Activities of José BOVÉ related to 2018/0256M(NLE)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the proposal for a Council decision on the agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and the Kingdom of Morocco on the amendment of Protocols 1 and 4 to the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an association between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Kingdom of Morocco, of the other part
Amendments (12)
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Emphasises, furthermore, that in its opinion adopted on 13 July 2011 as part of the consent procedure in Parliament relating to the agreement, the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development recommended that consent should not be given, in view of the fact that: 'High Community standards in environmental protection, working conditions, trade union protection, anti-dumping rules and food safety are not reciprocated in Moroccan products imported into the EU';
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes that most of the concerns expressed in that opinion, which was adopted in 2011, are, from the point of view of the European horticulture industry, still relevant today, in what is a difficult and volatile period for the industry, in particular as a result of the ongoing Russian embargo;
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Recalls the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 21 December 2016, which concluded that the EU-Moroccan agreement on agricultural products did not apply to the territory of Western Sahara;
Amendment 30 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5b. Deplores the fact that the Commission has not taken into consideration the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 21 December 2016; notes, therefore, that this agreement will not be able to provide a stable and indisputable framework for the economic players concerned, on both sides of the Mediterranean;
Amendment 31 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Regrets the legal uncertainty that has arisen since the Court of Justice judgment of 21 December 2016; is concerned that the Commission has been unable to provide reliable and detailed data on preferential imports of products from Western Sahara that may have been carried out before and since that date, in spite of the judgment in question; wonders what the cost has been to the EU budget of any preferences granted during the period concerned without a valid legal basis; requests the Commission to provide a detailed estimate of this cost and, in the absence of sufficient comparative information, is doubtful whether the Commission is able to assess the impact of the proposed new agreement properly;
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
Amendment 52 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Is doubtful whether the distinction drawn in the new agreement between products from the Sahara and those from Morocco is relevantlegal from a customs and trade perspective, setting the obvious political aspects aside; notes, in particular, that in the new agreement there is no allocation of the tariff rate quotas laid down in the initial agreement, and that, in terms of access to the preferences granted by the EU, it will not therefore make any difference whatsoever whether or not products are of Sahrawi origin;
Amendment 53 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Rejects the argument of the legality of the certification of products of Western Sahara by the Moroccan health authorities with regard to the decision of the Court of Justice declaring the two territories separate and distinct;
Amendment 54 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
Amendment 60 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Points out that the EU and Morocco have negotiated, as set out in the initial agreement concluded in 2012, an ambitious and comprehensive agreement on protecting the geographical indications and designations of origin of agricultural products, processed agricultural products, fish and fishery products that provides for the protection by Morocco of the full list of the EU’s geographical indications; points out, furthermore, that the procedure for concluding the agreement, which began in 2015, was suspended following the Court’s judgment of 21 December 2016; calls for that procedure to be resumed and finalised as soon as possible in conjunction with the conclusion of the agreement considered in this opinion.
Amendment 62 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Calls therefore on the Committee on International Trade, as the committee responsible, to propose that the European Parliament decline its consent.