Warning! The draft resolution book is compulsory for the congress. The line numbering is compulsory!
To submit amendments online the line numbering in the online version needs to be the same as in this draft resolution book. In most situations this should be the case.
For technical reasons, errors are possible! There may be differences! It is important to check the line numbering in the draft resolutions book and the online version. Check the first and the last line for every draft resolution.
If there are differences correct the line numbering in the Word-file. The online version is read only.
Don't change the line numbering by adding new text in the draft resolution book.
Before and after a draft resolution you can add and change as you want (no line numbers there).
You are warned! If line numbering is not correct in both the online version and the word file the synopsis will not work!
Page 2 Table of contents
Congress theme 001 Responsible and smart spending for sustainable growth & jobs ALDE Party Bureau European Democracy 002 On the Outcomes of the Conference on the Future of Europe European Liberal Youth - LYMEC 003 Promoting European public opinion and specific policy reforms for a successful Conference on the future of Europe Partido de la Ciudadanía | Spain ; Più Europa | Italy 004 A unique EU supranational citizenship Più Europa | Italy 005 Towards a true European party of citizens ALDE Individual Members EU Single Market and Economics 006 Open Hearts, Open Minds and Open Borders – The Core of the European Idea Freie Demokratische Partei (FDP) | Germany; D66 | Netherlands; VVD | Netherlands 007 Spending reviews as a path towards prioritizing durability Open Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten (VLD) | Belgium; Mouvement Reformateur (MR) | Belgium Fundamental Freedoms and Rights 008 Religions and LGBTI Rights: A Liberal Perspective Più Europa | Italy; Mouvement Radical | France, Centar | Croatia, VVD | Netherlands, Liberalerna | Sweden; Freie Demokratische Partei (FDP) | Germany 009 Towards a more inclusive society: the role of Liberal Mayors in the eradication of LGBTIQ+ phobia Renew Europe (Committee of the Regions) 010 Strengthening the AI regulation proposal “A European Approach to Artificial Intelligence” by the European Commission to prevent surveillance and discrimination Det Radikale Venstre | Denmark 011 Levelling the Playing Field: Women’s Rights in Modern Liberal Europe European Liberal Youth - LYMEC 012 Expanding the EU Magnitsky Act Centerpartiet | Sweden 013 Restoring fundamental rights and freedoms in light of the pandemic Centerpartiet | Sweden Foreign Affairs 014 Corelation Between Enlargement of the European Union to the Western Balkans and Strengthening Europe’s Geopolitical Position Nasa Stranka | Bosnia and Herzegovina; LDP | North Macedonia; SAB | Slovenia 015 Creation of a Common European Army Più Europa | Italy Culture, Education, Health and Research
Page 3 016 Freedom of bio-medicine research and its safe applications Più Europa | Italy 017 Strengthening the EU health system Freie Demokratische Partei (FDP) | Germany 018 Greater EU coordinating role for tackling healthcare emergencies Più Europa | Italy Agriculture, Environment and Energy 019 Climate Change - Expand ETS: include all emissions, reach net zero, and use market forces. ALDE Individual Members 020 Freedom of movement and sustainable mobility ALDE Individual Members 021 Innovation in sustainable agriculture: European Union needs CRISPR and cultured meat Più Europa | Italy 022 Offshore Wind Det Radikale Venstre | Denmark
Page 4 Draft resolution 001
Title: Responsible and smart spending for sustainable growth & jobs Author: ALDE Party Bureau
1 Countries across Europe and the world have spent unprecedented levels on 2 fiscal stimulus to support the economy and protect jobs. Whilst further 3 acceleration of the vaccine rollout remains critical to re-start the economy and 4 boost jobs, government spending continues to have an important role to play. 5 As vaccination rates are picking up and our societies are re-opening, 6 government’s fiscal response must shift from rescue to recovery.
7 Prioritise job creation in the local communities
8 We, the member parties of the ALDE Party, believe that national and EU 9 recovery funds need to be prioritised and spent on projects that deliver jobs, 10 locally, in the immediate term, whilst contributing to the green and digital 11 transition and building a more resilient economy.
