ddrg/super_eurlex huggingface dataset:
49.

Recognises the special responsibility on the part of cities to tackle climate change given that they account for 70 % of global CO 2 emissions, and reiterates Parliament’s commitment to achieving the successful global roll-out of the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, including the Initiative on Climate Change Adaptation (‘Mayors Adapt initiative’), the Under 2 Degrees Memorandum of Understanding, the Pact of Amsterdam and the Regions Adapt initiative; believes that the commitments made in the Paris City Hall Declaration in 2015 will only be met through engagement with the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, and encourages all EU and non-EU cities to join the Covenant of Mayors and without prejudice to their participation in other sectoral or institutional networks with the same objectives to commit to ambitious climate action and to organise exchanges of experiences of good practices; notes that a number of Action Plans submitted by cities contain commitments through to 2020 and therefore urges that additional work be undertaken by these cities up to 2030; believes that the EU should continue to give cities autonomy to plan their climate mitigation strategies as they often result in more ambitious targets;
F.

whereas sexual harassment is a form of violence and is the most extreme, yet persistent, form of gender-based discrimination; whereas some 90 % of victims of sexual harassment are female and approximately 10 % are male; whereas, according to the EU-wide FRA study of 2014 entitled ‘Violence against women’, one in three women have experienced physical or sexual violence during their adult lives; whereas up to 55 % of women have been sexually harassed in the EU; whereas 32 % of all victims in the EU reported that the perpetrator was a superior, colleague or customer; whereas 75 % of women in professions requiring specific qualifications or in senior management jobs have been sexually harassed; whereas 61 % of women employed in the service sector have been subjected to sexual harassment; whereas, overall, 5-10 % of the European workforce is at any one time being subjected to bullying at the workplace;
18.

Expresses concern about the findings of the report drawn up by its Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs and its Committee on Budgetary Control following their fact-finding mission to Slovakia, stating that the selection of top prosecutors is believed to be highly politicised and that there have been a number of allegations of corruption against top officials which did not lead to a proper investigation; calls on the Slovak authorities to strengthen the impartiality of law enforcement and to address the key findings and recommendations of the report on Parliament’s fact-finding mission; asks the Slovak Government and Parliament to take all the necessary steps to restore the public’s trust in the state institutions, including the police;
AA.

whereas although it is difficult to accurately assess the precise contribution of aquaculture to marine litter, it is estimated that 80 % of marine debris is plastic and micro-plastic, and that somewhere between 20 % and 40 % of that marine plastic litter is partly linked to human activities at sea, including commercial and cruise ships, with the rest originating on land, and whereas, according to a recent FAO study (12), around 10 % comes from lost and discarded fishing gear; whereas lost and discarded fishing gear is one component of marine plastic litter and an estimated 94 % of the plastic that enters the ocean ends up on the sea floor, hence the need to use the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) in order for fishermen to partake directly in ‘fishing for marine litter’ schemes, by providing them with payment or other financial and material incentives;
C.

whereas in 2010 the Israeli High Court ruled that the entire cluster of structures of Khan al-Ahmar had been built illegally, in violation of the planning and zoning laws, and therefore had to be demolished; whereas the High Court also emphasised that the Israeli authorities needed to find a suitable alternative for the school and for the residents of the community; whereas the state of Israel has stated in writing what it will provide to those families that will proceed to Jahalin West (Abu Dis), with the prospect of developing a second relocation site east of Jericho; whereas the community of Khan al-Ahmar has refused to be displaced;
38.

Recommends that the Member States consider education as one of the most important cultural activities, since promoting demand means, above all, providing people with the skills and knowledge to allow them to appreciate the arts; recalls that cultivating interest in culture is more effective if done at a young age, and considers that culture should accordingly be given more space on school curricula and that more human resources and materials should be made available in order to reach this objective; calls for schools to be given funding for visits to museums and other cultural institutions, since this will simultaneously promote interest in culture and youth participation and provide additional resources for cultural institutions;
7.

