26.2.2016   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 75/150

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having regard to the Commission Communication on the Commission Work Programme for 2013 (COM(2012)0629),

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having regard to the Europe 2020 Strategy,

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having regard to the Conclusions of the European Council of 27—28 June 2013,

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having regard to the last Framework Agreement on relations between the European Parliament and the Commission (1), in particular Annex IV thereto,

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having regard to Rule 35(3) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.

whereas the long crisis will not be overcome without a significant further deepening of European integration, and the financial, economic and debt crises have emphasised the need for reinforced democratic control and accountability;

B.

whereas the Commission should bring forward measures to preserve and strengthen the European social market economy models, with a view to repairing the damage done by the long recession and restoring full employment and sustainable growth;

C.

whereas the fragility of the banking system, the continuing debt and deficit problems faced by Member States, the loss of European competitiveness in the global economy, high youth unemployment and the social hardship which results from economic decline present the EU with unprecedented challenges;

D.

whereas budgetary choices at Union level must meet the EU’s political priorities, not only in terms of amount but also in terms of flexibility and equilibrium;

E.

whereas the role of the Commission is to promote the general interest of the EU, to take appropriate initiatives to that end, to ensure the application of the Treaties, to oversee the implementation of EU law, to exercise coordinating, executive and management functions, and to initiate legislation;

F.

whereas at the end of the current electoral mandate, all unfinished business lapses unless Parliament, the Council or the Commission make a reasoned request that specific items which have made significant progress in the ordinary legislative procedure be resumed by the newly elected Parliament;

1.

Calls for a deeper democratic process in the field of economic governance, with closer involvement of Parliament, that will contribute to improving citizens’ confidence in EU management of the crisis; considers, in this connection, that the Commission should fulfil its Treaty role, which is incompatible with delegating a decision-making role in EU economic governance to unaccountable bodies; is concerned, in particular, to improve the accountability of the Commission when it acts in its capacity as a member of the Troika;

2.

Considers that, following the conclusion of the political negotiations on the MFF 2014-20, the Commission should ensure as a matter of priority the smooth functioning of the new financial framework, including the new rules on flexibility agreed in the framework of these negotiations; expects that the new Commission will, at the moment of its investiture, make a formal commitment to conduct the MFF revision by the end of 2016, which will also allow the new Parliament to reassess EU priorities;

3.

Is particularly concerned about the payments situation in 2014 and urges the Commission to come forward with amending budgets in the course of the year, whenever the need arises;

4.

Stresses the importance it attaches to the issue of reforming the system of EU own resources; calls on the Commission to ensure that the High-Level Group on own resources is convened and starts working as soon as possible, in order to ensure that a first set of findings is available by the end of 2014, as provided for in the Joint Declaration on Own Resources agreed as part of the MFF agreement;

5.

Recalls that the EU budget needs to reflect the EU’s policy priorities; stresses that the EU budget is an investment budget with a strong leverage effect; urges the Commission to defend the EU budget in order to boost strategic investment through European added value and put the European economy back on track;

6.

Believes that jobs are the top priority and that all available levies at European level must be used to preserve existing jobs and to create new ones for young people, especially in the fields of services, industry and the digital economy; believes, therefore, that investments to strengthen the EU’s competitiveness will play a key role in the next year and in the years to follow;

7.

Welcomes the commitment of the European Council of 27—28 June 2013 to complete the building of a genuine Economic and Monetary Union, involving all the elements of the Banking Union, more effective coordination of economic policies, the development of financial solidarity mechanisms and the strengthening of the social dimension, but regrets the failure to make more rapid progress; calls on the Commission to come forward with a communication on the social dimension of the EMU;

8.

Insists on the early completion of all the legislation necessary to put in place a single supervisory mechanism based on the European Central Bank;

9.

Supports the Europe 2020 growth strategy, the objective of which is to put in place the right policy framework for encouraging enterprise, creating jobs, raising living standards and developing a sustainable economy;

10.

Highlights the need to improve the macroeconomic environment for industry, improving access to capital, providing better infrastructure, protecting property rights and supporting SMEs in particular, in order to increase their competitiveness and access to new markets;

11.

Calls for action to complete the Commission’s current work programme before the end of its mandate, in particular with respect to the single market in services, the digital agenda, the internal market in energy, and the extension of deep, free and fair trade agreements;

12.

Urges the Commission to intensify and reinforce its efforts to protect the financial interests of the EU, to make a proposal on the establishment of a European Public Prosecutor’s Office and to complete delayed reform of the European Anti-Fraud Office;

13.