12 EU recovery funds should not be used to displace existing national funding or 13 plug holes in national budgets but provide an extraordinary, additional level of 14 funding to be spent on top of existing national budgets to kickstart the economy. 15
16 Foster the green and digital transitions
17 The ALDE Party fully supports the RRF spending targets of at least 37% and 18 20% for green and digital and encourage countries to increase these targets. If 19 done right, these projects will be win-win and deliver on jobs and the 20 green/digital transitions simultaneously. Such projects will also be important 21 contributors to support the economic development of rural areas.
22 Low carbon stimulus projects, i.e., infrastructure and construction investments, 23 should be central in national recovery plans as they create local jobs in the 24 immediate term and simultaneously are needed for the green and digital 25 transitions. Projects should be aligned with national climate and energy as well 26 as digital plans. E.g., energy efficient building renovations, creation of affordable 27 housing, road infrastructure works to accelerate e-mobility and automatic driving, 28 rail upgrades, renewable energy plants, 5G and gigabit broadband, investing in 29 new and emerging technologies such as AI etc.
30 We need the Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act to update our rules 31 governing digital services and create a more level-playing field online.
32 Investments to heal socioeconomic divisions
Page 5 33 The economic impact of the health crisis has exacerbated social divisions 34 demonstrated for instance by the increase in individuals and families turning to 35 food banks and relying on subsidies to pay rent. Loss of income and 36 unemployment have simultaneously hit those with lower income jobs and jobs in 37 the hardest hit sectors, including younger people, and small business owners 38 who have not just lost their jobs but their lifework.
39 The first step to heal this division is by restarting the economy to generate jobs 40 but investments are also needed to provide equal opportunities for everyone to 41 actively participate in the future digital and low carbon economy. The ALDE 42 Party therefore remains committed to remove barriers and boost investment in 43 education, skills, and vocational training, in STEM and digital skills as essential 44 to safeguard well-paid jobs for European citizens and help the youth find 45 opportunities and security in the European labour market.
46 We also need to ensure that cities and regions have the means to invest in the green 47 and digital infrastructure. After nearly a decade of austerity, their share of spending rose 48 during the pandemic while their revenues shrunk significantly. Governments should 49 therefore provide adequate financing and balance the subnational governments' 50 responsibilities with their ability to generate revenues and borrow sustainably.
51 No rule of law, no EU money
52 The ALDE Party’s lawmakers have been instrumental in creating the new tool to 53 make the EU recovery funds conditional on the respect for rule of law on all 54 levels of government. We urge the Commission to fully use this tool.
55 Structural reforms to return to balanced budgets
56 The ALDE Party continues to stand for responsible economic policy and 57 balanced budgets which means a return to the Growth & Stability Pact and 58 phasing out of quantitative easing in due course. Whilst we need to spend now 59 to get out of the crisis and create jobs, the current historically low borrowing 60 costs are not permanent and are already showing signs of change. Once our 61 economies have returned to growth and our citizens are back in jobs, we will 62 need to consolidate to make sure we have a cushion for future crises.
63 The economic stimulus therefore must be complemented by structural reforms in 64 line with the European semester and country-specific recommendations to 65 future-proof our public finances and make our economy more innovative and 66 dynamic to foster SMEs and entrepreneurship. Funds such as those from NGEU 67 shall only be disbursed if and when the country specific recommendations have 68 been satisfactorily implemented. In this regard, Liberals remain fully committed to 69 research and development and increasing spending on R&D to reach 3% of 70 GDP as well as curtailing red tape.
71 We also continue to stand for competition and the market economy, preventing 72 and tackling monopolies of any kind. We have had to take unprecedented 73 decisions to relax our state aid rules temporarily to face the pandemic. As we
Page 6 74 return to growth, we must return to embracing the dynamics of competition. We 75 want European champions - because they are the best at what they do.
76 Europe’s prosperity remains dependent on open, global Europe & the 77 Transatlantic partnership
78 More, not less, free trade and diversifying supply chains will be key to help 79 Europe to recover from the financial crisis and to improve its resilience when 80 faced with future crises. Today, EU trade supports 35 million jobs and 16 million 81 jobs depend on foreign investment. Liberals will therefore continue to be staunch 82 supporters of free trade as a prerequisite for Europe’s future growth and 83 prosperity.
