18 Amendments of Dolors MONTSERRAT related to 2020/0108(COD)
Amendment 2 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 1
Recital 1
(1) The Covid-19 pandemic is a major shock to the global and Union economy. Due to the necessary containment measures, economic activity in the EU dropped significantly. The contraction in EU GDP in 2020 is expected to be around 7.5%, far deeper than during the financial crisis in 2009. The outbreak of the pandemic has shown the interconnectivity of global supply chains and exposed some vulnerabilities such as the over-reliance of strategic industries on non-diversified external supply sources. Such vulnerabilities need to be addressed, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), to improve the Union’s emergency response as well as the resilience of the entire economy, while maintaining its openness to competition and trade in line with its rules. Investment activity is expected to have dropped significantly. Even before the pandemic, while a recovery in investment-to-GDP ratios in the Union could be observed, it remained below what might be expected in a strong recovery and was insufficient to compensate for years of underinvestment following the 2009 crisis. More importantly, the current investment levels and forecasts do not cover the Union’s needs for structural investment to restart and sustain long-term growth in the face of technological change and global competitiveness, including for innovation, skills, infrastructure, small and medium- sized enterprises (SMEs) and the need to address key societal challenges such as sustainability or population ageing. Consequently, in order to achieve the Union's policy objectives, in particular the dual objective of accelerating the climate and digital transitions, and to support a swift, inclusive and healthy economic recovery, support is necessary to address market failures and sub-optimal investment situations and to reduce the investment gap in targeted sectors.
Amendment 14 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) The InvestEU Fund should contribute to improving the competitiveness and socio-economic convergence and cohesion, cohesion and long-term economic growth of the Union, including in the fields of innovation and digitisation, to the efficient use of resources in accordance with the circular economy, to the sustainability and inclusiveness of the Union's economic growth and to the social resilience and integration of the Union capital markets, including through solutions that address the fragmentation of Union capital markets and that diversify sources of financing for Union enterprises. To that end, the InvestEU Fund should support projects that are technically and economically viable by providing a framework for the use of debt, risk sharing and equity instruments backed up by a guarantee from the Union budget and by financial contributions from implementing partners as relevant. The InvestEU Fund should be demand-driven, while at the same time it should focus on providing strategic, long-term benefits in relation to key areas of Union policy which otherwise would not be funded or would be insufficiently funded, thereby contributing to meeting policy objectives of the Union. Support under the InvestEU Fund should cover a wide range of sectors and regions, but should avoid excessive sectoral or geographical concentration and should facilitate access of projects composed of partner entities in multiplewith high growth potential and in key strategic sectors in all regions across the EU.
Amendment 28 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) Reflecting the importance of tackling climate change in line with the Union's commitments to implement the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the SDGs, the InvestEU Programme will contribute to mainstream climate actions and to the achievement of an overall target of 2530 % of the Union budget expenditures supporting climate objectives. Actions under the InvestEU Programme are expected to contribute 3at least 40 % of the overall financial envelope of the InvestEU Programme to climate objectives. Relevant actions will be identified during the InvestEU Programme's preparation and implementation and reassessed in the context of the relevant evaluations and review processes.
Amendment 52 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 19
Recital 19
(19) Tourism is an important area for the Union economy and the sector, which, employing more than 22 million people. The tourism sector experienced a particularly severe contraction as a result of COVID-19 pandemic with revenue losses having reached an estimated 85 % for hotels, restaurants, tour operators, travel agencies and long distancerail, and 90 % for cruises and airlines as of May 2020. . The InvestEU Programme should contribute to strengthening its long- term competitiveness by supporting operations promotinga sustainable, innovative and digital tourismrecovery in the tourism sector.
Amendment 56 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 24
Recital 24
(24) In the economic crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, market allocation of resources is not fully efficient and perceived risk impairs private investment flow significantly. Under such circumstances, the key feature of the InvestEU Fund of de-risking economically viable projects to crowd in private finance is particularly valuable and should be reinforced, inter alia in order to counteract the risk of an asymmetric recovery. The InvestEU Programme should be able to provide crucial support to companies in the recovery phase, in particular SMEs, and at the same time ensure a strong focus of investors on the Union’s medium- and long-term policy priorities such as the European Green Deal, the European Green Deal Investment Plan, the Strategy on shaping Europe’s digital future and the Strong Social Europe for Just Transitions. It should significantly increase the risk- taking capacity of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group and national promotional banks and institutions and other implementing partners in support of economic recovery.
Amendment 58 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 28
Recital 28
(28) The primary focus of the strategic European investment window should be on support to those final recipients established in a Member State and operating in the Union whose activities are of strategic importance to the Union in particular in view of the green and digital transitions but which also enhance the competitiveness of the Member States' economies, including the need to rebuild the Member States' productive capacity and create future- oriented investments promoting entrepreneurship and job creation, and of enhanced resilience, in areas ofcluding by decreasing dependence on vulnerable supply chains. Projects should bring Union added value and should either be cross-border or generate real added value in more than one Member State or region through spill-over effects. No support should flow directly into the national budgets or substitute national budgetary expenditure, such as social benefits. Areas of strategic importance include (i) critical healthcare provision, manufacturing and stockpiling of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and medical supplies, strengthening of health crisis response capacity and of the civil protection system, (ii) critical infrastructure, whether physical or virtual; (iii) provision of goods and services instrumental to the operation and maintenance of such infrastructure, (iv) key enabling, transformative, green and digital technologies and game-changing innovations where the investment is strategically important for the Union’s industrial future, including artificial intelligence, blockchain, software, robotics, semiconductors, microprocessors, edge cloud technologies, high-performance computing, cybersecurity, quantum technologies, photonics, industrial biotechnology, renewable energy technologies, in particular to implement the offshore renewable energy strategy, energy storage technologies including batteries, sustainable transport technologies, clean hydrogen and fuel cell applications, decarbonisation technologies for industry, carbon capture and storage, circular economy technologies biomedicine, nanotechnologies, pharmaceuticals and advanced materials; (v) manufacturing facilities for mass production of Information Communication and Technology components and devices in the EU; (vi) supply and stockpiling of critical inputs to public actors, businesses or consumers in the Union; (vii) critical technologies and inputs for the security of the Union and its Member States, such as defence and space sectors and cybersecurity, and dual use items as defined in point 1 of Article 2 of Council Regulation (EC) No 428/2009. The final recipients should have their registered office in a Member State and they should be active in the Union in the sense that they have substantial activities in terms of staff, manufacturing, research and development or other business activities in the Union. The distribution of the financial envelope should in particular ensure support for the parallel climate and digital transitions. Projects which contribute to diversification of strategic supply chains in the Single Market through operations in multiple locations across the EU should be able to benefit.