Proposes to engage in intensive negotiation with the Council and Commission before the end of its mandate to complete as many dossiers as possible, fully respecting the legislative procedures as laid down in the Lisbon Treaty; reiterates that it cannot accept any further intergovernmental elements relating to the EMU;

14.

Calls on the Commission to take due note of the sector-specific positions of Parliament as set out in Part 2 of this resolution;

15.

Urges the Commission to improve the coherence of its legislative programme, to raise the quality of its legislative drafting, to strengthen its impact assessment of draft laws, to propose wherever appropriate the use of correlation tables with a view to better transposition of EU law, and to back Parliament in its negotiations with the Council on the use of delegated and implementing acts, which risk causing significant blockages in the legislative process;

16.

Urges the Commission to propose the introduction of proper national management declarations signed at the appropriate political level covering EU funds under shared management; stresses the need to keep strict and credible scrutiny through close controls on funding and to monitor the cost-effectiveness of EU financing and administration, thus ensuring high value for money of EU action, but also ensuring that revenues are collected in accordance with the applicable rules;

17.

Believes that cooperation between the EU institutions must be improved and modernised in order to become more efficient and allow for deeper democratic scrutiny of the executive powers at EU level; notes that the 2010 Interinstitutional Agreement needs to be revised; calls for closer coordination with the Council, in accordance with the Lisbon Treaty; stresses that the Community method, which allows public debates through the democratic involvement of Parliament must always be favoured; believes, moreover, that complex legislation, especially in the field of financial services, warrants sufficiently large public and parliamentary debate;

18.

Regrets, despite successive promises made by the Commission, the failure to transpose several announced goals into reality, both in quantitative and qualitative terms; urges the Commission to engage with the two co-legislators in an intensive dialogue on delivery and on adoption of the remaining announced legislative proposals;

19.

Urges the Commission to facilitate the rapid completion of the trilogue on the European political party statute in time for the elections to the European Parliament;

20.

Recalls the key role played by the single market as an engine for EU integration, economic growth and employment and as a pillar of the EU real economy; calls, therefore, on the Commission to focus on Single Market Governance in order to streamline the adoption and enforcement of legislative and policy priorities and to develop a regular assessment of single market integration — based on the single market integration report accompanying the annual growth surveys (AGSs) and on country-specific recommendations — within the European Semester framework;

21.

Calls on the Commission to continue to focus on improving the governance of the single market, to renew its drive to administrative simplification, to give due weight to the consideration of the proportionality of proposed measures, and to monitor progress with a view to the full implementation of the single market acquis, especially in the services sector;

22.

Welcomes the Commission’s Single Market Act II proposals for priority actions to boost growth, employment and confidence in the single market;

23.

Urges the full application of the Services Directive; calls on the Commission to assist Member States in promoting access to the single market for services; asks the Commission to review restrictive practices in place, such as the ‘economic needs test’;

24.

Calls on the Commission to monitor carefully and rigorously the implementation and enforcement of the Consumer Agenda, consumer protection and confidence in the single market; asks the Commission, given that consumer trust and confidence is the foundation of a well-functioning single market, actively to pursue, with the Member States, the speedy implementation of the Consumer Rights Directive, Alternative Dispute Resolution Directive and Online Dispute Resolution Regulation, and to review the operation of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive;

25.

Welcomes the new Consumer Product Safety Regulation, which guarantees consumer health and safety but also facilitates trade in goods, especially for SMEs;

26.

Urges the Commission to implement the Modernised Customs Code by fully developing harmonised e-customs practices;

27.

Calls on the Commission to be more systematic in assessing the impact of its proposals on SMEs on which Europe relies for many new jobs; in this regard, urges the Commission actively to discourage ‘gold-plating’ of EU law at national level, something which distorts the level playing field in the single market;

28.

Underlines the importance of taking measures to improve access to finance for SMEs; calls on the Commission to strengthen and implement the measures foreseen in the Entrepreneurship Action Plan and to accelerate the adoption of an entrepreneurship initiative; calls for an SME Window financing facility under the future COSME and Horizon 2020 Programmes, involving the EIF and the EIB, to be swiftly launched to facilitate public and private funds investments in innovative and sustainable new businesses, including growth-oriented SMEs;

29.

Requests that the Commission enforce the agreement between the three institutions to make good on their better lawmaking commitments, including Member States, which should all be encouraged by the Commission to carry out their own SME and single market tests; in this regard, notes that the Council should set up its own impact assessment unit to produce impact assessments on its own amendments; stresses the importance of fitness checks in the Better Regulation agenda;

30.