84 However, free trade does not and never has meant trade with no conditions. EU 85 values and geopolitical interests, and most importantly the respect for human 86 rights, will always remain at the core of any of our relations with third countries. 87 Free trade should also be based on fairness and reciprocity and contribute to our 88 green and digital transitions. For our post-Covid and further economic recovery 89 we therefore must rebalance the global trading system, including within the 90 WTO, in close partnership and cooperation with the US and other likeminded 91 nations and push for new deals to facilitate trade in green tech and digital such 92 as the Environmental Goods Agreement and e-commerce, while also promoting 93 free trade via our bilateral trade agreements to help generate growth and more 94 jobs.
Page 7 Draft resolution 002
Title: On the Outcomes of the Conference on the Future of Europe Author: European Liberal Youth - LYMEC
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Believing that:
4 • citizens stand at the centre of the European construction; 5 • a citizens’ conference is the ideal place to express and discuss visions of 6 our collective European future; 7 • the EU needs reforms on the internal tone and responsibilities between the 8 different institutions and member states.
9 Noting that:
10 • Europeans hope to see, as a result of the Conference on the Future of 11 Europe, an in-depth reform of the different political institutions of the 12 European Union that strengthens their democratic accountability; 13 • Europeans expect the Conference to be a platform for them to express 14 their opinion and ideas on improving the EU, but also to see some political 15 action based on the outcomes of this project; 16 • in the past, the Convention on the Future of Europe failed to introduce an 17 EU Constitution, but did provide for Treaty changes, leading to the current 18 Treaty of Lisbon; 19 • many European Citizens consistently rate their trust in the European Union 20 as higher than in their national governments and parliaments; 21 • a failure to take the outcomes and recommendations of the Conference on 22 the Future of Europe seriously and implement them accordingly would not 23 only be a missed opportunity for reform, but it would also likely lead to an 24 increase in distrust and scepticism towards the European Union and the 25 institutions.
26 Calls for:
27 • the Conference on the Future of Europe to be not just a talking exercise, 28 but a genuinely democratic process which offers citizens the chance to 29 make their voices heard, and for those voices to form the basis of 30 sustainable and wide-ranging reform; 31 • the voices of the youth to be properly reflected, as they have the highest 32 vested interest in a European Future. 33 • member States to recognise that a meaningful Conference on the Future of 34 Europe requires the European Institutions to be open to any outcome,
Page 8 35 including deep structural and institutional reform, Treaty changes and a 36 transfer of powers; 37 • a Convention on the Future of Europe according to Article 48 (3) TEU to 38 be convened in the aftermath of the Conference, in order to implement 39 said reforms and to lay the foundation for a European Constitution.
Page 9 Draft resolution 003
Title: Promoting European public opinion and specific policy reforms for a successful Conference on the future of Europe Author: Partido de la Ciudadanía | Spain ; Più Europa | Italy
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening in Brussels, Belgium, on 11-12 June 2021:
3 Recalling that:
4 • the Treaty of Paris of 1951, which established the European Carbon and 5 Steal Community (ECSC), conferred to its High Authority the power to lift 6 taxes for companies of the sector, and to the ECSC the power to contract 7 debts on the capital markets; 8 • in November 2019 the French and German governments published a 9 non-paper proposing a “Conference on the Future of Europe” (hereinafter, 10 the Conference), during which all issues at stake should be tackled 11 improving the efficiency of the European Union, especially those 12 concerning European policies; 13 • in the aforementioned non-paper the French and German governments 14 underline the importance of a fully-fledged involvement of citizens and civil 15 society, including but not limited to academia, think tanks, professional 16 unions, organisations, NGOs; 17 • the President of the European Commission has stated in the “Political 18 Guidelines for the next European Commission 2019-2024” that she wants 19 “citizens to have their say at a Conference on the Future of Europe, to 20 start in 2020 and run for two years”; 21 • the President of the European Commission calls in the said guidelines for 22 a stronger partnership between the Commission and the European 23 Parliament, the sole institution representing the EU's citizens and directly 24 elected by them; 25 • on 10 March 2021 the European Commission, European Parliament and 26 European Council Presidents have signed a Joint Declaration stating that 27 the Conference “is a citizens-focused, bottom-up exercise for Europeans to 28 have their say on what they expect from the European Union”; 29 • on 19 April 2021 the Executive Board of the Conference has launched a 30 multilingual digital platform to allow citizens from all walks of life to 31 participate to the consultation process; 32 • the ALDE Party resolution on “Strengthening European democracy and 33 values” (2019) stresses the need for ALDE Party “to provide its contribution 34 to the Conference in the most effective way(s)” and to ”promote official 35 celebrations every year at the occasion of the Europe Day (9 May) at local 36 and national level”;
Page 10 37 • the ALDE Party resolution “On Transnational Lists” (2019) pointed out that 38 “transnational lists will create a common European constituency for the 39 entire EU, alongside the constituencies of the Member States thus 40 fostering the European citizenship and reinforcing the topics on the EU 41 agenda”.
