10 Amendments of Dennis de JONG related to 2018/2046(BUD)
Amendment 86 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 34 a (new)
Paragraph 34 a (new)
34 a. Regrets that after the publication, on 3 February 2014, of its first EU Anti- Corruption report, the Commission refused to continue this practice of annual reports and instead integrated anti-corruption policies in the Economic Semester; notes that the country-specific reports in the context of the economic semester do not contain a clear description of the state of play, nor do they contain recommendations on anti- corruption measures for all Member States; urges the Commission once more to submit to Parliament a second EU Anti-Corruption report, and in this context not to evaluate anti-corruption efforts only in terms of economic loss but to also analyse the detrimental effects of corruption for the fundamental rights of European citizens;
Amendment 107 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 50 a (new)
Paragraph 50 a (new)
50 a. Considers that in its resolution of 18 April 2018 on the Integrity Policy of the Commission, Parliament expressed its concerns with the appointment procedures for its senior officials, reiterates its call on the Commission to review before the end of 2018 its administrative procedure for the appointment of senior officials with the objective of fully ensuring that the best candidates are selected within a framework of maximum transparency and equal opportunities; calls on the Commission to also review its recruitment policies for officials more generally with a view to avoid conflicts of interest, such as were noted by NGO’s (https://corporateeurope.org/power- lobbies-revolving- doors/2018/04/financial-regulators-and- private-sector-permanent-revolving);
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 51
Paragraph 51
51. Endorses, as a general rule, the Commission's estimates of the budgetary needs of agencies; considers, therefore, that any further cuts proposed by the Council would endanger the proper functioning of the agencies and would not allow them to fulfil the tasks they have been assigned; is concerned that in general the visibility of agencies for European citizens is still limited, whereas for their accountability and independence a high level of visibility is required;
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 51 a (new)
Paragraph 51 a (new)
51 a. Recalls that most of the agencies pointed out that they do not want to be dependent on fees, which do not guarantee a steady flow of income; furthermore, stresses that conflicts of interest as a consequence of having to rely on fees should be avoided; calls upon the Commission to examine the possibility of introducing a system whereby the fees are paid to the Commission instead of to the agencies directly and that the agencies continue to be funded through the EU- budget;
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 61 a (new)
Paragraph 61 a (new)
61 a. Acknowledges that, according to the European Court of Auditors, the costs of the geographic dispersion of Parliament amount to EUR 114 million per year and notes the finding, in its resolution of 20 November 2013 [Texts adopted, P7_TA(2013)0498] on the location of the seats of the European Union’s Institutions, that 78 % of all missions by Parliament staff coming under the Staff Regulations arise as a direct result of the fact that Parliament’s services are geographically dispersed; recalls that the estimate of the environmental impact of that dispersal is between 11 000 to 19 000 tonnes of CO2 emissions; reiterates its call on the Council to develop a comprehensive strategy in order to agree on a single seat for Parliament;
Amendment 138 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 62 a (new)
Paragraph 62 a (new)
62 a. Takes note of the Bureau decision to decide to select two options, structural renovation and redesign, for further elaboration of the PHS building; urges the Secretary-General and the Bureau to publish a detailed budget for each of these options in addition to all technical specifications;
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 64 a (new)
Paragraph 64 a (new)
64 a. Takes note of the decision of 25 September 2018 of the General Court confirming the Parliament’s refusal to grant access to documents relating to MEPs’ subsistence allowances, travel expenses and parliamentary assistance allowances (Judgment in Cases T-639/15 to T-666/15 Maria Psara and Others vParliament and T-94/16 Gavin Sheridan vParliament); reminds the Bureau that the plenary has appealed for greater transparency and an urgent need to audit the General Expenditure Allowance; welcomed, in this regard, the creation of an ad hoc working group for defining and publishing the rules concerning the use of the general expenditure allowance; regrets, however, that the based on the report of its working group the Bureau could only agree on a non-exhaustive list of eligible expenses, and on the need for each Member of Parliament to have a separate bank account dedicated to funds received as part of the General Expenditure Allowance; reiterates its call on the Bureau to make the following additional changes concerning the General Expenditure Allowance: - all receipts pertaining to the General Expenditure Allowance shall be kept by Members; - the unspent share of the General Expenditure Allowance shall be returned at the end of the mandate;
Amendment 150 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 66
Paragraph 66
66. recalls that, in a note to the Bureau dated 8 March 2018, its Secretary-General accepted that the pension fund linked to the Member’s voluntary pension scheme “will exhaust its capital well before the end of the pension obligations and possibly already by 2024”; recalls furtherefmore upon the Secretary-General and the Bureau, while respecting fully the Statute for Members, to urgently establish with the pension fund a clear plan for the Parliament assuming and taking over its obligations and responsibilities for itsthat Parliament is the guarantor for the payment of pension rights when and if this fund is unable to meet its obligations; expresses its serious concerns with the fact that this way tax-payers money is wasted; asks the Secretary-General to develop proposals for dissolving the fund, while returning to participating (former) Member’s voluntary pension scheme immediately after the 2019 electionthe contributions they paid themselves;
Amendment 154 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 68 a (new)
Paragraph 68 a (new)
68 a. Recalls the 2014 ECA analysis which estimated the costs of the geographic dispersion of the Parliament to be EUR 114 million per year; furthermore, notes the finding from its resolution of 20 November 2013 on the location of the seats of the European Union’s Institutions1a that 78 % of all missions by Parliament statutory staff arise as a direct result of the Parliament's geographic dispersion; emphasises that the report also estimates the environmental impact of the geographic dispersion to be between 11 000 to 19 000 tonnes of CO2 emissions; reiterates the negative public perception caused by this dispersion and calls therefore for a roadmap to a single seat and a reduction in the relevant budget lines; _________________ 1a OJ C 436, 24.11.2016, p. 2.
Amendment 157 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 76
Paragraph 76
76. Maintains unchanged the overall level of the Ombudsman’s budget for 2019 as proposed by the Commission in the DB; stresses that the number of cases at the European Ombudsmanhas increased significantly and that the Office of the European Ombudsman risks of becoming quickly understaffed and underfunded; stresses that, moreover, this lack of resources may hinder the Ombudsman taking up new and highly necessary tasks, such as the assistance of whistleblowers inside the EU-institutions, which the Ombudsman expressed her willingness to take upon herself, if Commission and Parliament were to decide that an EU referral body for whistle blowers is required;