Calls on the Commission to promote the interests of SMEs and microenterprises by ensuring easier access to Europe’s single market; welcomes the steps already taken by the Commission to reduce regulatory burdens on SMEs and microenterprises arising from EU legislation;

31.

Calls on the Commission to table a legislative proposal on better governance of the single market, based on the legislative initiative report thereon, in view of the key contribution that the single market can make to growth in the European Union;

32.

Welcomes political agreement on the public procurement and concessions package; urges the Commission and the Member States to begin a speedy and comprehensive implementation of its new provisions; calls, in particular, for the development of a communication and training strategy to promote new skills and capabilities in innovative and outcome-based procurement;

33.

Notes the agreement now confirmed with the Council on reforms of the Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications Directive; calls for the early implementation of the new provisions and new professions to be encouraged to establish European qualifications frameworks;

34.

Welcomes the Commission proposal on disclosure of non-financial information and calls on the Commission to work closely with Parliament and the Council to reach a conclusion by early 2014;

35.

Reiterates its request for a proposal on a 14th Company Law Directive on the cross-border transfer of company seats;

36.

Calls for a revitalisation of Europe’s industry, with the aim of creating jobs, supporting sustainable growth and ensuring good working conditions for all Europeans;

37.

Requests that the Commission promote a further single market initiative by putting forward proposals to develop, complete and implement the digital single market, such as a new strategic framework encompassing availability and the EU cross-border portability of digital content, and, in particular, initiatives to generate more consumer trust, including measures to facilitate online payments and improve digital delivery and infrastructures;

38.

Urges the Commission to pursue its copyright reform, to ensure that it is fit for the internet environment; reiterates the need to complete industrial property rights reform to boost Europe’s growth and job creation;

39.

Considers it essential for the stability the EU economy, and for a return to sustainable economic growth, to successfully establish a Banking Union through the setting-up of the single supervisory mechanism together with a single resolution mechanism for banks and an EU framework for the national deposit guarantee schemes; asks the Commission, in this connection, to present without delay all necessary proposals, along with the regulatory technical standards needed for the proper implementation of the CRD 4 package;

40.

Stresses that in the interest of further enhancing the efficiency and robustness of the Union’s financial markets as quickly as possible, the pending Commission proposals on financial services must be adopted swiftly, thus avoiding delays in the entry into force of the relevant legislation;

41.

Calls on the Commission to adopt as quickly as possible its proposals on a draft regulation establishing a Single Resolution Mechanism and on the follow-up to the recommendations on bank structural reform; underlines the importance of the co-legislators dealing swiftly with these proposals, to allow their speedy entry into force;

42.

Points out that research and innovation are vital to EU competitiveness, through the establishment of research and innovation programmes, the simplification of procedures, the pooling and coordination of financing at all relevant levels (EU/Member State/region) and the establishment of synergies between European programmes, and calls on the Commission to implement these principles;

43.

Notes the agreement on Horizon 2020 to enable a seamless transition from FP7 and to ensure the continuity of the EU’s core research and innovation policy, which has suffered in past programmes as a result of last-minute agreements being concluded between the Council and Parliament;

44.

Calls on the Commission to come up with an appropriate proposal for a common EU definition of tax havens and to introduce a black list of non-cooperative third countries and jurisdictions; urges Member States to follow up on their commitments to implement the Commission’s recommendations on measures intended to encourage third countries to apply minimum standards of good governance in tax matters and aggressive tax planning, and to take the necessary measures to strengthen the fight against tax fraud and tax evasion;

45.

Insists on the need to implement the roadmap to a resource-efficient Europe in order to create incentives for the development of the green economy, the fostering of biodiversity and the fight against climate change, including the integration of resource efficiency measures in the European Semester, as foreseen in Europe 2020;

46.

Calls on the Commission to bring forward without delay proposals to address the structural weaknesses of the current Emissions Trading System;

47.

Expects the Commission to submit without further delay legislative proposals to revise the air quality legislation, in order to deliver enhanced protection from the negative impacts of air pollution on human health;

48.

Stresses that achieving a comprehensive UN climate agreement in 2015 in line with the EU 2 oC objective is of the highest priority, and recognises that decisions on the EU climate and energy policy framework in 2014 will be necessary in order to spur momentum in international negotiations to achieve that goal;

49.

Urges the Commission to speed up work on the revision of the hygiene package, given recent events surrounding fraudulent practices related to meat products in the EU;

50.

