Activities of Kyriacos TRIANTAPHYLLIDES related to 2009/2137(INI)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT Report on consumer protection PDF (219 KB) DOC (126 KB)
Amendments (13)
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas anthe effectiveness of consumer policy depends onwill be enhanced by consumers and businesses knowing their rights and obligations under existing legislation and on their ability to apply them to their commercial transactions,
Amendment 9 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F a (new)
Recital F a (new)
Fa. whereas consumer protection policy is designed to shield consumers from economic exploitation within the internal market but should not be used as a pretext for failing to adopt measures to combat this phenomenon,
Amendment 10 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G a (new)
Recital G a (new)
Ga. whereas the effectiveness of consumer protection policy depends upon the extent to which legislation deters the parties concerned from engaging in practices or taking measures harmful to consumers' interests,
Amendment 13 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital M
Recital M
M. whereas the cross-border dimension of consumer markets is growing rapidly with the emergence of e-commerce but consumers remain reluctant to reap the benefits that market integration provides, mainly because they do not feel confident that their rights will be equally protected when making cross-border purchases and because of the uncertainty over the right to compensation,
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Takes the view that the appointment in 2007 of a dedicated Commissioner for Consumer Affairs and her personal engagement, openness and proactive role have led to a dramatic rise in the profile of consumer issues, much to the benefit of EU citizens; points out, however, that the reluctance to adopt legislation to eliminate economic exploitation should not be allowed to persist in future;
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Stresses that, following the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, Article 12 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union reaffirms – as a provision of general application – that consumer protection requirements should be taken into account in defining and implementing other Union policies and activities; calls on the Commission, therefore, to ensure the effective integration of consumer interests into all EU policies, and to examine in its impact assessments, where appropriate, the potential effects of any new legislation and policies ondirectly or indirectly affecting consumers; urges each relevant Commission Directorate-General to publish an annual report on how consumer policy is integrated into its area of responsibility;
Amendment 23 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Emphasises that consumers should be able to make informed choices as this generates greater competition among traders to raise the quality of the goods and services they provide and to keep prices at competitive levelswhich, in combination with superior product quality, will help to improve their wellbeing;
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 c (new)
Paragraph 7 c (new)
7c. Stresses that violations of consumer rights are inextricably linked with the lack of accountability on the internal market; calls on the Commission to take steps to inform consumers in this area; calls on the Commission to adopt legislation that will help protect consumers' economic interests; calls on the Member States to strengthen the measures and the bodies responsible for supervision of the internal market;
Amendment 40 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Stresses that the Scoreboard is only a tool; underlines the principle that the operation of the internal market must be governed by principles which do not increase social inequalities; stresses the need to tailor EU policies to the goal of creating an anthropocentric internal market, with the emphasis on human welfare rather than statistics;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Draws attention to the analysis of the available price data which shows unexplained cross- border variations in a number of goods and services, which are an inevitable result of the aspiration of businesses to maximise their profits; considers that, although price differences are often linkexacerbated toby differences in demand, expenditure levels, taxes or cost structure, they are also often a sign of internal market fragmentation or malfunctioning; suggests; suggests that measures be taken to ensure fair prices, especially for basic goods and essential items, and also that, where the price of a given product is higher than a benchmark, it is necessary to look at the relationship between import and consumption prices and examine carefully the reasons behind the different price levels;
Amendment 66 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27
Paragraph 27
27. Recalls that several Member States have developed tools to monitor their national markets from the consumer perspective such as price observatories or comprehensive complaints systems for policymaking, whereas other Member States do not use data to monitor consumer markets and have difficulties in aggregating data; encourages all Member States to carry out a broad market monitoring exercise on an annual basis in order to identify markets which are failing for consumers and provide complete data which will allow the Commission to monitor and compare the problems faced by consumers in the internal market and to promote measures to combat exorbitant pricing;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 a (new)
Paragraph 29 a (new)
29a. Stresses that the main responsibility for unfair pricing of products in the internal market lies with businesses and the practices they follow in order to maximise their profits; believes that a responsible approach by the business world with respect for the principle of corporate responsibility, the rules of competition and consumers' economic interests will help inspire confidence in consumers, the least that is required if consumer protection is to be enhanced;
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 35
Paragraph 35
35. Notes that enforcement across the EU is far from uniform and that most countries have strong and weak points; points out that figures show important differences between Member States in terms of budgets for market surveillance and numbers of inspectors involved; urges Member States to redouble their efforts and increase resources in order to ensure that laws that protect consumers and guarantee competition are enforced in retail markets;