Notes the concerns put forward by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) as part of its response to the 2013 consultation on the IASB’s exposure draft on insurance contracts, on presenting the effects of changes in the discount rate partly in ‘other comprehensive income (OCI)’and partly in profit or loss, which could make financial statements too difficult to understand and thus impair the comparability of contracts with similar features; calls on the EFRAG, therefore, to liaise closely with the ESMA and to consider these concerns, if still relevant, when drawing up its endorsement advice, as part of the final requirements of IFRS 17 and to conclude whether IFRS 17 meets the endorsement criterion of understandability; notes the concerns put forward by the ESMA in its 2013 comment letter on the then proposed requirements, namely that IFRS 17 may fall short of providing sufficient clarity in the presentation of revenue, and that the determination of the discount rate and risk adjustment may hamper effective enforcement; calls on the EFRAG, therefore, to liaise closely with the ESMA and to consider these concerns, if still relevant, when drawing up its endorsement advice, as part of the final requirements of IFRS 17; notes the EBA’s concerns on IFRS 17 permitting an insurance entity to determine a discount rate using either a top-down or a bottom-up approach; calls on the EFRAG, therefore, to liaise closely with the EBA, and to consider these concerns, if still relevant, when drawing up its endorsement advice, as part of the final requirements of IFRS 17, notably whether this option might significantly increase the scope for judgement and inconsistency in application potentially leading to reduced comparability of financial information and subjective earnings’ management; welcomes the IASB’s research project on discount rates and encourages the IASB to develop a consistent and holistic approach to the methodology for estimating and applying discount rates;
32.

Recognises that the new digital environment has exacerbated the problem of the spread of disinformation, or so-called ‘fake’or ‘false’news; recalls, however, that this is not a new phenomenon, nor is it restricted to the online sphere; stresses the importance of guaranteeing the right to quality information by enhancing citizens’ access to reliable information and preventing the propagation of online and offline misinformation; recalls that the use of the term ‘fake news’should never be aimed at undermining public trust in the media or at discrediting and criminalising critical voices; expresses its concern about the potential threat the notion of fake news could pose to freedom of speech and expression and to the independence of the media, while underlining the negative effects that the spread of false news might have on the quality of political debate and on the well-informed participation of citizens in democratic society; stresses the importance of ensuring effective self-regulatory mechanisms based on the principles of accuracy and transparency, and providing for proper obligations and instruments in relation to source verification, and of fact checking by independent and impartial certified third-party fact checking organisations to assure the objectivity of information and its protection;
69.

Believes that, under the strict conditions that a level playing field in the single market can be guaranteed, that distortion of competition, especially with regard to commodities, is avoided, that consistency with WTO rules is ensured, and that the achievement of environmental and climate goals is not compromised, voluntary coupled support (VCS) payments should be maintained but only activated following an assessment by the Commission; believes that VCS serves as a tool to address the needs of sensitive sectors and specific objectives relating to the environment, climate or quality and the marketing of agricultural products, to incentivise farming practices meeting high animal welfare and environmental standards, to counteract specific difficulties, particularly those arising from the structural competitive disadvantage of less-favoured and mountainous regions, as well as difficulties which are more temporary in nature and arise from a shift away from the old entitlement scheme, for example; believes, furthermore, that VCS is also a tool to promote strategically important production, such as protein crops, in the future, or to compensate for the effects of free trade agreements; stresses, in addition, that VCS payments are important for maintaining the EU’s diversity of agricultural production, agricultural employment and sustainable production systems;
19.

Points out that the transfer of personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade-union membership, genetic data or data concerning a person’s health and sex life is extremely sensitive and gives rise to profound concerns given the different legal framework, societal characteristics and cultural background of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria compared with the European Union; highlights the fact that criminal acts are defined differently in the Union from in the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria; is of the opinion that such a transfer of data should therefore only take place in very exceptional cases and with clear safeguards for the data subject and persons linked to the data subject; considers it necessary to define specific safeguards that would need to be respected by the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria as regards fundamental rights and freedoms, including respect for freedom of expression, freedom of religion and human dignity;
50.