Amendment 66 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 29
Recital 29
(29) The strategic European investment window should also target suppliers established and operating in the Union whose activities are of strategic importance to the Union and that would need long term investment or are covered by the Foreign Direct Investment Screening mechanism. In addition, important projects of common European interest should in particular be able to benefit from the strategic European investment window. However, financial support should not be provided when a project is not in line with the strategic and economic interests of the Union, for instance for projects that would increase dependency on vulnerable or undiversified supply chains.
Amendment 69 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 29 a (new)
Recital 29 a (new)
(29 a) The visibility of the Union funding from the InvestEU Fund, and in particular the strategic European investment window and its identified strategic priorities, should be ensured through effective communication, highlighting Union-funded actions and results in order to adequately promote the Union added value of the InvestEU Programme as part of the recovery.
Amendment 84 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 59
Recital 59
(59) In the context of the InvestEU Fund, there is a need to provide support for project development and capacity building to develop the organisational capacities and market development activities needed to originate quality projects. Such support should also target financial intermediaries that are key to help small companies’ access financing and realise their full potential, and it should include technical assistance. Particular emphasis should be put on reducing the administrative burden, in particular for SMEs. Moreover, the aim of the advisory support is to create the conditions for the expansion of the potential number of eligible recipients in nascent market segments, in particular where the small size of individual projects considerably raises the transaction cost at the project level, such as for the social finance ecosystem, including philanthropic organisations, or for the cultural and creative sectors. The capacity- building support should be complementary and in addition to actions taken under other Union programmes that cover specific policy areas. An effort should also be made to support the capacity building of potential project promoters, in particular local organisations and authorities.
Amendment 86 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 61
Recital 61
(61) In accordance with Regulation [European Union Recovery Instrument] and within the limits of resources allocated therein, recovery and resilience measures under the InvestEU should be carried out to address the unprecedented impact of the Covid-19 crisis and, in line with the objectives of the strategic European investment window, support long-term growth, quality jobs and competitiveness. Such additional resources should be used in such a way as to ensure compliance with the time limits provided for in Regulation [EURI].
Amendment 110 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – introductory part
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – introductory part
(e) a strategic European investment policy window which comprises strategic investment to support final recipients that are established in aone or more Member States and that operate in the Union, and whose activities are of strategic importance to the Union, in particular in view of the green and digital transitions and of enhanced resilience, while enhancing the competitiveness of the Member States' economies, including the need to rebuild the Member States' productive capacity and promote entrepreneurship and job creation, in one of the following areas:
Amendment 115 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point i
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point i
i) critical healthcare provision, manufacturing and stockpiling of pharmaceuticals, medical deviceines, vaccines, active pharmaceutical ingredients, pharmaceutical raw materials, medical devices, diagnostic tools and medical supplies, strengthening of health crisis response capacity and of the civil protection system;
Amendment 120 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point ii
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point ii
ii) critical infrastructure, whether physical or virtual, including infrastructure elements identified as critical in the fields of energy, transport, environment, water, health, secure digital communication, 5G, internet of things, online service platforms, secure cloud computing, data processing or storage, payments and financial infrastructure, aerospace, defence, communications, media, education and training, electoral infrastructure and sensitive facilities, as well as land and real estate crucial for the use of such critical infrastructure;
Amendment 125 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point iv – introductory part
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point iv – introductory part
iv) key enabling, transformative, greelow- carbon and digital technologies and game- changing innovations where the investment is strategically important for the Union’s industrial future, including
Amendment 132 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point iv – point b
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point iv – point b
(b) renewable energy technologies, energy storage technologies including batteries, sustainable and low carbon transport technologies, clean hydrogen and fuel cell applications, decarbonisation technologies for industry, carbon capture and storage, circular economy technologies,
Amendment 138 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point iv – point c
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point iv – point c
(c) biomedicine, nanotechnologies, biotechnologies, pharmaceuticals and advanced materials;
Amendment 144 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point vii – paragraph 1
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e – point vii – paragraph 1
In addition, in the case of investments in space, defence and cybersecurity, and in specific types of projects with actual and direct security implications in critical sectors, the final recipients shall not be controlled by a third country or third country entities and shall have their executive management in the Union with a view to protect the security of the Union and its Member States. Financial support shall not be provided when a project is not in line with the strategic and economic interests of the Union, for instance for projects that would increase dependency on vulnerable or undiversified supply chains.
Amendment 153 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 4 – introductory part
Article 7 – paragraph 4 – introductory part
4. The Commission shall develop sustainability guidance that, in accordance with Union environmental and social objectives and standards, including Regulation (EU) 2020/852, allows to: