Activities of Dimitrios PAPADIMOULIS related to 2023/2063(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the European Semester for economic policy coordination 2024
Amendments (6)
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. NUnderlines the exceptionally uncertain EU economic and social outlook resulting from the lasting impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the consequences of the invasion of Ukraine, inflation and the energy and cost of living crises; notes that the Union economy is expected to gradually recover in 2024, although with a slower pace than initially projected, with a forecast growth of 1.3 % of GDP and a generally robust labour market; points, however, to the various risks and uncertainties, which put a strain on European businesses, public finance, public social and welfare policies and people, and affect some Member States more than others; is highly concerned by the extremely high levels of inflation that have resulted in a cost of living crisis; points to the research ofthe European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund suggesting that corporate profits have been important drivers of inflation;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Takes note of the proposed reform of the economic governance framework of the Union; believes that the new framework should ensure clear and flexible implementation and provide the adequate fiscal space for Member States to invest in the EU’s strategic prioritStresses that the current EU economic governance framework has proven inadequate to address past and current challenges and that a thorough revision is urgently needed; takes note of the proposed reform of the economic governance framework of the Union; regrets that the GDP reference values for public deficit and public debt remain unchanged; believes that the new framework should ensure clear and flexible implementation and provide the adequate fiscal space for Member States to implement growth-enhancing and socially-just reforms and investments, make their economies and societies more resilient, sustainable, fair and inclusive and to invest in the EU’s strategic priorities, including climate and social policies; recalls its position that an EU- level permanent crisisspecial instrument over and above the MFF ceilings will contribute to ensuring a sufficiently high level of strategic investment and an appropriate fiscal stance at the aggregate level as well as to increasing EU readiness to quickly react to ongoing and upcoming crises and their social and economic effects;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Stresses the overall success of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) in supporting the recovery of EU economies and societies and notes its positive impact on the implementation of the country-specific recommendations and on investmentreforms and investments in EU priorities; underlines the importance of compliance with the rule of law and the general regime of conditionality and reiterates the need for the necessary monitoring, audit and enforcement mechanisms to ensure respect for the rule of law and to protect the EU’s fin EU prioritiesancial interests, in particular to prevent fraud, corruption and conflicts of interest and ensure transparency; welcomes the fact that most Member States have submitted revised national plans, including REPowerEU chapters; stresses that investments in line with European objectives, notably those of the RRF and REPowerEU, should be treated favourably for the calculation of excessive debt;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Stresses the importance of significant public investment to support a sustainable, fair and inclusive recovery in the EU, address the energy crisis, strengthen public healthcare systems, upward social and economic convergence, social and economic resilience, social justice and equality and to contribute to the full implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the European Pillar of Social Rights, the EU’s climate and biodiversity objectives, the just green and digital transitions and the EU Gender Equality Strategy; notes that according to the Commission, 650 billion EUR of additional investment is needed annually until 2030 for the green and digital transitions alone; stresses, moreover, that, according to the Commission, significant progress is still needed to reach the 2030 EU and national employment, skills and social targets; supports, therefore, the introduction of a golden rule to exclude public investment on tackling climate change, promoting digitisation of the public sector and strengthening public social policies as well as public spending to meet emergency needs, from the calculation of public debt and public deficit;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Recalls that the substantial increase in interest rates has driven up the borrowing costs for the European Recovery Instrument (EURI); reiterates, therefore, its call for swift progress on the introduction of new own resources, as agreed in the legally-binding roadmap established under the Interinstitutional Agreement; asks, moreover, the Commission to reflect beyond the existing roadmap and to propose further innovative, new and preferably genuine own resources; strongly supports the Commission proposal for a EURI instrument outside the ceilings of the multiannual financial framework to cover the excess costs for interest payments; recalls its position that all EURI repayment costs should be placed over and above the MFF ceilings;
Amendment 39 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls for Parliament’s role in the reform of the economic governance framework and the European Semester to be significantly strengthened.