Notes that the EU has regulated the supply chains of timber, fish and conflict minerals and that several Member States have developed due diligence frameworks in different sectors, showing the need to develop a broad framework in order to ensure a level playing field; asks the Commission therefore to meet the growing complexity of value chains and the increasing interdependence of producers with clear transparency and due diligence obligations for the whole supply chain, since the weak enforcement of existing labour laws and occupational safety standards in sourcing countries remains a pressing issue; calls on the Commission to build on existing EU legislation in the area of conflict minerals and timber as well as the recently published OECD Due Diligence Guidance on Responsible Business Conduct; notes that global value chains (GVCs) have also led some supplier firms to ignore labour laws, relocate outside the EU and engage workers in unsafe and unacceptable conditions; recalls that these practices create unfair competition for suppliers that are compliant with labour laws and international standards, and for governments that want to improve wages and living standards; stresses the importance of decent wage levels and decent standards of safety at work for a sustainable global trading system and new GVCs; calls on the Commission to study the impact of the rise of GVCs and to present concrete proposals to improve conditions within them and to work towards a multilateral and legally binding framework for corporate accountability and responsible business conduct with regard to decent work, environmental sustainability and respect for human rights, in close cooperation with the ILO and the OECD; recognises that for the EU to pursue such a binding framework in multilateral negotiations is preferable to unilaterally imposing major rules; calls for the EU and the Member States to show leadership and step up their engagement in deliberations at the UN regarding a binding treaty on business and human rights; calls on the Commission to commit, in accordance with the four strategic objectives of the ILO Decent Work Agenda, to respecting, promoting and realising international labour standards and the fundamental principles and rights of workers;
5.

Takes the view that the digital age requires electoral laws to be adapted to this new digital reality, and suggests that conventional (‘offline’) electoral safeguards, such as rules applicable to political communications during election periods, transparency of and limits to electoral spending, respect for election silence periods and equal treatment of candidates should also apply online; is of the opinion that Member States should introduce an obligatory system of digital imprints for electronic campaigning and advertising and implement the Commission’s Recommendation aimed at enhancing the transparency of paid online political advertisements and communications; stresses that any form of political advertising should include easily accessible and understandable information on the publishing organisation and who is legally responsible for spending so that it is clear who sponsored campaigns, similar to existing requirements for printed campaign materials currently in place in various Member States; insists that citizens of the Union should be able to easily recognise online paid political advertisements and communications, and the party, foundation or organisation behind them; insists, furthermore, that transparency should also include complete information about the criteria for selecting the target group of the specific political advertising and the expected size of the target group;
26.

Expresses concern about signs of a further shrinking of space for the country’s civil society, and calls on the authorities to immediately halt undue or disproportionate criminal proceedings, some of which have been brought about through fabricated accusations, and selective justice against political opponents, their lawyers and/or their families; criticises the fact that process monitoring by EU Member States or the EEAS delegation is increasingly inhibited by the exclusion of the public from trials; expresses specific concerns about proceedings that target human rights defenders, independent judges such as Domnica Manole and Gheorghe Bălan, journalists and critics of the government or of the President of the Democratic Party of Moldova, Vladimir Plahotniuc; urges the authorities to guarantee the right to a fair trial and the respect of human rights in detention premises; stresses the need for effective investigations into allegations of torture in detention and psychiatric institutions; calls on the authorities also to guarantee freedom of assembly and expression and, in particular, the holding of peaceful demonstrations, and for the strict respect of this fundamental right in accordance with international standards;
7.

Recalls that there is no common EU standard for minority rights in the EU, nor a common understanding of who can be considered a person belonging to a minority; notes that there is no definition of minorities in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, nor in the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM); underlines the need to protect all national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, regardless of definition, and stresses that any definition should be applied in a flexible manner, as de facto inclusion of beneficiaries under the protection of minority rights often forms part of an evolutionary process that may eventually lead to formal recognition; recommends that, with respect to the principles of subsidiarity, proportionality and non-discrimination, a definition of a ‘national minority’ should be based on the definition laid down in Recommendation 1201 of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (1993) for an additional protocol on the rights of minorities to the European Convention on Human Rights, i.e. a group of persons in a state who: — reside on the territory of that state and are citizens thereof; — maintain long-standing, firm and lasting ties with that state; — display distinctive ethnic, cultural, religious or linguistic characteristics; — are sufficiently representative, although smaller in number than the rest of the population of that state or of a region of that state; — are motivated by a concern to preserve together that which constitutes their common identity, including their culture, their tradition, their religion or their language;
4.

