2023 discharge: General budget of the EU - Commission

Wording as published by the EP, in English.

1. Amendment 1 · Motion for a resolutionAdopted

   Paragraph 17 a (new)

   Tabled by Olivier Chastel · Renew

   Added: 17a. Emphasises the importance of maintaining institutional integrity and preventing potential foreign interference; condemns any improper attempt to influence the legislative activities of the European Parliament; insists on the responsibility of OLAF to conduct all necessary in-depth investigations; stresses the importance of the work carried out by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) in protecting the European Union's financial interests; insists to provide to the EPPO adequate financial and human resources; recalls the Agreement establishing an interinstitutional body for ethical standards for members of institutions and advisory bodies referred to in Article 13 of the Treaty on European Union, and insist on its swift implementation in all EU institutions;

2. Amendment 4 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

   Paragraph 10 a (new)

   Tabled by Pasquale Tridico · The Left

   Added: 10 a. Calls on the Commission to present a legislative framework aimed at countering the excessive concentration of wealth and economic power among ultra-high-net-worth individuals, through measures enhancing financial transparency, equitable taxation and market competition, in order to prevent systemic risks to democratic governance, social cohesion and the integrity of the internal market;

3. Amendment 5 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

   Paragraph 13 a (new)

   Tabled by Pasquale Tridico · The Left

   Added: 13 a. Calls on the Commission to establish a temporary European financial instrument, modelled on the SURE mechanism, to support the automotive sector and its supply chain in addressing current structural challenges; recalls that a SURE-like instrument would aim to preserve employment, sustain industrial capacity and promote resilience in the Union’s internal market; considers that the legal basis for such an instrument should be Article 122(2) TFEU, allowing for temporary Union financial assistance in exceptional circumstances; stresses that the proposed support should be subject to appropriate reporting, audit and accountability requirements and should contribute to the Union’s objectives in terms of social cohesion, industrial competitiveness and environmental sustainability;

4. Amendment 6 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

   Paragraph 46 a (new)

   Tabled by Pasquale Tridico · The Left

   Added: 46 a. Notes that the exposure of the Union budget to Ukraine more than doubled in 2023 compared to the previous year from EUR 15,6 billion, to €33.7 billion; reiterates its concerns that for the MFA+ support to Ukraine - with a value of EUR 18,0 billion, agreed at the end of 2022 and disbursed throughout 2023 - no provisions were required in the CPF to cover the risks of default, posing a serious risk to the Union budget as expressed in the Opinion 07/2022; draws attention that possible losses related to MFA+ will have to be covered by future Union budgets or by the budgetary ‘headroom’ between the MFF ceiling and the own resources ceiling; invites the Commission to provide additional measures to protect the Union budget from future losses related to the MFA+;

5. Amendment 7 · Motion for a resolutionAdopted

   Paragraph 74

   Tabled by Pasquale Tridico · The Left

   74. Removed: Notes Added: Stresses the importance of Union cohesion policy for economic and territorial convergence and development in the regions of the Union, as well as for supporting the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights; notes that the budget for the programmes under MFF heading 2 ‘Cohesion, resilience …

6. Amendment 8 · Motion for a resolutionAdopted

   Paragraph 143 a (new)

   Tabled by Pasquale Tridico · The Left

   Added: 143 a. Expresses deep concern over the Commission’s decision to proceed with the adoption of the “Rearm EU” initiative without prior consultation of the European Parliament; regrets that such a decision bypasses the principle of institutional balance and undermines Parliament’s role as co-legislator in shaping strategic and budgetary priorities; urges the Commission to refrain from initiating substantial policy instruments that impact the Union’s financial and strategic architecture without ensuring full respect for the prerogatives of the Parliament;

7. Amendment 9 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

   Paragraph 236 a (new)

   Tabled by Pasquale Tridico · The Left

   Added: 236 a. Reminds of the RRF's crucial contribution to preventing a severe economic downturn and social crisis following the COVID-19 pandemic, and its ability to provide a strong crisis response tool;

8. Amendment 15 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

   Paragraph 13

   Tabled by Marion Maréchal, Dick Erixon, Charlie Weimers +4 · ECR

   … for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), new applicants, spin-offs and start-ups; Added: stresses the urgent need to set up a European DOGE to achieve this objective; 2 The future of European competitiveness’, 9 September 2024.

