Activities of Helga TRÜPEL related to 2017/2053(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
The next MFF: Preparing the Parliament’s position on the MFF post-2020 - Reform of the European Union’s system of own resources (debate) DE
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on reform of the European Union’s system of own resources PDF (658 KB) DOC (110 KB)
Amendments (23)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas the share of the GNI-based resource has significantly increased over the years, and today represents the largest source of revenue of the EU budget; whereas the GNI-based contribution currently accounts for some 69 % of the EU budget, the VAT resource for around 12 %, the traditional own resources (customs duties, agricultural duties and sugar and isoglucose levies) for around 13 % and the remaining percentage is covered by other revenue, including taxes paid by EU staff or fines paid by companies in breach of competition laws; whereas the Free-Trade Agreements and the increase collection rate decided in 2000 have reduced the revenues stemming from the collection of customs duties;
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Notes that the Commission will present its proposals on the post-2020 MFF by May 2018; expects that the future MFF proposed by the Commission will include ambitious proposals to revise the Own Resources Decision and all related legislative acts, as well as to introduce new own resources; underlines that both the expenditure and the revenue side of the next MFF will be treated as a single package in the upcoming negotiations between the Council and Parliament; states that it is not prepared to give its consent to the next MFF regulation before the European elections without a reform of the own-resources system;
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Recalls that Member States are responsible for their fiscal policies, and underlines that the power to levy taxes lies at the heart of Member States’ sovereignty; Insists on the fact that the need to reform the own resources does not represent any transfer of sovereignty concerning the power to levy taxes but rather to respect and implement the spirit and the letter of the treaties which have been signed and ratified by the Member states;
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Stresses that the current system of own resources is highly complex, not fair, non- transparent and totally incomprehensible to the EU citizens; points in particular to the opacity of the calculations relating to the national rebates and correction mechanisms which apply to the system of own resources or the statistical VAT-based resource; stresses, moreover, that this system is not subject to any effective parliamentary control and in essence lacks democratic legitimacy and accountability;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Considers, in particular, that the decision on the size of the annual EU budget is affected by financial considerations at national level and that the budgetary negotiations often result in a zero-sum game between net payers and net beneficiaries in the Council; considers that, as a result, a number of EU policies that show the highest European added value are often the areas where cost savings are proposed and that the EU project as such is weakened;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Underlines that the post 2020-MFF will need to ensure the proper financing of EU policies and programmes with a clear European added value, but also to provide additional means for addressing new challenges that have already been identified in fields such as growth and jobs, competitiveness, cohesionclimate change, sustainable development, jobs, competitiveness, cohesion, education and culture diversity, innovation, migration, security and defence;
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Expects that, without prejudice to the financial settlement, the consequences of the withdrawal of the UK from the EU will represent an important challenge also for the next MFF and all related budgetary decisions; considersis convinced that, ahead of a decision on the post-2020 MFF, options will need to be examined for bridging the ‘Brexit gap’the ‘Brexit gap’ should be bridged in order to guarantee that the EU budget while excluding a decrease in EU resourcesl not be reduced compare to the MFF ceilings in 2020;
Amendment 57 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)
Paragraph 20 a (new)
20 a. Considers, as the first step, that the EU budget should be predominantly financed by own resources before the end of the post2020 MFF;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Calls for the suppression of all rebates and corrections, while ensuring fair treatment between Member States; underlines in this context that Brexit will mean that the UK rebate and the related ‘rebates on the rebate’ will become obsolete and cease to exist, while reform of the statistical VAT-based own resource will become inevitable; Insists on not creating any new rebate and corrective mechanism in order to compensate or correct the end of the current ones; is of the opinion however that Member states and regions largely affected by the end of the rebate and correction and/or by the creation of new own resources could be supported by EU programmes in line with the EU objectives and targets, especially the fight against climate change;
Amendment 72 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Considers that the traditional own resources, namely customs duties, agricultural duties and the sugar and isoglucose levies, constitute a reliable and genuine source of EU revenue, as they arise directly from the EU being a customs union and from the legal competences and common commercial policy linked to that; takes the view, therefore, that the traditional own resources should be retained as a source of revenue for the EU budget; considers that if the proportion of collection costs retained by Member States is reduced, a bigger share of this revenue can be secured for the EU budgetis of the firm opinion that the collection rate hould be set at the pre-2000 level;
Amendment 89 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29
Paragraph 29