42 Recognises that:
43 • the Covid 19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on Europe, and over the 44 past years we have faced unprecedented economic and health challenges; 45 46 • the approval of the Next Generation EU instrument has proven that in 47 order to overcome these difficulties a deeper and better European 48 integration is needed; 49 • the Conference will provide an opportunity to reform Europe and build a 50 more powerful, inclusive and strong EU, while paving the way to credible 51 and progressive reforms improving EU accountability towards its citizens, 52 as stated in the ALDE Party resolution “ALDE input to the Conference on 53 the Future of Europe” (2020); 54 • the Conference should be a defining moment in the history of EU 55 integration and in the path towards a common European public opinion; 56 • the European Commission gives EU citizens the possibility to influence the 57 EU decision-making process through European Citizens’ Initiatives; 58 • European citizens should be consulted and involved in all issues dealt with 59 during the Conference. The Conference should not be an elitist and strictly 60 political process but should involve citizens, NGOs, academia, think tanks, 61 professional unions, trade associations, business associations and experts , 62 among other stakeholders, from all across the EU; 63 • it is important that ALDE Party agrees on specific reforms that liberals will 64 promote and defend across Europe, as the Conference should be 65 translated into specific reform proposals in line with the deliberations of the 66 plenary; 67 • it is relevant to promote key policies to overcome the current sanitary and 68 socio-economic crisis while continuing working towards key structural 69 reforms the EU needs; 70 • the Conference is the result of ALDE Party and Renew Europe group 71 commitment.
72 Calls on the EU institutions, ALDE Party and its Member organisations, Party 73 leaders, Renew Europe group members, Commissioners, members of 74 Governments, members of European and national parliaments to:
75 • hold dialogues and public agoras at local, regional, national and European 76 level, in the form of public town hall meetings, e.g. on the model of the 77 Citizens’ Dialogues promoted by the Juncker Commission, and of the 78 citizen conventions promoted by Emmanuel Macron;
Page 11 79 • promote the Conference and its platform among their countries’ civil society 80 and public opinion, for the Conference to gain popular support and have a 81 positive impact on European future.
