ddrg/super_eurlex huggingface dataset:
17.

Calls on the President of Parliament and Parliament’s administration: — to urgently and thoroughly examine the recent media reports on sexual harassment and abuse in the European Parliament, while respecting the privacy of the victims, to share the findings with its Members and to propose adequate measures to prevent new cases; — to evaluate and, if necessary, revise the composition of competent bodies so as to ensure independence and gender balance, and to further reinforce and promote the functioning of its Advisory Committee dealing with complaints of harassment between APAs and Members of Parliament as well as its Staff Advisory Committee for Parliament staff on harassment prevention, while acknowledging their important work; — to revise its rules to also include trainees in all Advisory Committees on harassment prevention and to reinforce interest in strengthening their positive measures, and to avoid conflicts of interest regarding members of those important committee structures; to investigate formal cases, to maintain a confidential register of cases over time, and to adopt the best means to ensure zero tolerance at all levels in the institution; — to set up a task force of independent experts to be convened with a mandate to examine the situation of sexual harassment and abuse in Parliament, which will carry out an evaluation of Parliament’s existing Advisory Committee dealing with complaints of sexual harassment between APAs and Members of Parliament and the Staff Advisory Committee for Parliament staff on harassment prevention, and propose adequate changes; — to fully support victims in procedures within Parliament and/or with the local police; to activate emergency protection or safeguarding measures where necessary and to fully implement Article 12a of the Staff Regulations, ensuring that cases are fully investigated and disciplinary measures applied; — to ensure the implementation of a strong and effective action plan against sexual harassment in the interest of prevention and support and mandatory training for all staff and Members on respect and dignity at work so as to ensure that a zero-tolerance approach becomes the norm; to fully engage in awareness-raising campaigns with all Members and services of the administration, with a special focus on groups in the most vulnerable positions, such as trainees, APAs and contract agents; — to set up an institutional network of confidential counsellors tailored to Parliament’s structures to support, advise and speak on behalf of victims, when needed, as is the practice for the Commission staff;
11.

Calls on the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy to urgently raise the case of Somphone Phimmasone, Lod Thammavong and Soukane Chaithad with the Government of Laos; calls on the EU Delegation to Laos to closely monitor the human rights situation in the country and, specifically, to be present at any proceedings held against Phimmasone, Thammavong and Chaithad, and to continue to raise the cases of jailed and missing individuals with the Lao authorities;
65.

Stresses the need for any e-evidence framework to include sufficient safeguards for the rights and freedoms of all concerned; highlights that this should include a requirement that requests for e-evidence be directed in the first instance to the controllers or owners of the data, in order to ensure respect for their rights, as well as the rights of those to whom the data relates (for example their entitlement to assert legal privilege and to seek legal redress in the case of disproportionate or otherwise unlawful access); also highlights the need to ensure that any legal framework protects providers and all other parties from requests that could create conflicts of law or otherwise impinge on the sovereignty of other states;
1.

Welcomes the conclusion of the Partnership Agreement on Relations and Cooperation (PARC), which will provide a forward-looking political framework within which EU-New Zealand relations and cooperation on sustainable development and a comprehensive range of issues will be developed even further for years to come in order to match new ambitions and aspirations;
12.