29. Notes, however, that the current system has serious shortcomings: the EU VAT gap is estimated at 12,8% (€152billion) per year and cross-border VAT fraud alone amounts to €50 billion per year, the resource is calculated on a statistical basis; it is unnecessarily complex and has no direct link to the citizens; it represents a mere transfer of a part of revenue collected by the Member States, and thus brings no added value compared to the GNI resource; the contribution base is not transparent and there is no equality among taxpayers; reminds that the VAT is a regressive tax impacting more the poorest people and territories; considers therefore that the revenues coming from a reformed VAT should not become the main source of revenue for the EU budget;
Amendment 96 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 34
Paragraph 34
34. Underlines that the Commission has already put forward legislative proposals for a major reform of the EU’s VAT rules, and that additional initiatives are expected in 2018; insists on the necessity to complete the VAT reform as soon as possible and at the latest before the start of the next MFF; is of the opinion that the uniform levy rate should be visible on the VAT receipt, alongside the national or regional VAT rate, in order to increase the visibility of the EU revenues coming from the VAT for the EU citizens;
Amendment 104 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 37
Paragraph 37
37. Takes notes of the Commission’s proposals for a CCCTB, while recalling its request that this consolidated base be extended to as manyll companies as possible; draws attention to the fact that current proposals for a CCCTB suggesthould also covering the digital economy; suggests, on the basis of these proposals, that the digital presence of a company shou1d be treated in the samea similar way as the physical establishment thereof and calls on the adoption of a digital permanent establishment concept for digital companies;
Amendment 107 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 38
Paragraph 38
38. Agrees with the HLGOR’s assessment of the CCCTB as a basis for a new own resource, meeting all the criteria set by the Group; underlines that the CCCTB is also a key element in the development of the single market, which is a European public good, as itshould prevents both inappropriateharmful tax competition between Member States and fiscal optimisationtax avoidance damaging to the level playing field;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 39
Paragraph 39
39. Calls therefore for the creation of a new own resource for the Union budget, to be calculated on the basis of Member States’ revenue from tax levied on companies subject to the CCCTBIs in favour of setting a uniform levy rate on the revenue from the CCCTB; believes that such a system could provide significant and stable receipts for the EU at limited administrative cost;
Amendment 115 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 12
Subheading 12
b. Objective: Reduce financial speculation and strengthen tax fairness in sectors that use aggressive tax planning instruments or aggressive tax optimisationfight tax avoidance.
Amendment 122 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 41
Paragraph 41
41. Considers, however, that such a tax, chargeable at the moment the transaction occurs, must be applied throughout the EUpreferably applied to all member states, so as to limit purely speculative operations and reduce the number of divergent national approaches to financial transaction taxation, since this is a source of disruption for the financial markets and for the smooth functioning of the single market;
Amendment 125 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 42
Paragraph 42
42. Shares the HLGOR’s assessment endorsing the FTT as a potentialpromising basis for a new own resource for the Union budget, while also considering that other additional means of taxing financial activities should be explored;
Amendment 128 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 44
Paragraph 44
44. Notes the conclusions of the informal Council of finance ministers of 16 September 2017 calling for the development of new digital taxation rules, in response to the Four Finance Ministers’ letter requesting the Commission to examine ‘effective solutions based on the concept of establishing a so-called equalisation tax’ on the turnover generated in the EU by digital companies; Believes however that all options to tax the digital economy should be explored by the European Commission before publishing its proposal in 2018; and calls for an EU coordinated approach even on short-term solutions to avoid distortion in the single market due to unilateral action and avoid the creation of digital tax heavens;
Amendment 131 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 45
Paragraph 45
45. Agrees that the digital economy should have a modern and stable fiscal framework, in order to stimulate innovation, tackle market fragmentation and enable all players to take advantage of the new equitable and balanced conditions while making sure digital companies pay their due share of taxes; points out, moreover, that it is essential to ensure tax security for business investment and to prevent the emergence of new tax loopholes within the single market;
Amendment 132 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 46
Paragraph 46
46. Considers it crucial that tax measures be taken for the digital market in order to limit tax evasion and distortions, aggressive tax planning or fiscal optimisation schemes, and the misuse of European mechanisms to avoid taxavoidance; considers that these practices distort competition in the single market and deprive Member States of due tax revenues;
Amendment 160 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 54
Paragraph 54
Amendment 162 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 54 a (new)
Paragraph 54 a (new)
54 a. Stresses the importance of green taxation as particularly suitable mechanisms to contribute to European own resources; calls on the European Commission to further integrate the proposals for additional ecological own resources, as outlined in the HLGOR Report and by the Commissioner for the European budget, that are in line with certain Union policies such as on energy (energy tax), on environment and climate (plastic tax and ETS) and on transport (road fuel and air ticket taxes) to promote additional future Union own resources;