Welcomes the Commission’s intention to present an Action Plan for Cultural Heritage and emphasises the need to focus on both tangible and intangible aspects of Europe’s heritage and on the links it has with contemporary artistic and creative projects and expression; stresses, moreover, the need to create a permanent structured dialogue with stakeholders for gathering knowledge, capacity-building and coordinating advocacy for cultural heritage in Europe, as a way to consolidate the long-term legacy of the European Year of Cultural Heritage, and to assist with the implementation of the Action Plan; underlines that this structured dialogue should include all cultural, creative and heritage sectors; calls on the Member States, furthermore, to prepare complementary Action Plans at national level, and considers the Action Plan to be an opportunity to address all the issues raised within the 10 European initiatives beyond the EYCH 2018 and to bring forward the recommendations issued during the EYCH 2018;
29.

Supports a debate within the EU about new formats, including the proposal set out by Commission President Juncker in his State of the Union Address on 12 September 2018 to move to qualified majority voting (QMV) in specific areas of the CFSP where the Treaties currently require unanimity, notably human rights issues, sanctions and civilian missions; encourages the Member States to examine ways in which they can act more effectively in the context of the CFSP and CSDP; believes that the use of QMV would enable the EU to act more resolutely, quickly and effectively; calls on the European Council to take up this initiative by making use of the passerelle clause (Article 31(3) of the TEU); encourages the European Council to consider extending QMV to other areas of the CFSP as part of a wider debate on the use of majority voting for EU policies; recognises the need to look for creative solutions for future cooperation between the European Union and the United Kingdom in the area of CFSP and CSDP, bearing in mind the principles laid down in its resolution of 14 March 2018 on the framework of the future EU-UK relationship;
(w)

to pursue efforts to consolidate a functioning parliamentary democracy with a genuine multi-party system and constitutional checks and balances, as well as to ensure parliamentary oversight of the executive branch, as one of the pilot countries for EU democracy support; to relay its concern about the constitutional amendments of 2016, in particular a substantial reinforcement of the prime minister’s powers, the supremacy of the national courts’ rulings over international human rights treaties and the loss of independence of the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court; to encourage the involvement of NGOs when developing and reviewing the country’s legislation and policies, in particular with respect to any instruments or mechanisms that directly affect the action of civil society organisations;
50.

Highlights the commonly agreed aims and targets of the energy union and points specifically to the dimension of security, decarbonisation of the economy, solidarity and trust; underlines the importance of ensuring that European energy markets are built on the rule of law, competition, diversity of energy sources and suppliers, predictability and transparency and to prevent any market operator, established in the union or in a third country, from leveraging a dominant position to the detriment of competitors and consumers; calls, in this regard, for increased scrutiny of, and, where necessary, measures and imposed obligations against, such market operators; notes, in particular, that the strategy employed by certain energy companies of partitioning the EU gas market and by extension potentially breaking EU antitrust rules, needs to be properly addressed; further, recognises that the legally binding commitments undertaken by the Member States as part of the Paris Climate Agreement will not be realised without concrete state measures to promote and create incentives for and enable the production and use of renewable energy; takes note of the forthcoming revision of the guidelines on State aid and energy, which shall no longer exclude two of the sectors that benefit the most from state subsidies, namely nuclear energy and fossil fuel extraction, and provide for greater flexibility for consumer-generated renewable energy; highlights the importance of completing the energy union through the integration of markets, notably by investing in interconnectors where needed and based on market conditions and commercial potential, and by increasing the tradable capacity in existing interconnections; emphasises, therefore, that any State aid approval for capacity mechanisms must be subject to a strict necessity test including an examination of alternative measures, notably more efficient use of existing interconnectors; underlines that capacity mechanisms often represent considerable costs for consumers and function as a ‘hidden subsidy’, supporting unprofitable and polluting power stations, which makes it necessary to ensure that these schemes are not open to the most polluting assets when approving any State aid granted to them;
26.

Calls, once again, on the Saudi authorities to put a stop to any further flogging of Raif Badawi, and to release him immediately and unconditionally; insists that all senior representatives of the EU, notably the VP/HR and all Commissioners, systematically raise the case of Raif Badawi in their contacts with their Saudi counterparts, and request to meet with him during their visits to the country; commits to stepping up its efforts in support of his release; calls on its President to travel to Riyadh in order to bring up the case of the Sakharov Prize laureates directly with the authorities;