Highlights the importance of the EU incorporating demographic considerations throughout the policy spectrum, including in its budget headings, in order to enable the development of these policies, particularly in cohesion, employment, agriculture, environment, the information society, RDI (research, development and innovation), employment, education, social policy, and transport; considers that the findings of demographic impact reports need to be incorporated into the design of its policies and demographic criteria factored into the assessments of those policies’ outcomes and undesired effects with a view to favouring an approach to demographic change that includes the involvement of regional and local authorities; is of the opinion that special attention should be paid to rural areas which face these demographic problems particularly acutely; highlights, in this context, the potential of the Smart Villages initiative, whereby with modern technologies such as 5G and innovation, rural communities can be revitalised; stresses, in addition, the importance of strengthened cooperation between rural and urban areas; highlights the importance of providing universal access to high-quality and affordable public services and infrastructures, including digital public services and infrastructures, particularly for children, young people and the elderly, in order to foster social inclusion, ensure gender equality and alleviate the effects of demographic change; stresses the importance of providing new opportunities for paid employment, particularly in areas at risk of depopulation, in order to preserve communities and create the conditions to facilitate a satisfactory life-work balance; considers it important to insist on a global geographical vision for urban and rural areas as complementary functional spaces; stresses that greater integration between the various funds is needed, in order for there to be genuine participatory and sustainable local development; points out that EU demographic policy should aim to be more complete and more coordinated with Member States and horizontally; recalls that the European Union does not just contribute funds for regional development but also shapes to a large extent the capacity of local and regional authorities to use their own funds to combat social territorial inequalities; stresses that even if, as a result of modernising state aid, those exceptions for which notification is not required have been simplified and increased in number, the current framework is still very complex and burdensome for smaller regional and local authorities; considers that, even if public procurement regulations were simplified in 2014, there are still too many obstacles for small local and regional authorities to be able to improve the economy of these sensitive areas;
82.

Welcomes the introduction of the new WLTP; stresses, however, that in the light of the fact that research shows that the new WLTP laboratory test cycle will still diverge by around 20 % from real-world emissions and will remain open to test optimisation and manipulation, a targeted ex-post real driving emissions (RDE) methodology for CO 2 emissions should be developed to complement the WLTP; notes that this methodology could be based on measuring devices already present in vehicles, for example fuel consumption meters (FCM); notes in addition that, to that end and with a view to obtaining reliable data, a standard approach to collecting, storing, using and communicating fuel consumption values should be developed, making maximum use of sensors already present in cars while fully respecting privacy rules; calls on the Commission to consider additional solutions to curb CO 2 emissions from the transport sector, and in particular to take greater account of the contribution of lightweighting to directly reducing CO 2 emissions from vehicles;
14.

Stands with the people of Afghanistan and insists that all parties involved in the conflict adhere to international humanitarian law and respect the rights of all members of society, in particular minorities, women and children, who are disproportionately affected by the situation; urges the Afghan authorities to fully enforce the UN-Afghan action plan signed in Kabul on 30 January 2011 regarding the practice of ‘bacha bazi’ and enabling the rehabilitation of child victims of sexual abuse; condemns the attacks on hospitals and health clinics, schools and humanitarian operations; condemns in the strongest terms the continued disregard for human rights and the barbaric violence carried out by the Taliban, IS and Al-Qaeda against the people of Afghanistan; draws attention to the risk associated with the return of former war criminals, notably Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the founder of Hizb-e-Islami, who was designated a terrorist by the US in 2003 and has been associated with the increased presence of IS in Afghanistan;
30.

Proposes that the participating countries make clear commitments in terms of funding and human resources for the implementation of the MRS from the outset; calls on the Commission to help to better coordinate inside the MRS, to promote good practices and to develop incentives to encourage the active participation of and coordination between all parties concerned, also with a view to strengthening the link between EU policies and implementation of MRS; encourages, moreover, MRS to make use of green public procurement in order to boost eco-innovation, the bio-economy, the development of new business models and the use of secondary raw materials, such as in the circular economy, in order to achieve higher levels of environmental and health protection and to foster close links between producers and consumers;
I.

whereas in April 2016, the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities reviewed Uganda’s record on the implementation of the CRPD, and concluding observations and recommendations were drawn up, according to which ‘the Committee notes with concern that legislation and policies fail to provide protection for the rights of children with disabilities’and ‘is also concerned about the absence of information on the situation of deaf and deaf-blind children, and about measures to ensure their protection and inclusion in society’;
68.

Highlights that the EIB’s role in cohesion policy is increasing, especially due to the enhanced use of financial instruments in combination with grants; stresses, however, that their accessibility for final recipients is still very low and that Member States and regions point to the complexity of the procedures, laid down both in the Financial Regulation and the Common Provisions Regulation (CPR), including on disproportionate costs and fees, as well as to competition with more attractive national and regional instruments; welcomes, in this context, the setting up of the fi-compass platform as a one-stop shop for advisory services on financial instruments under cohesion policy; calls, nevertheless, for further technical assistance and simplification of the existing procedures, as well as more focus on capacity building vis-à-vis financial intermediaries, and points to the need to better link management costs and fees to the performance of the fund manager of financial instruments under the ESI funds; recalls nevertheless that grants, being an effective form of support in manifold areas of public intervention, must be maintained as the main tool for cohesion policy and that financial instruments should be concentrated in those sectors where they have higher added value than grants, their use remaining at the discretion of managing authorities; points out that a stronger framework of EIB engagement with the European Parliament needs to be promoted, in order to allow for better scrutiny of EIB activities;
19.

