13 Amendments of Bas EICKHOUT related to 2021/0000(INI)
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. WStrongly welcomes the fact that the Annual Sustainable Growth Strategy 2021 confirms the refocusing of the European Semester (Semester) process to place sustainability, health and the wellbeing of citizens at the centre of economic and social policies; stresses that economic growth is not an end in itself but that sustainable development should deliver shared prosperity and well-being for all while fully respecting the limits of our planet;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Stresses that the alignment of the Semester process with the EU’s long-term climate and environmental objectives is crucial and must be accelerated, as per the Commission’s engagements under the Green Deal; underlines that the coordination of the Member States’ macroeconomic, socioeconomic and fiscal policies is, among others, an essential tool to achieve the Green Deal; believes that the achievement of the Union’s climate, environmental and social objectives should be treated as equally important and binding as the achievement of the deficit and debt targets;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Stresses that for the EU to achieve the European Green Deal’s objectives and the SDGs, a fundamental system change will be required in which greater attention is given to sustainability and citizens’ wellbeing; welcomes the European Environment Agency (EEA) briefing entitled ‘Growth without economic growth’1a which recognises that absolute decoupling of economic growth from environmental pressures and impact cannot be achieved at the global scale; urges therefore the Commission to explore the development of new metrics to measure progress beyond GDP growth and to ensure the Semester is geared towards ensuring progress on those metrics; _________________ 1aEEA Briefing No. 28/2020, ‘, ‘Growth without economic growth’, 11 January 2021
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Calls on the Commission to extend the current Semester approach by developing a new climate indicators, without watering down the Semester process,including a new climate indicator to assess the discrepancy between the structure of the Member States’ budgets and a Paris- aligned scenario for each of their national budgets; further stresses that this would enable the extended Semester to provide recommendations on reducing climate debt and Member States’ ecological footprint;
Amendment 31 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Welcomes that the 2020 cycle included, for the first time, a chapter on environmental sustainability and a dedicated annex reporting on Member States’ overall SDG performance; urges the Commission to pursue that approach in the 2021 cycle, as a complement to the assessment of how the Recovery and Resilience Plans should contribute to the green transition; calls on the Commission to also adopt country specific recommendations in that regard;
Amendment 34 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Calls on the Commission to establish an inventory of all environmentally harmful subsidies, including in the form of tax rebates, that continue to exist at national level and hamper the achievement of the European Green Deal, and to monitor their phase out as soon as possible and by 2025 at the latest in the context of the Semester; reiterates its call for the reorientation of taxation systems towards an increased use of environmental taxation;
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls for the Semester to be adapted, taking into account the COVID- 19 pandemic, and to be aligned with the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the key EU instrument for recovery; stresses that the EU’s recovery provides a unique opportunity to build back a stronger EU by providing guidance to Member States on where reforms and investments are most needed in order to accelerate the transition to a more sustainable, resilient and inclusive EU; calls in that regard on the Commission to ensure that recovery and resilience plans effectively contribute to addressing challenges in the relevant country-specific recommendations in the field of the green transition;
Amendment 45 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Underlines that the UNEP Emissions Gap Report 20201a highlighted that fiscal Covid-19 spending had so far primarily supported the global status quo of high-carbon production and that support should instead focus on zero- emissions technologies, ending fossil fuel subsidies through fiscal reform and stepping up nature-based solutions, in particular the protection and restoration of ecosystems; _________________ 1aUnited Nations Environment Programme (2020). Emissions Gap Report 2020. Nairobi
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. SupportUrges the Commission’s guidance to Member States to include in their to ensure Member States’ Recovery Plans investments and reforms in flagship areas that areare fully in line with the EU’s increased 2030 climate target and the objective of achieving climate neutrality by 2050 at the latest – such as, in particular by increasing investments in renewable energy, renovation, sustainable mobility, decarbonizing industry, the circular economy and biodiversity – given their potential to create jobs and growthincrease the resilience of our economies and societies - and by thoroughly assessing respect for the “do no significant harm” principle as defined in Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852; calls for utmost transparency in that assessment.
Amendment 60 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Urges the Commission to ensure effective climate and biodiversity mainstreaming and proofing across EU spending and programmes on the basis of technical screening criteria developed under Regulation (EU) 2020/852;
Amendment 65 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5b. Calls on the Commission to update the temporary Framework to support the economy in the context of the coronavirus outbreak with additional criteria to ensure that state aid is granted in line with the objectives of the European Green Deal; urges Member States to ensure legally binding environmental conditions on state aid given to companies, in particular companies with high-emission economic activities;
Amendment 70 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 c (new)
Paragraph 5 c (new)
5c. Recalls that 7,5% of the Union budget and Next Generation EU expenditure should be dedicated to biodiversity objectives from 2024 and 10% from 2026 onwards; urges Member States to scale up investment in biodiversity conservation and restoration, reform subsidies harmful to biodiversity and screen (ex ante) and monitor (ex post) recovery support for their biodiversity impacts;
Amendment 74 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 d (new)
Paragraph 5 d (new)
5d. Stresses the importance of dialogue with national parliaments and civil society at national level to ensure a comprehensive and inclusive approach, with a view to spreading ownership, and especially with a view to the preparation, adoption and monitoring of the implementation of national recovery plans.