Asks the Commission to come up with an overall review of the EU’s waste policy and legislation, including the targets of the waste acquis and the diversion targets of the Landfill Directive;

51.

Calls on the Commission to present a detailed action plan of measures designed to achieve a fully integrated and interconnected single market in energy; highlights the need to provide consumers with transparent and comparable energy prices;

52.

Stresses once more that energy efficiency and savings are the cheapest way to reduce energy costs and lower fossil fuel imports, and should therefore be at the core of any energy policy measure proposed;

53.

Emphasises the need to complete the single market for all modes of transport, including the further liberalisation of the road haulage market, so that free movement of goods and services is guaranteed with clear and easily enforceable rules for free and fair competition and reduced administrative burdens on SMEs; urges the Commission, nevertheless, to draw up a report on the state of the EU road transport market by the end of 2013 and complete all necessary analyses before coming up with legislative proposals;

54.

Regards the Single European Sky (SES), designed more than 10 years ago, as a very important project; fears that if the European Union does not act in the coming years the central airspace of Europe will become so saturated that growth will no longer be possible; calls, therefore, for a reform of the airspace, an idea that has already been adopted by Member States through the reform of existing systems of air traffic control and the introduction of functional airspace blocks (FABs); welcomes the fact that SESAR, the SES technology element, is developing well; stresses that the new system will be beneficial for all, in particular for the European airlines; urges the Commission to make all FABs operational; calls for encouragement for greater use of regional airports;

55.

Calls on the Commission to honour its commitment to guarantee the full completion of the single European rail area, and to extend the competences of the European Railway Agency in the field of certification and safety, as well as homologation of rolling stocks;

56.

Calls for proposals to accomplish the single European telecommunications market, including measures to abolish roaming charges, no later than 2015;

57.

Stresses that the European Union’s cohesion policy is providing investment for sustainable growth and jobs as well as for improved competitiveness in Europe, in line with the objectives of economic, social and territorial cohesion in the EU; recalls that the cohesion policy is the main investment tool for the achievement of the Europe 2020 objectives; calls, therefore, on the Commission to take appropriate action in a prompt manner, so as to guarantee a timely start, as well as to set clear conditions to allow implementation of the 2014-2020 operational programmes in the Member States; urges the Commission to table immediately a revised draft of Regulation (EC) No 2012/2002 on the European Solidarity Fund;

58.

Stresses that the comprehensive legislative package of the regulations on cohesion policy in the next Multiannual Financial Framework 2014-2020 is necessary for the appropriate implementation of the multiannual budget; notes that these regulations must be supplemented by the adoption of implementing and delegated acts;

59.

Calls on the Commission to promote measures such as reform of labour markets where structural problems are hindering the entrance of young people, and to support Member States in implementing a Youth Guarantee with a view to helping young people into jobs or education;

60.

Notes that there is a large unfulfilled demand for skilled personnel in information technology and system development; suggests that this sector should be one of the priorities for training and development support in the European Youth Employment Initiative;

61.

Asks the Commission to present a proposal for a directive on work-related musculoskeletal disorders and a revision of Directive 2004/37/EC on the protection of workers from the risks related to carcinogens and mutagens at work;

62.

Calls on the Commission to ensure through the revised employment guidelines in 2014 that employment and social policies must play an active role in the response to the crisis; urges the Commission, in this regard, to help the Member States to develop strategies for building new skills and helping unemployed persons find their way into the labour market as soon as possible; highlights, nevertheless, the fact that a major effort should be made through the Youth Employment Initiative to provide support in the Union’s most seriously affected regions to vulnerable groups, and to young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs), who are unemployed or inactive, by accelerating the delivery of activities supported by ESF funding;

63.

Calls on the Commission to produce an annual report on the reform of vocational training systems in the Member States, thereby making a long-term structural contribution to improving young people’s employability;

64.

Supports initiatives at EU level to complement national efforts in increasing micro-credit and boosting social entrepreneurship providing services that are not sufficiently provided by the public or private sector;

65.

Reiterates its demand for a review of the Directive on ‘The Application of the principle of equal pay for male and female workers for equal work of equal value’; calls for renewed efforts by the Commission to unblock the Maternity Leave Directive and for a follow-up to the preparation of the cost benefit study regarding paternity leave;

66.

Insists that the Commission should come forward with a strategy on the eradication of violence against women, as requested by Parliament in several resolutions, and that the EU should become a party to the Council of Europe’s Convention on ‘Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence’, which would give a strong impetus to the 26 Member States that have still not signed and ratified the Convention;

67.