82 Additionally, it calls on ALDE Party, its Member organisations and all its 83 representatives to propose, promote and defend the following key liberal 84 policies and reforms:
85 • in the area of climate change and environment, the EU should advance 86 on the full implementation of the Paris Agreement to achieve carbon 87 neutrality by 2050 and of its own mid-term goals of emissions reduction. 88 The ecological transition must be accompanied by a better protection of our 89 air, soil, water and biodiversity. Further, the Green Deal should ensure full 90 coherence with the Common Agricultural Policy; 91 an active European tax policy should be implemented, and the EU’s 92 decision-making process in the fields of taxation and budget should 93 be changed by introducing qualified majority voting. The role of the 94 European Parliament should also be enhanced, most notably in the 95 procedures relating to the Stability and Growth Pact and the 96 European Semester; 97 • in the area of health,the EU should move towards the creation of a real 98 Health Union that includes the adoption of a Single European Health Card 99 to grant equal basic health coverage in all Member States. ALDE supports 100 the creation of a European Medicines Central Purchasing Office and a 101 European Emergency Corps; 102 the Single Market by further developing the Capital Markets Union 103 (CMU) should be reinforced to facilitate access to finance and 104 reducing red tape for SMEs. ALDE reaffirms the necessity to 105 preserve citizens’ savings and taxpayers’ money during banking 106 crises, and supports the creation of an EU authority to fight against 107 money laundering as well as the completion of our Banking Union;the 108 Union should also rely on a more ambitious Multiannual Financial 109 Framework, allowing the EU to jointly issue debt and obtain more 110 own resources. Additionally, ALDE propose combining in the same 111 position the Commissioner responsible for economy and the 112 Presidency of the Eurogroup. The Commission should be empowered 113 with the same budgetary competences conferred to the High 114 Authority of the ECSC 70 years ago; 115 • in order to ensure a stronger economy, promote the creation of jobs 116 and fight for social justice in Europe 117 ,the Next Generation EU instrument 118 and SURE should be transformed in a permanent instrument. They will 119 enhance convergence between Member States and reduce the EU's 120 vulnerability to economic shocks. Moreover, the European Stability 121 Mechanism and the Fiscal Compact should be included in the Union’s legal 122 framework: 123 additionally, ALDE will work towards the creation of a Youth
Page 12 124 Investment Plan with significant firepower to fight youth 125 unemployment and to reduce job insecurity. A more efficient 126 European Labor Authority should coordinate national employment 127 agencies. The creation of a common unemployment insurance 128 scheme will also be supported to protect workers seeking 129 employment in any Member State. 130 • the fight against depopulation should be a key priority for the EU. 131 • in the area of the digital transformation,ALDE will advocate that 132 Europeans should safely exercise their online freedoms by applying the 133 Data and Artificial Intelligence strategies: 134 • 135 • ALDE requests improving the fight against online hate speech to 136 protect fundamental rights, especially of those subject to children and 137 gender-based violence; 138 • additionally, transparency should be promoted in big technological 139 enterprises, while increasing digitalization opportunities for SMEs. 140 The digital transformation should serve Europe’s competitiveness and 141 must be complemented by a dedicated fund for industrial innovation. 142 • in the area of migration,ALDE encourages the creation of a supervisory 143 mechanism to ensure the Europe of Freedoms, including the development 144 of a Schengen control mechanism to ensure EU citizens’ freedom of 145 movement. Border closures in Europe should be a last resort solution: 146 • 147 • the Union must work towards a common, humane, intelligent and 148 responsible European migration and asylum framework, strengthening 149 the European Border and Coast Guard and moving to a system that 150 encourages the sharing of responsibilities in the reception of 151 refugees; 152 • ALDE will support the creation of a point visa system to attract 153 researchers, entrepreneurs, and qualified workers. Simultaneously, 154 the homologation of professional and university degrees should be 155 guaranteed in the single market. 156 • in order to promote values and rights, the rule of law and security, the 157 introduction of European values in schools’ curriculums to teach students 158 about their rights and freedoms: 159 • 160 • moreover, the Union’s capacity to tackle disinformation and 161 manipulation in electoral processes should be enhanced by the 162 creation of new mechanisms; 163 • populism and illiberalism pose a serious threat to European 164 democracies; Therefore, ALDE supports the existence of a budgetary 165 mechanism on democracy, rule of law and fundamental rights. 166 Moreover, the decisions on taxation, international sanctions and 167 protection of the rule of law should be taken by majority rather than 168 unanimity to avoid hold-outs by populists;