Reiterates that the fight against climate change requires the support of the international community as a whole; welcomes Australia’s ratification of the Paris Agreement and the commitment laid down in the FA to enhance cooperation and foreign policy endeavours in order to fight climate change; takes note of Australia’s target of reducing emissions by 26 to 28 % below 2005 levels by 2030, which was reaffirmed in the 2017 Review of Climate Change Policies; highlights the fact that this review maintains the commitment to help other countries through bilateral and multilateral initiatives; welcomes Australia’s ongoing efforts on the provision of financial support through aid programmes to the Pacific region and to vulnerable developing countries in order to enable them to grow their economies in a sustainable manner and reduce emissions and to help them adapt to climate change; underlines Australia’s co-chairmanship and funding of the Green Climate Fund;
E.

whereas employment is expected to continue to expand, with a record 235,4 million people in jobs in the second quarter of 2017; while some labour market indicators suggest persistent difficulties, such as increasing labour market segmentation, aggravating inequalities, especially with regard to young people and those with low educational attainment; whereas unemployment stands at 7,5 % in the EU and 8,9 % in the euro area, which, while the lowest levels in nine and eight years, respectively, is still too high, particularly among young people; whereas very substantial differences between many Member States persist, and whereas employment rates have still some way to go to recover from the crisis and, not the least, to attain the Europe 2020 national targets; whereas hidden unemployment (of persons unemployed, willing to work, but not actively searching for employment) stood at 20 % in 2016;
—

having regard to its various positions, recommendations and resolutions calling for an international ban on lethal autonomous weapon systems (LAWS), such as its recommendation to the Council of 5 July 2018 on the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly (1), the mandate to start negotiations adopted in plenary on 13 March 2018 with a view to the adoption of a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the European Defence Industrial Development Programme, its resolution of 13 December 2017 on the Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World 2016 and the European Union’s policy on the matter (2), its recommendation to the Council of 7 July 2016 on the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly (3), and its resolution of 27 February 2014 on armed drones (4),
117.

Recalls the essential role of Parliament as a co-legislator in the regulation establishing the next MFF; reiterates its willingness to work with the Commission, EEAS and Council to optimise the architecture of the external financing instruments; stresses, however, that the objective of any restructuring of the instruments should be increased transparency, accountability, efficiency, coherence as well as flexibility; stresses that these objectives cannot be achieved without a governance structure that allows for political control, is strategy driven, inclusive and accountable; stresses that Parliament will not accept any reform of the instruments without a solid governance structure; urges the Commission and EEAS to propose a plan for the reform of the instruments that includes such a governance structure; underlines the discrepancies between the findings of the mid-term review and the Commission’s proposals to reform the current structure; underlines, furthermore, that robust democratic and transparent scrutiny by national parliaments and the European Parliament must be ensured;
M.

whereas on 7 August 2018 Belarus’ Investigative Committee opened a criminal case under Article 349(2) of the Criminal Code punishable by up to two years in prison (illegal access to computer information committed out of other personal interest which caused substantial harm) against journalists and editors of a number of online resources and arrested 18 journalists, seven of whom were detained as suspects for three days; whereas there have been cases of pressure being put on journalists and their relatives and of them being forced to cooperate with the intelligence service and police;
30.

Calls for better, easier and more transparent access to finance for local and regional authorities, including through the strengthening of their administrative capacities and through heightened cooperation with the EIB, within the framework of the European Investment Advisory Hub, to enable increased investments in green jobs, waste management, smart specialisation, further development of rural areas including as regards the necessary infrastructure and environmentally friendly technologies, the shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources and the local energy transition, including energy efficiency, decentralised distribution of energy, clean energy innovation and the circular economy; welcomes the fact that the EIB has provided over the past five years about EUR 2,4 billion in co-financing for circular economy projects for waste management, water management or agricultural research and development; stresses the importance of better coordination of the ESI Funds and the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) in the field of the circular economy, also with a view to ensuring that programmes include a regional approach and make better use of regional potential for sustainable energy sources;
3.

