and offsetting the impact of their permanent constraints; stresses the need to better account for ORs’ specific features in cohesion fund programming, while ensuring they can fully benefit from provisions enabling greater flexibility, namely higher co-financing rates and access to pre-financing; stresses the need to factor ORs’ specific circumstances fully in to delivery of the Green Deal and to tap into their potential to develop their strategic autonomy by diversifying supply chains and to achieve self- sufficiency from renewables by providing adequate support;
Amendment 20 #
Draft opinion
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas the outermost regions, in the climate and energy transition, have great potential to develop key sectors such as sustainable mobility, renewable energy, and ecotourism;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph -1 (new)
Paragraph -1 (new)
-1. Reiterates the need to ensure territorial cohesion of all outermost regions through maritime and air transport, which should not be affected by disproportionate high costs whether for passengers or goods;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Highlights the success of the programme of options specifically relating to remoteness and insularity (POSEI) and calls on the Commission to replicate this instrument for other sectors, such as transport, with additional financial allocations in the post-2027 MFF; reiterates the importance of increasing allocations for POSEI agriculture in the future;
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. PHighlights that, due to their particularities and needs, outermost regions need additional support to guarantee a just green transition, especially in the policies of the Fit for 55 package; points out that, taking into account the dependence of the outermost regions on air connections, flights from thbetween an aerodrome located in an outermoset regions to the mainland of of a Member State and an aerodrome located in anotheir respective Member States should be exempt from the EU Emissions Trading System until 2030,gion of the EEA and flights performed between two aerodromes located within the same outermost region should be exempt from the EU Emissions Trading System until 2030; points out that, due to the dependence of these regions on maritime transport, a similar exemption until 2030 should apply to all voyages between a port located in an outermost region of a Member State and a port located in the same Member State, including ports within and between the outermost regions of the same Member State; and calls on the Commission to take into account the regions’ specific characteristics in the revision of all relevant legal acts, including the impacts of lifting such exemptions;
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4 a. Notes the specific vulnerability of ORs to natural disasters; welcomes the Commission’s intentions for further support actions on risk prevention and resilience; regrets that the Solidarity and Emergency Aid Reserve’s annual ceiling is not adequate to respond to emergencies, notably in ORs, which reduces EU support much below the potential aid amount that could be needed, and highlights the need to reconsider the architecture of the European Union Solidarity Fund mechanism to render it speedier, more flexible and more agile;
Amendment 30 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4 b. Underlines the importance of taking into account these regions’ specificities in the revision of State aid regulations and guidelines across sectors;
Amendment 45 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3 b. Calls on the Commission and Member States to support the development of sustainable mobility in the outermost regions, promoting alternatives to fossil fuels and the modernisation and decarbonisation of port and airport infrastructures, including through an increase in investments;
Amendment 46 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3 c. Calls on the Commission, Member States and regional authorities to promote and ensure the diversification of transport modes, supporting the establishment of necessary infrastructures, such as bicycle and pedestrian lanes, taking into account outermost regions’ specificities, such as their orography;
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Encourages the Commission to support investments in tourism, to ensure EU funding for its recovery and sustainable development and to provide the sector with information on funding opportunities; recognises, in particular, the potential of ecotourism to reduce the environmental footprint of the sector, ensuring the protection of our climate and biodiversity, while contributing to the socioeconomic development of local communities in the outermost regions;
Amendment 57 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on the Member States to unlock the potential of the outermost regions through appropriate investments and reforms and by supporting the green and digital transitions.; highlights that the outermost regions can be important players in these transitions, with the potential of being hubs for green and digital projects, towards an economic model that values sustainability and innovation;
Amendment 59 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5 a. Highlights the need to prepare contingency plans in the outermost regions for the transport sector, with a view to ensuring its resilience, especially in terms of infrastructure and public services, taking into account the impacts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lessons learned, to avoid any future disruptions on essential services for passengers and goods, in particular in the case of sanitary crises, extreme weather events or conflicts such as the one on Ukraine;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5 b. Highlights that the potential of the outermost regions can only be achieved through the cooperation of different stakeholders, including European, national, regional and local authorities, economic and social agents, the civil society, the academic community and nongovernmental organisations; highlights, in this regard, the positive contribution of the Conference of Presidents of Outermost Regions to identify priorities and challenges faced by these regions and incentivise further action; points out that collaboration between outermost regions is also essential to ensure an holistic approach which answers to their specific needs and the sharing of best practices;