Recalls that anti-discrimination policy plays a key role in promoting social inclusion and calls on the Commission to propose an EU roadmap against homophobia and discrimination; urges the Commission to ensure that national strategies for the integration of Roma in Member states are developed and effectively implemented and that discrimination is condemned and raised in dialogues with third countries, as well as incorporating the fight against discrimination into cooperation programmes;

68.

Stresses the importance to be given to the sectors of education, culture, audiovisual, youth, sport and citizenship, and to ensuring that they have adequate and efficient budgets;

69.

Calls on the Commission to investigate the underlying problems of incomplete recognition of courses passed and accumulated European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) points at home universities for students who complete study period at other universities under the Erasmus programme;

70.

Urges a comprehensive agreement on the data protection package which ensures a uniform and high level of protection for data subjects and a level playing field for business;

71.

Considers that, in the interest of safeguarding the security of European citizens, the continued fight against terrorism is of paramount concern to the European Union, and calls strongly for a revision of the European legislation on data retention;

72.

Calls on the Commission to continue as a matter of urgency its work on the EU-US agreement on the protection of personal data and reiterates the urgency of its rapid conclusion;

73.

Suggests that proposals for mutual recognition of the effects of certain civil status documents, together with minimum standards for civil procedures, would be indicative of an important step forward in the creation of an area of justice, with simpler, clearer and more accessible procedures for citizens, and greater trust in the mutual recognition of civil justice measures;

74.

Urges the Commission to make optimum use of the EU Strategy towards the Eradication of Trafficking in Human Beings 2012-2016 in tackling the problem of human trafficking;

75.

Calls on the Commission to propose the enlargement of the scoreboard on justice to cover also the rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights;

76.

Stresses the importance of tackling organised crime, money laundering, and fraud and corruption against the EU’s financial interests at cross border level;

77.

Calls on the Commission to complete the roadmap on procedural rights and to monitor the transposition of the adopted directives, ensuring that the basic rights of suspects and accused persons are protected sufficiently through common minimum standards of procedural rights in criminal proceedings and rendering effective the principle of mutual recognition;

78.

Supports the Commission in its work on victims’ rights and asks the Commission to assist Member States in ensuring full and proper implementation by all Member States of the directive establishing minimum standards on the rights, support and protection of victims of crime by 16 November 2015;

79.

Welcomes the Commission proposal on conditions of entry and residence for researchers, students, pupil exchanges, trainees and volunteers; calls for further substantive proposals on legal migration;

80.

Calls on the Commission to issue guidelines to ensure that the Schengen rules are correctly implemented by the Member States so that freedom of movement of persons is fully respected and any misuse or abuse of the possibility of reintroducing controls at the internal borders is avoided;

81.

Calls on Commission to ensure that the Common European Asylum System is properly implemented throughout the EU, respecting the commitment called for in the Treaty;

82.

Expects the Commission to come up with new proposals or further examine the revision of existing legislation in the field of substantive and procedural law, in particular Rome II and Brussels II;

83.

Calls on the Commission to assess the implementation of the regulation on the European Citizens’ Initiative and to amend it, where appropriate;

84.

Calls on the Commission to guarantee a swift and correct implementation of the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) that will result in a strong, sustainable and fair CAP that serves European farmers and consumers, promotes rural development and protects the environment;

85.

Recognises that the implementation will be the main focus of activities in 2014; calls on the Commission therefore to ensure effective implementation of the final agreements of the CAP reform that minimise the burden on farmers and on the administrative bodies of the Member States whilst ensuring that the new rules are effectively, rigorously and transparently implemented;

86.

Notes the Commission’s intention to bring forward legislation on the use of animal cloning techniques for food production; urges the Commission, in drawing up the proposal, to consider recent concerns over labelling and the consistent application of legislation related to the EU food chain, while applying the latest scientific and technological developments in this field;

87.

Welcomes the Commission’s proposal for a new animal health strategy, as well as its commitment to ensuring consistency amongst the horizontal principles of the legislation in the fields of animal health, animal welfare and food safety; calls for a close alignment of the animal health strategy with the Europe 2020 strategy in order to ensure the smooth functioning of the internal market in animals and animal products while, at the same time, enhancing the sustainability and competitiveness of European agriculture;

88.

Calls on the Commission to take the necessary steps to help Member States implement the newly adopted Common Fisheries Policy in compliance with the future European Maritime and Fisheries Fund; expects the Commission to ensure that Article 43(2) TFEU forms the legal basis of its proposals and to limit the use of Article 43(3) to proposals strictly connected to the setting and allocation of fishing opportunities; to this end, expects the Commission to help establish an interinstitutional taskforce composed of representatives from all three institutions to identify the most appropriate ways forward;

89.

Stresses that the new European Maritime and Fisheries Fund must improve the measures aimed at reducing fleet capacity; insists that the new Common Fisheries Policy must be underpinned by reinforced control measures;

90.

Calls on the Commission to continue to strengthen its fight illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing;

91.

Expects the Commission to continue to support the EU’s traditional enlargement policy; believes that the Union would lose political credibility worldwide were it to close its doors to its neighbours;

92.

Recalls that the Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood continues to be a priority, and stresses that the new EU strategy and the More for More principle still need to be clearly defined and implemented;

93.

Stresses the importance of reaffirming with greater determination the enlargement perspective for the Western Balkan countries and shares the Commission’s recommendation to start EU accession talks with Serbia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM); calls on the Commission to engage with Turkey as a candidate country and welcomes, especially, the opening of accession chapter 22 on regional policy;

94.

Calls on the Commission to increase activities aimed at the development of the Eastern Partnership, especially in the field of mobility and educational cooperation;

95.

Calls for the Commission to contribute constructively to the review of the European External Action Service (EEAS) with a view to working together with the Council and Parliament to support well-coordinated initiatives in the field of common foreign and security policy; calls for more flexibility in disbursing financial assistance in crisis situations;

96.

Reminds the Commission of the need to improve its evaluation of the implementation of the consensus on humanitarian aid, its complementarity with Member States and donors and the need to review Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/1996;

97.

Calls on the EEAS to further the promotion and implementation of the concept of the ‘responsibility to protect’(R2P), in line with Parliament’s recommendation of 18 April 2013 (2) to the Council of the UN principle with the aim of establishing a ‘European consensus on R2P’;

98.

Calls on the Commission to increase the quantity and efficiency of EU humanitarian aid and assistance delivery to people in need of basic goods and services in Syria and among refugees from Syria in neighbouring countries;

99.

Calls on the Commission to put forward a proposal setting up a mechanism, financed by the relevant EU external action financial instrument and composed of a team of national and international investigators, prosecutors, lawyers and other experts from EU Member States, as well as other countries concerned (Switzerland, Canada and the United States), aiming to provide legal and technical advice and assistance to the authorities of the Arab Spring countries on the recovery of misappropriated assets stolen by former dictators, their families and regimes;

100.

Calls on the Commission to shift its focus away from a prevailing input-orientated development policy to a results-orientated development policy, with precise annual figures on development achievements and to ensure the EU’s development efforts have a lasting impact on eradicating poverty;

101.

Calls on the Commission to pragmatically address the issue of property rights in developing countries and to devise a coherent approach in conjunction with the other international development partners in order to kick-start a process of empowering local communities and individuals in developing countries; points out that this is a process that constitutes one of the cornerstones of development and one that could lift entire nations out of poverty and intensify economic activities in developing countries;

102.

Points out that in order to increase aid efficiency it is also crucial to guarantee greater policy coherence, whereby all EU policy areas, especially those with a significant impact in developing countries, contribute to wealth creation in developing countries; points out that it is also necessary to increase coordination among the Member States;

103.

Points out that addressing child malnutrition and food security, combating gendercide — the persistent selection, practised on an enormous scale, of males over females — and promoting the provision of health insurance and pensions in developing countries remain high priorities;

104.

Underlines the fact that disaster risk reduction is also an important strategy that needs to be improved;

105.

Calls for the effectiveness of development aid to be improved by enhancing coordination and complementarities, and by regularly assessing the outputs, outcomes and impact of such aid;

106.

Remains committed to a multilateral approach to international trade and calls on the Commission to support current WTO initiatives; urges the facilitation of the accession of China to the Agreement on Government Procurement; recognises the need for continuing progress in reaching bilateral free trade agreements with significant partners, and in particular the USA; asks the Commission, therefore, to concentrate human resources and political efforts on the ongoing trade negotiations with third countries and, in particular, with strategic partners, with a view to making substantial progress towards a balanced final agreement; asks the Commission fully to involve Parliament in this process, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union;

107.

Calls on the Commission to launch a process of deep reflection, with the involvement of Parliament, on the future international trade strategy, including a possible reform of the functioning of the WTO; stresses that this assessment must take full account of the outcomes for the EU economy of the recent international trade strategy;

108.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States.