Considers that the role of additional sources such as the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) and financial instruments needs to be defined in view of their complementarity to the ERDF and CF and their additionality to EIB lending operations; notes that the 2017 CEF Transport Blending Call has also been designed to strengthen those synergies, but also the exchange of best practices between Member States and that further support for capacity is needed; highlights in this regard that EFSI should serve as a platform for public-private partnerships (PPPs) in matching financial instruments to private investment and to national/regional financing at project level; notes that bankable infrastructure projects should primarily be supported by loans, EU guarantees or blending, in addition to ERDF, CF or CEF funding; believes, however, that grants should continue to be the main financial source of investment for funding sustainable public transport;
5.

Deplores state and non-state actors’ violations of the freedom of expression in Somalia; is concerned by the autocratic approach of the present administration and some of the regional state administrations, resulting in the arrest of political opponents and peaceful critics; considers any intimidation, harassment, detention or killing of journalists and civil society activists as absolutely unacceptable; requests that the Somali authorities stop using NISA to intimidate independent journalists and political opponents; calls on the government and the EU, as part of its rule of law activities in Somalia, to ensure that NISA is regulated with effective oversight mechanisms; asserts that freedom of expression and thought is indispensable for the development of a strong and democratic society; calls on the Federal Government of Somalia to ensure that the right to freedom of expression is fully respected; calls on the Somali Government to review the penal code, the new media law and other legislation in order to bring them into line with Somalia’s international obligations regarding the right to freedom of expression and the media;
8.

Supports the Commission proposals on the reform of the EU own resources system, which represents a very positive revenue component of the 2021-2027 MFF package; welcomes, therefore, the proposed introduction of three new EU own resources and the simplification of the current VAT-based own resource; underlines that these proposals, directly inspired by the work of the interinstitutional High-Level Group on Own Resources, were also part of the proposed basket put forward by Parliament in its resolution of 14 March 2018; notes with satisfaction that these new resources correspond to two strategic objectives of the Union, namely the proper functioning of the internal market and the protection of the environment and the fight against climate change; expects the support of the Council and the Commission in order to reinforce Parliament’s role in the procedure for the adoption of own resources; recalls once more its position that the expenditure and revenue side of the next MFF should be treated as a single package in the upcoming negotiations, and that no agreement can be reached with Parliament on the MFF without corresponding headway being made on own resources;
54.

Notes that regions and cities play an increasingly important role as regards sustainable development, given that they are directly affected by climate change, that their growth has a direct impact on the climate and that they are becoming more active in the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change, sometimes in the light of the opposing policies of their national governments; reiterates the key importance of cities and regions in introducing innovations and environmental protection measures, using green technologies, investing in skills, training and increasing competitiveness by developing pure technologies at local level; calls, therefore for the EU to further intensify its relations with local and regional authorities and indigenous peoples in third countries and overseas countries and territories (OCTs), to enhance thematic and sectoral cooperation between cities and regions both within and outside the EU, to develop adaptation and resilience initiatives, and to strengthen sustainable development models and emission reduction plans in key sectors such as energy, industry, technology, agriculture and transport in both urban and rural areas, e.g. through twinning programmes, through the International Urban Cooperation programme, through support for platforms such as the Covenant of Mayors and by building new fora for exchanging best practice; calls on the EU and the Member States to support efforts by regional and local actors to introduce regionally and locally determined contributions (similar to NDCs) where climate ambition can be increased through this process; notes the role EU delegations in third countries can play in this regard;
20.

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 Arab Republic of Egypt compared with the European Union; highlights the fact that criminal acts are defined differently in the Union from in the Arab Republic of Egypt; 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 Arab Republic of Egypt as regards fundamental rights and freedoms, including respect for freedom of expression, freedom of religion and human dignity;