Page 13 169 • to create the Europe of Justice ALDE should emphasize the need to 170 reform the European Arrest Warrant; 171 • Europe must move towards a European military body that unites the 172 different armed forces of the Member States under a single European 173 command, which can be deployed for peace, security and 174 democracy-building missions. 175 • In the area of education and culture,ALDE affirms the need to 176 significantly increase the funding for Erasmus+, given its undisputable 177 success in the process of European integration. Furthermore, the EU 178 needs to strengthen the European solidarity corps, boost lifelong learning 179 opportunities and promote mobility programs for our seniors, particularly in 180 the aftermath of the pandemic. 181 • With regards to the role of the EU in the world,in order to strengthen 182 the influence of the EU, it should be represented as such in international 183 organisations. 184 • 185 • the EU legal framework should be used to punish those who do not 186 respect fundamental rights and freedoms throughout the world. 187 When taking decisions on this matter, the EU should move towards 188 qualified majority voting; 189 • ALDE defends a European trade policy open to the world that does 190 not allow unfair competition. Moreover, the development of a Europe 191 Brand for Tourism should be defended; 192 • ALDE recommends reinforcing the role of the European Union in 193 development cooperation. 194 • in order to enhance European democracy, ALDE requests the adoption 195 of transnational lists for elections to the European Parliament and defends 196 the need to formalise the Spitzenkandidaten process, in which each 197 European political family presents a single candidate for the Presidency of 198 the Commission. 199 • 200 • moreover, the European Parliament should have a right of legislative 201 initiative, together with the European Commission, so that political 202 groups can propose legislation in the same way than in national 203 parliaments; 204 • additionally, ALDE supports reinforcing the transparency standards of 205 EU institutions; 206 • ALDE will work for the creation, within the next European 207 Commission mandate, of an ad-hoc portfolio devoted to EU Citizens’ 208 Affairs. The new Commissioner for Citizens’ Affairs portfolio should 209 include all issues pertaining to citizens’ rights, protection, inclusion, 210 democratic and transparent involvement, thus joining together the 211 prerogatives of the current Commissioners Šuica, Jourová, and Dalli. 212 ALDE will promote such Commissioner as a trait d’union in the 213 special partnership between the Commission and the Parliament;
Page 14 214 • ALDE will also promote in EU schools the introduction of a 215 compulsory subject called “European Union”, “History of the European 216 Union”, “European Union Institutions” –or similar to those; 217 • ALDE proposes establishing May 9, Europe Day, as an official 218 pan-European holiday, respected in all Member States.
Page 15 Draft resolution 004
Title: A unique EU supranational citizenship Author: Più Europa | Italy
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Nothing that:
4 • analysis has shown that migration flows towards the EU, either from 5 neighbouring countries or not, are constant. 6 • the majority of these migrants are of economic type, and these migration 7 flows will continue until substantial economic discrepancies will remain 8 between third countries of migration and the EU; 9 • according to Eurostat, in 2018 2,2 millions persons immigrated to the EU. 10 Reasons for immigration vary from education or working purposes, to 11 asylum seek, family reconciliation, and so on; 12 • Eurostat data show that within the EU’s job market, ten years ago, 8 13 million European citizens worked in a member state other than their country 14 of origin; today that number increased to roughly 20 million; 15 • several member states (Malta, Bulgaria, Cyprus) have set Citizenship by 16 investments’ schemes which basically sell national (and European) 17 citizenship linking their acquisition to economic criteria; 18 • European Commission’s reports show significant differences across the EU 19 countries among the recognition rates of the asylum system. For example, 20 in 2019 the recognition rate of Afghan citizens at first instance ranged 21 from 2% in Hungary to 93% in Italy. This range is even wider today than it 22 was in 2018; 23 • the above-mentioned schemes create discrimination between economic 24 migrants and asylum seekers and wealthy third-countries nationals. 25 Discrimination applies to requests of national citizenship too; 26 • the concept of EU citizenship has been established by the Maastricht 27 Treaty and gives EU citizens the right to free movement, settlement and 28 employment across the Union; 29 • EU citizenship is acquired by holding the nationality of a member state. 30 Art. 20.1 of TFEU states that “Every person holding the nationality of a 31 member state shall be a citizen of the Union”; 32 • Art. 21.1 of TFEU recalls the free movement of EU citizens within all the 33 member states of the Union, stating that “Every citizen of the Union shall 34 have the right to move and reside freely within the territory of the member 35 states”. 36 • Art. 21.1 of TFEU describes European citizenship as additional and not 37 meant to replace national citizenships;
Page 16 38 • each member state disposes of its own criteria for citizenship (among 39 these following - in part or completely - the principles of 40 ius soli, ius 41 sanguinis, ius culturae 42 ) and some member states are currently debating 43 whether to modify their criteria of citizenship; 44 • true EU citizenship needs to become reality in a Union where free 45 movement of people and free movement of workers already equalise 46 de 47 facto 48 all EU nationalities.
49 Recalls that:
50 • migration is one of the most divisive policy topics in the EU's member 51 states; 52 • member States like Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Malta, Spain, have 53 experienced the arrival of constant flows of migrants who, once entered 54 the EU territory, move towards other member states; 55 • the member state of destination reflects only in part post-colonial 56 connections and proximity, but can be caused also by family ties, economic 57 reasons or can vary case by case; 58 • the current EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, although represents a valid 59 instrument of consultation between the States to tackle the issue, has the 60 limit of managing 61 ex-pos 62 t the problem of the distribution of migrants among 63 the MS, and it cannot regulate 64 ex-ante 65 migratory flows; 66 • for a non-EU citizen, acquiring the citizenship of a member state through 67 its national system means acquiring automatically the EU citizenship that 68 implies free movement among all the member states as citizen and worker. 69 • the TFEU recognises that European nationality is acquired only by holding 70 the nationality of an EU country and therefore acknowledges the member 71 state as the sole actor in providing - indirectly - the European citizenship. 72 • UK citizens have lost their European nationality by the UK withdrawal from 73 the European Union; 74 • therefore, allowing each member state to have its own citizenship criterion, 75 taking into account the substantial differences between the principles 76 behind the 77 ius soli, ius sanguinis, ius culturae, etc., 78 means allowing a 79 division among the EU member states and, 80 de-facto, 81 to have an 82 à-la-carte
Page 17 83 system of citizenship facing the migration flows to the EU. Without 84 common rules and criteria to all the member states, migrants will indeed 85 continue to enter the EU according to the most favourable national system 86 of citizenship making vain any effort made by the single member state; 87 • in the Chen v Home Secretary decision (C-200/02), the European Court 88 of Justice ruled that a minor who is a national of a member state, in care of 89 a parent who is a third country national having sufficient resources for that 90 minor not to become a burden on the public finances of the host member 91 state, has the right to reside for an indefinite period on that member state; 92 • with the Rottmann decision (C-135/08), the Court boldly transformed a 93 market-based European citizenship of a rather limited and instrumental 94 scope into a quasi-constitutional concept akin to national citizenship; 95 • therefore, national authorities have now to take the effects on EU 96 citizenship into account whenever they contemplate withdrawing national 97 citizenship.
98 Calls on the ALDE Party to:
99 • support the harmonisation of criteria providing national citizenship among 100 all the member states; 101 • work inside the European Parliament on a non-legislative resolution to 102 harmonise national criteria of citizenship among the EU member states; 103 • call the ongoing CoFEU to involve civil society and stimulate an open 104 debate on the need for harmonisation of national criteria of citizenship; 105 • promote inside the CoFEU an open debate on a real and unique EU 106 supranational citizenship, which is not additional to national citizenship. Arguments:
European citizenship was introduced into the European legal order with the Maastricht Treaty in 1992. Complementing national citizenship, it grants a variety of rights to 512 million Europeans. These comprise freedom of movement, political participation, consular protection, involvement in EU policy making and a right to complaint and petition.
Page 18 Draft resolution 005
Title: Towards a true European party of citizens Author: ALDE Individual Members
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Reminds that:
4 • the Congress meeting in Athens on October 24-26, 2019, adopted a 5 resolution calling for the constitution of transnational lists for the elections 6 to the European Parliament in 2024.
7 Takes note that:
8 • these ALDE decisions have not yet been taken up by the national 9 parliaments to allow for transnational lists in 2024; 10 • ALDE is today represented by a third of the members of the European 11 Council and by six European Commissioners and would constitute the third 12 largest group of the European Parliament if it had greater visibility and if its 13 identity were more widely known and recognised; 14 • European citizens feel ever more distant from the traditional national 15 parties and do not participate in the selection of candidates when the lists 16 are drawn up by these national parties; 17 • European citizens do not know today's ALDE, which is more nearly a club 18 of national parties than a citizen organisation engaged in political thought 19 and action; 20 • A European party has greater legitimacy than a national one in preparing 21 transnational lists for the European Parliament. Thus, a true European 22 party will have real development potential with citizens attracted by a true 23 European organisation. This direct European identity allows citizens to 24 commit to a vision, to a program, and to freely chosen representatives in 25 the European Parliament.