9. Amendment 16 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

   Paragraph 15

   Tabled by Marion Maréchal, Dick Erixon, Charlie Weimers +4 · ECR

   … support to global challenges, the promotion of human rights, freedoms and democracy; Added: is concerned about the many instances of financing of the Islamist nebula via European funds ; underlines the importance of reinforcing the Eastern Neighbourhood line in order to …

10. Amendment 17 · Motion for a resolutionAdopted

    Paragraph 16

    Tabled by Dick Erixon, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Charlie Weimers +3 · ECR

    … are directly in opposition to the European Union’s fundamental values, including Islamist Removed: anti-Semitic Added: anti-Semitic, anti-Christian and anti-Islamic movements; in this context, recalls that there have been allegations …

11. Amendment 18 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 21 a (new)

    Tabled by Dick Erixon, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Charlie Weimers +1 · ECR

    Added: 21 a. Has remaining reservations whether recent reinforcements in EDES will truly protect taxpayers’ money since the decision to blacklist the entities belongs to the so-called "authorising officers" of the Commission, is made behind the closed doors and could be manipulated by the applicants by submitting false or incomplete data;

12. Amendment 19 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 45

    Tabled by Dick Erixon, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Charlie Weimers +5 · ECR

    … mainstreaming in its policy-making and implementation of Union funds, including gender budgeting; Added: points out that gender budgeting requires all countries receiving the EU funds to collect and tabulate sex-disaggregated data, thereby increasing bureaucratic burdens and decreasing competitivenes; encourages the Commission to continue the efforts made in gender budgeting and …

13. Amendment 21 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 55

    Tabled by Dick Erixon, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Charlie Weimers +5 · ECR

    … of taxing rights (“Pillar One”) are obvious candidates for such new resources; Added: notes that all proposed new own resources will inevitably lead to double taxation, exacerbate trade wars, impose additional burdens on businesses and EU consumers, cause company relocations and capital outflows from the Union, and create accounting challenges; at the same time, points out that other sources might also be …

14. Amendment 22 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 98

    Tabled by Marion Maréchal, Dick Erixon, Charlie Weimers +4 · ECR

    … of the Union (human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, rule of law, human Removed: rights); Added: rights) such as the Al Sharq Forum; recalls that the Commission is legally bound to ensure that programme beneficiaries …

15. Amendment 23 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 108

    Tabled by Dick Erixon, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Charlie Weimers +1 · ECR

    … for small farmers, and increasing discretionary powers for Member States; stresses that Added: deregulation and simplification should go hand in hand with sound financial management and take …

16. Amendment 24 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 131

    Tabled by Dick Erixon, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Charlie Weimers +6 · ECR

    … attacks, notably by pro-Russian forces, as well as by the Belarusian regime; Added: calls on the Commission to finance physical barriers at the Union's external borders without delay;

17. Amendment 25 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 131 a (new)

    Tabled by Dick Erixon, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Charlie Weimers +6 · ECR

    Added: 131 a. Welcomes the instructions given to the Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration2a to work on designing innovative ways to counter illegal migration; 2a https://www.politico.eu/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/15/October-2024-EUCO-Migration-letter.pdf

18. Amendment 27 · Motion for a resolutionAdopted

    Paragraph 143 a (new)

    Tabled by Dick Erixon, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Charlie Weimers +1 · ECR

    Added: 143 a. Notes that the European Parliament has called on the Union and its Member States to put in place a legal framework enabling Russia to be classified as a State sponsor of terrorism;

19. Amendment 30 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 152 a (new)

    Tabled by Bert-Jan Ruissen, Dick Erixon, Sebastian Tynkkynen +3 · ECR

    Added: 152 a. Points out that, at the hearing on 21 November 2024, the Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement stated that the Palestinian Authority's Union-funded reform agenda includes ending the 'pay for slay' programme; calls on the Commission to ensure that the Palestinian Authority genuinly puts an end to the programme and to inform Parliament accordingly without delay;

20. Amendment 32 · Motion for a resolutionAdopted

    Paragraph 185 a (new)

    Tabled by Mariusz Kamiński, Joachim Stanisław Brudziński, Jadwiga Wiśniewska · ECR

    Added: 185 a. Expresses deep concern regarding reports of an ongoing investigation involving the former Commissioner for Justice, who is alleged to have been engaged, during his time in office, in money laundering activities involving funds of unknown origin; calls on the Commission to fully cooperate with the Belgian authorities and to urgently clarify whether these activities were in any way connected to his official duties within the Commission;

21. Amendment 33 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 186 a (new)

    Tabled by Mariusz Kamiński, Joachim Stanisław Brudziński, Jadwiga Wiśniewska · ECR

    Added: 186 a. Considers it unacceptable that the Commission, while dedicating substantial attention and resources to fact-checking, combating disinformation, and countering foreign interference, fails to apply the same standards of verification to its own official documents; stresses that the inclusion, in the 2023 Annual Rule of Law Report, of content defending an individual publicly identified as a Russian intelligence agent, and calling for his release, was highly damaging and undermines the credibility of the report; notes that the organisations cited by the Commission as sources in this case revised their statements and withdrew their allegations after the individual’s espionage activities were made public, whereas the Commission has so far avoided clarifying this unacceptable and damaging matter and has refrained from correcting or updating its position; calls for an urgent and thorough review of internal procedures governing information sourcing and verification, along with full transparency regarding the individuals and departments responsible for the inclusion of such content in an official Union report; emphasises the urgent need to restore institutional credibility and ensure that future Union reports do not inadvertently legitimise actors involved in hostile acts against the Union and Member States;

22. Amendment 34 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 224 a (new)

    Tabled by Cristian Terheş · ECR

    Added: 224 a. Recalls that on 14 October 2022, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office announced that there is an ongoing investigation into the acquisition of COVID-19 vaccines in the Union and the fact that this exceptional confirmation comes after the extremely high public interest in the matter 1a; 1a https://www.eppo.europa.eu/en/news/ongoing-eppo-investigation-acquisition-covid-19-vaccines-eu

23. Amendment 35 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 250 a (new)

    Tabled by Cristian Terheş · ECR

    Added: 250 a. Urges the Commission to create a compensation fund for individuals who have suffered adverse effects from the COVID-19 vaccination, on the grounds that they have been harmed by the lack of transparency and the refusal to disclose vaccine procurement contracts and related liability arrangements;

24. Amendment 36 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 251 a (new)

    Tabled by Cristian Terheş · ECR

    Added: 251 a. Calls on the Commission to immediately publish the non-redacted versions of the Purchase Agreements for the COVID-19 vaccines;

25. Amendment 37 · Motion for a resolutionAdopted

    Paragraph 46 a (new)

    Tabled by Tomáš Zdechovský · EPP

    Added: 46 a. Recalls the following findings of the Court of Auditors' Special Report 11/2025: (i) that the identification and registration of entities as NGOs are not always consistent and reliable; (ii) that despite a more streamlined granting process, issues with the completeness and accuracy of data remain; (iii) that the lack of a reliable overview of Union spending on NGOs hampers useful analysis; (iv) that the calls for proposals in the Court's sample were transparent; (v) that respect for Union values is not pro-actively verified; and (vi) that transparency practices vary widely in the Court's sample, with larger NGOs performing better. calls on the Commission to fully implement the recommendations in the Court's Special Report ;

26. Amendment 38 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 3 a (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Milan Uhrík +1 · ESN

    Added: 3a. Expresses deep concern over the manner in which the President of the Commission handled negotiations with pharmaceutical companies during the COVID-19 vaccine procurement process; strongly regrets the lack of transparency surrounding her communications, particularly the untraceable SMS exchanges with a pharmaceutical CEO, which constitute a serious breach of institutional credibility and pose a direct threat to the public’s trust in Union institutions;

27. Amendment 39 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 3 b (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Milan Uhrík +1 · ESN

    Added: 3b. Calls on the President of the Commission to provide full disclosure regarding her communications with pharmaceutical companies during the COVID-19 vaccine negotiations, including the exchange of SMS messages, which has thus far remained opaque and raises serious concerns regarding the integrity and conduct of both the Commission and its President;

28. Amendment 40 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 16 a (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Milan Uhrík · ESN

    Added: 16a. Demands that the Commission immediately stop all funding to UNRWA, following serious allegations of complicity with terrorist organisations such as Hamas; stresses that the Union must under no circumstances support any organisation that promotes or condones violence and terrorism, especially when such support is provided under the pretext of humanitarian aid;

29. Amendment 41 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 18 a (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Milan Uhrík · ESN

    Added: 18a. Calls attention to the serious lack of transparency in the NGO sector, which has enabled foreign interests to exert undue influence over EU policymaking, as evidenced by the Qatargate scandal; calls, therefore, for the immediate suspension of Union funding to NGOs that fail to comply with transparency criteria;

30. Amendment 42 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 18 b (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Milan Uhrík · ESN

    Added: 18b. Notes with concern that the Court, in its Special Report 11/2025, found that the transparency in Union funding to NGOs remains insufficient due to the Commission’s failure to verify key aspects, such as whether self-declared NGOs were in fact pursuing the commercial interests of their members;

31. Amendment 43 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 18 c (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Milan Uhrík · ESN

    Added: 18c. Notes with concern that the Court, in its Special Report 11/2025, found that approximately €7.4 billion of EU public funds were allocated to around 12,000 NGO with a disproportionate share granted to just 30 NGOs; requests, therefore, to proceed with the immediate full disclosure of all contracts signed with NGOs receiving Union funds in the interest of full transparency, accountability, and public trust;

32. Amendment 44 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 70 a (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Milan Uhrík · ESN

    Added: 70a. Strongly believes that it is crucial to increase investments in nuclear energy as a key component of Europe's energy future and energy independence;

33. Amendment 45 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 108 a (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Milan Uhrík · ESN

    Added: 108a. Considers that CAP subsidies, currently conditional on compliance with environmental criteria, fail to effectively support agricultural production, impose complex administrative burdens on farmers, and result in costly controls for Member States; calls for a comprehensive simplification of the CAP to better promote agricultural production in Europe and safeguard the continent’s food security;

34. Amendment 46 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 131 a (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Sarah Knafo +1 · ESN

    Added: 131a. Calls for the establishment of hubs outside the Schengen borders, where asylum seekers would await a decision on whether to be granted asylum or sent back to their country of arrival;

35. Amendment 47 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 131 b (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Sarah Knafo +1 · ESN

    Added: 131b. Calls for support from Union funds for the construction of physical barriers at the Schengen borders;

36. Amendment 48 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 145 a (new)

    Tabled by Arno Bausemer, Alexander Jungbluth, Milan Uhrík · ESN

    Added: 145 a. Stresses that any funding under the NDICI should be made conditional on the effective implementation of repatriation agreements;

37. Amendment 49 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 38 a (new)

    Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

    Added: 38 a. Is concerned about the increase in Union debt (+33% between 2022 and 2023), the amount of commitments still to be settled (€ 543 billion, or 157% of the Union debt) and the considerable increase in the cost of borrowing under NextGenerationEU; therefore calls on the Union to undertake significant spending cuts, particularly in its administrative budget, which exceeds €12 billion; calls on the Union to abandon any creation of taxes, duties or new resources which would inevitably increase the tax burden on Europeans;

38. Amendment 50 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 38 b (new)

    Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

    Added: 38 b. Expresses its deep concern at the Commission's funding of campaigns promoting the wearing of the veil, in particular through slogans such as "freedom is in the hijab" and insists that, henceforth, no Union budget be allocated to campaigns encouraging, directly or indirectly, the wearing of veil;

39. Amendment 51 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 57 a (new)

    Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

    Added: 57 a. Calls to lighten regulatory burden to facilitate private investment, particularly in the sector of defence, AI, semiconductors, chips, telecommunications, cloud, data and quantum computing;

40. Amendment 52 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 124 a (new)

    Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

    Added: 124 a. Notes the growing trend towards relocating parts of the European Union's migration policy, and calls on the institutions to further develop this approach; calls for specific and sufficient funding to be allocated to the creation of return platforms outside the territory of the Union;

41. Amendment 53 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 1

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Nikola Bartůšek +1 · PfE

    … financial interests of the Union as set out in Article 325 TFEU; Added: deplores the fact that, contrary to the stated values and very purpose of the founding of the Union, the European Commission is regularly the subject of scandals through its Commissioners or their close advisors: - alleged money laundering via lottery tickets by the Commissioner for Justice (potentially 1 million euros involved), the European Commission's inexplicable leniency towards its Director-General for Transport, who allegedly accepted free flights from Qatar airways, inexcusable decision by the Commission to pay a seven-year leave of absence with a total salary of 1.5 million euros for one of its directors accused of rape, without any attempt to recover the funds after the final conviction, case of pantouflage in a gas company of an adviser to the Vice-President of the Commission responsible for the environment and the Green Deal; - and through its operation: scandal of the administration of the Trust Fund for Africa denounced by the European Court of Auditors, scandal of the financing of NGOs by the European Commission with public funds to help it adopt a pseudo-climatic legislative package (Green Deal) via lobbying actions, financing of NGOs close to terrorist or Islamist movements;

42. Amendment 54 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 1 a (new)

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez · PfE

    Added: 1 a. Recalls that the Ombudsman had criticized the European Commission and its procedure for dealing with the “pantouflage” movements of its staff (OI/1/2021/KR); the Commission had prohibited only 2 of the 100 cases studied during its strategic inquiry; notes that the Ombudsman had concluded that “The Commission should adopt a more rigorous approach to the movement of its senior executives to private sector jobs shortly after they leave”; however, the Commission has authorized former European Commissioner and former French Finance Minister Thierry Breton (2019-2024) to (re)join Bank of America's International Advisory Board ; an activity that will keep him busy for 3 days a year, and for which he has stated that he will be neither salaried nor employed, which raises questions about his motives and status; he is returning to functions previously held (2013-2019); regrets that the procedure does not provide for transparency on elements of remuneration or compensation; thus, calls on the Commission to prohibit the pantouflage of a Commissioner or Director General in a non-European company or organization of systemic size at the end of his term of office;

43. Amendment 55 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 1 b (new)

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Nikola Bartůšek +1 · PfE

    Added: 1 b. Deplores the scandal of the purchase of 4.6 billion doses of Covid vaccine for 71 billion euros by the President of the Commission and the recent purchase of a further 146 million doses for an unknown amount ; Whereas the European Commissioner for Health testified on 27/03/2023 before the COVI Special Committee that President Von der Leyen was not involved in any COVID vaccine contract negotiations, contrary to the information published by the New York Times (28/04/2021) and the conclusions of the European Court of Auditors in its special report on the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines; whereas the Commission has required certain Members of Parliament on the COVI Committee to sign a confidentiality undertaking on May 30, 2023, without specifying an end date for this confidentiality obligation concerning an indemnity paid per dose by Europeans to Pfizer in exchange for the non-delivery of certain doses still to be delivered ; expresses its disappointment at the Commission's persistent lack of transparency regarding the agreements it has concluded with the pharmaceutical companies responsible for producing COVID-19 vaccines, as well as the SMS communications between the Commission President and the CEO of a pharmaceutical company, to the extent that legal action has tarnished the Commission's reputation when the President could easily have explained herself to Parliament; deplores the Commission's inaction in relation to the serious side-effect victims of COVID vaccines in terms of medical research and compensation; deplores the fact that the Commission has chosen to defend Pfizer rather than the Member States in the legal dispute between them over the refusal to order doses of vaccine no longer needed after the end of the pandemic; notes the extreme slowness of the European Public Prosecutor's Office in investigating the purchase of COVID vaccines or the Qatar scandal;

44. Amendment 56 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 2

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Mathilde Androuët +1 · PfE

    … actions of one Union institution should affect the independence of another institution; Added: in this respect, deplores the fact that LIFE funds have been allocated to entities engaged in direct lobbying of EU institutions, in contradiction with the principles of sound financial management, transparency and separation of powers; Considering that details of grant contracts and the results of actions should be public, except in cases of national security, deplores the fact that the Commission grants access to only one contract out of all the projects it funds to members of the Committee on Budgetary Control; urges the Commission to step up ex-ante and ex-post checks on LIFE beneficiaries to ensure that funds are used in accordance with the EU's financial regulations and the Interinstitutional Agreement on " better law-making"; invites the Commission to make full use of the conclusions and recommendations of the European Court of Auditors' reports on the transparency of NGO funding to reform its mechanisms for awarding and monitoring grants, and to make its actions and funding transparent and easily accessible, since the financial transparency system is currently incomplete, updated late and contains unreliable data; urges all other institutions to respect the role of the Parliament as …

45. Amendment 57 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 3 a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Nikola Bartůšek, Anders Vistisen +2 · PfE

    Added: 3 a. Rejects the integration of political agendas such as the Green Deal and so-called woke ideology into the EU’s financial framework, viewing them as the imposition of failed left-liberal concepts that undermine economic pragmatism, social cohesion, and Member State sovereignty;

46. Amendment 59 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 3 c (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Nikola Bartůšek, Anders Vistisen +2 · PfE

    Added: 3 c. Stresses that all EU spending must fully respect the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, ensuring that national governments maintain the right to determine their own financial priorities without unnecessary interference from Brussels; demands the European Commission to avoid using its budgetary powers to pressure Member States into compliance with centrally dictated policies that undermine their sovereignty;

47. Amendment 60 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 4

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Anders Vistisen · PfE

    … legality and regularity of expenditure under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF); Added: in this respect, deplores the use of this new type of so-called temporary and flexible but extremely costly instrument, which the European Court of Auditors regularly deplores for its lack of transparency in achieving milestones and objectives, as well as its lack of objectivity in granting funding, entirely in the hands of the European Commission ; regrets the planned development of this type of instrument, which offers few guarantees of follow-up and thus of protection of the Union's financial interests; furthermore, denounces the fact that the colossal debt generated by this type of instrument places the Union in a situation of dependence on its creditors, potentially exposing it to risks of extra-European interference;

48. Amendment 66 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 16 a (new)

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Nikola Bartůšek +1 · PfE

    Added: 16 a. Deplores, however, the reality of the European Commission's complacency towards Islamist movements and entities; witnesses the European Commission's funding of nearly 10 million euros for the so-called “European Koran” project to rewrite European history, the “EU Action Plan against Racism 2020-2025” and its follow-up, which targets all forms of racism with the exception of anti-white racism, or the funding of Erasmus + or NGOs in Europe (Femyso close to the Muslim Brotherhood, Islamic Relief Worldwide, etc., as well as extra-European universities close to the Muslim Brotherhood, as well as non-European universities close to Islamist movements (Gaza University, close to Hamas); thus demonstrates that the European Commission knowingly contributes to inciting, by financing them, non-European interference in the territory of Member States, with principles that run counter to European values; regrets that the European Commission does not verify the final beneficiaries of its funding, some of whom are close to terrorist or Islamist movements, thus contributing to their direct or indirect support from European funds; condemns these practices and urges the European Commission to put an end to them and initiate procedures to recover these undue funds; regrets the absence of a consensual definition of the rule of law as a fundamental value of the Union, and the biased use of it arbitrarily made by the Commission;

49. Amendment 67 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 17 a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Nikola Bartůšek, Anders Vistisen +2 · PfE

    Added: 17 a. Recalls, that a bombshell report revealed the European Commission's brazen misuse of taxpayer funds, funnelling billions into a shadowy network of NGOs and think tanks to promote its own political agenda and silence dissenting voices; condemns this enormous EU-NGO propaganda complex, that undermines democracy and constitutes a massive betrayal of European citizens;

50. Amendment 68 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 18

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Ondřej Knotek +1 · PfE

    … functions, as provided in Article 11 of the Treaty on European Union; Added: recalls that subsidies granted to NGOs from the Union budget amount to several billion euros each year (estimated at 7.4 billion euros from 2021 to 2023 by the European Court of Auditors), making the Union one of the main donors to civil society organizations; recalls that the Qatargate scandal revealed that some civil society organizations are catalysts for corruption ; is concerned about alleged cases of fraud and irregularities in situations where EU-funded NGOs are exposed to risks of conflicts of interest, double funding, corruption or money laundering[1]; is concerned about the lack of reliable, publicly available data on NGO activities and cases of fraud involving NGOs[2]; regrets that NGOs and civil society organizations remain exempt from most anti-money laundering transparency and reporting obligations; calls therefore for a definition of NGOs to be established at Union level, and for NGOs to be brought within the scope of the Union's anti-money laundering framework; calls on the Commission to require NGOs to publish on the first page of their website the amount of European and national funds received, and to specify the activity carried out; finally, insists that the Commission cease funding NGOs which contribute to illegal immigration into European countries and facilitate human trafficking; calls for each Member State to have at least the option that its contributions to the European budget are not used to fund such NGOs;

51. Amendment 69 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 21 a (new)

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Ondřej Knotek +2 · PfE

    Added: 21 a. Emphasizes the importance of addressing the European Commission’s spending on communication budget; notes that in 2023, commitments under the "Executive and institutional communication services" item amounted to €47,916,000, and under the "Communication services for citizens" item to €32,783,000, resulting in a total exceeding €80 million; requests detailed clarification on the concrete allocation and use of these funds, in light of concerns about potential interference in the European democratic process.

52. Amendment 71 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 38 a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Nikola Bartůšek, Anders Vistisen +1 · PfE

    Added: 38 a. Finds it outrageous and unacceptable, that a former Commissioner awarded European funds annually to non governmental organisations to lobby on the Commission's own policy agenda;

53. Amendment 74 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 49 – point xii a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Ondřej Knotek, Nikola Bartůšek +2 · PfE

    Added: (xii a) immediately suspend or cancel grant agreements with NGOs that are in violation of the financial rules of the Union and to supplement the Commission guidance with concrete proposals for avoiding Union funding being used to actively lobby Union institutions, such as self-declarations; welcomes the announcements made by the new Commission in this regard;

54. Amendment 75 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 55 a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Ondřej Knotek, Nikola Bartůšek +3 · PfE

    Added: 55 a. Opposes any form of EU-level taxation imposed directly on European citizens, recalling that the fiscal burden is already high in many Member States and should not be exacerbated by additional levies at Union level;

55. Amendment 76 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 73 – point iii a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Julien Sanchez, Virginie Joron · PfE

    Added: (iii a) immediately withdraw its discriminative decision on excluding the Hungarian universities from the Horizon Europe program;

56. Amendment 77 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 100 – point viii a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Julien Sanchez, Virginie Joron · PfE

    Added: (viii a) immediately withdraw its discriminative decision on excluding the Hungarian universities, students, teachers and researchers from the Erasmus+ mobility programs;

57. Amendment 79 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 131 a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Ondřej Knotek, Nikola Bartůšek +2 · PfE

    Added: 131 a. Stresses that the EU's Migration and Asylum Pact is a failed attempt to implement large-scale reforms, it needs to be recognised that illegal migration has to be stopped before reaching the external borders and instead of migrant quotas there is need for an effective return and prevention of further illegal inflows, changes are necessary as regards the EU’s migration and asylum regulatory framework, including establishing a system for extraterritoriality, examining asylum applications outside the EU;

58. Amendment 83 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 152 a (new)

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Nikola Bartůšek +1 · PfE

    Added: 152 a. In this respect, deeply regrets that the Commission has financed several projects or entities close to terrorist or Islamist movements: the Islamic University of Gaza through Erasmus + in addition to the 250,000 euros granted as part of a partnership, “Islamic Relief Worldwide”, both close to Hamas, “Impact Platform” of the Al-Sharq Forum to reinforce the “Femyso Academy” close to the Muslim Brotherhood, NGOs as part of the “mobility of socio-educational workers for young people” of Erasmus+ with the stated aim of recognizing Islam as an official religion; condemns the double discourse of the European Commission, which, by knowingly financing them, contributes to inciting extra-European interference with principles that run counter to European civilization within the territory of member states or in third countries;

59. Amendment 85 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 171 – point vi a (new)

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Nikola Bartůšek +1 · PfE

    Added: (vi a) stresses that any development aid granted to third countries under the EDF or the Neighbourhood Policy must be strictly conditional on the prior implementation of return and readmission agreements in those countries, in particular for their criminals and offenders;

60. Amendment 86 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 171 – point vi b (new)

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Ondřej Knotek +2 · PfE

    Added: (vi b) urgently put an end to the financing of movements or entities close to terrorist organisations, in Europe and in third countries; request and obtain the recovery of sums paid to terrorist movements directly or indirectly;

61. Amendment 88 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 179 a (new)

    Tabled by Virginie Joron, Julien Sanchez, Anders Vistisen · PfE

    Added: 179 a. Calls on the Commission to avoid any communication expenditure during election periods; recalls that the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) has reprimanded the European Commission for unlawfully targeting advertising at citizens via X (formerly Twitter), using "sensitive" personal data on their political opinions, in an attempt to influence political opinions in the Netherlands;

62. Amendment 89 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 252 – point xiii a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Ondřej Knotek, Nikola Bartůšek +3 · PfE

    Added: (xiii a) ensure immediate and complete access to grant contracts between the Commission and non-governmental and civil society organisations; this must be guaranteed for the European Parliament, the EU Member States and citizens, ensuring the effective exercise of public control;

63. Amendment 90 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 252 – point xv a (new)

    Tabled by Tamás Deutsch, Julien Sanchez, Virginie Joron · PfE

    Added: (xv a) demands that the politically motivated blocking of Hungarian cohesion and RRF funds be lifted immediately and those funds must be paid out fully to Hungary;

64. Amendment 91 · Motion for a resolutionRejected

    Paragraph 183 a (new)

    Tabled by Friedrich Pürner, Tomasz Froelich, Alexander Jungbluth +38 · Members

    Added: 183 a. Recalls that the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled in July 2024 that the Commission had not given the public sufficient access to the details of the COVID-19 vaccine contracts and that the Commission had not provided sufficient evidence to support the justification for the lack of transparency of the contracts; strongly emphasises the importance of full transparency with a view to informing and protecting European citizens;