26 Proposes an ambitious vision that:
27
28 • the debate on the development of the European Union and its institutions 29 must take place through confrontations among transnational lists and 30 among European parties around clearly identified projects rather than 31 through battles among national parties. This approach avoids the pitfall of 32 national issues and posturing vis-à-vis the governments in place; 33 • ALDE, a true European party, presents itself as an Alliance of citizens and 34 not of parties. Hence, ALDE will have complete legitimacy to devote itself
Page 19 35 fully and solely to the elections to the European Parliament. It will not 36 participate in local, regional or national elections which will remain the 37 domain of the national parties; 38 • the national parties currently members of ALDE will delegate to ALDE 39 their thoughts and the drafting of their programme on the development of 40 the European Union. Therefore, they will give their full support to the lists 41 of ALDE during the European elections; 42 • ALDE will recruit individual members only. National parties will no longer 43 be members but rather partners. This approach is consistent with a citizen's 44 freedom to belong to both a national party and to the European Alliance; 45 • the local and regional structures of ALDE will: 1) lead the debate on the 46 development necessary for the European Union; 2) draft motions; 3) 47 identify likely candidates and 4) participate at the European level in the 48 democratic bodies of ALDE which choose both the party orientations and 49 the candidates; 50 • the selected candidates will undertake by solemn oath to defend and 51 apply the ALDE programme.
52 We call on the ALDE party and its member organisations to :
53 • give the entity a renewed and unifying name coherent with the words 54 used in all our languages while remaining a reflection of our fundamental 55 values of freedom, democracy and the protection of the rights of European 56 citizens. It will be a European party according to the pan-European legal 57 structure to be deposed along with modified statutes from 2021; 58 • define the roadmap for constituting transnational lists. In particular, a 59 process of appropriation and adoption will be clearly defined between 2021 60 and 2023, in order to make these candidate lists' participation possible in 61 the European elections of 2024; 62 • focus its action on the member states of the European Union since 63 European parties can no longer receive funds from non-member states of 64 the European Union, while also creating a circle of “friendly members” for 65 members from non-EU states; 66 • launch a significant fundraising campaign from 2021, thus considerably 67 strengthening its central resources. ALDE will also launch a large-scale 68 communication campaign. ALDE will then structure local chapters in each 69 member state of the European Union or within cross-border regions 70 between 2021 and 2023; 71 • base an initial communication campaign on a group of well-known, 72 recognised personalities and opinion leaders who have demonstrated their 73 commitment to ALDE, thus attracting citizens wishing to identify with 74 ALDE's vision.
Page 20 Draft resolution 006
Title: Open Hearts, Open Minds and Open Borders – The Core of the European Idea Author: Freie Demokratische Partei (FDP) | Germany; D66 | Netherlands; VVD | Netherlands
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021: 3 Whereas:
4 • open hearts and open minds are the core of the European idea and open 5 borders are the most practical expression for the daily lives of EU citizens; 6 • the four freedoms of the European single market – namely the free 7 movement of goods, capital, services and people - are essential to the 8 European Union’s ongoing success and prosperity; 9 • since the outbreak of the Coronavirus, all four freedoms have been 10 severely challenged, after several EU member states had unilaterally closed 11 borders or set up border controls; 12 • EU bodies have agreed on a common approach to travel measures in Q4 13 2020; 14 • following the emergence of new virus variants, some member states again 15 reacted unilaterally; 16 • thereby, Europe-wide response from Brussels is increasingly being 17 repudiated by some of its member states and free movement and supply 18 chains are becoming more disrupted and fragmented.
19 Considering that:
20 • the European Council agreed on the recommendation "A common 21 approach to travel measures in the EU" in October 2020, with common 22 criteria according to which coordination and cooperation between member 23 states is possible; 24 • some member states still introduced unilateral measures to prevent 25 cross-border tourism and travel after new Corona variants have emerged; 26 • specific measures that prevented cross-border tourism and travel were 27 designed disproportionately, as they also affect people who are no longer a 28 risk for infection; 29 • as vaccination rates steadily increase, generalised border closures become 30 even more disproportionate; 31 • the lives of EU citizens, especially in the border regions, are closely 32 interconnected economically, socially and culturally; 33 • border closures thus are a departure from the reality of people’s lives; 34 • in particular, freight transport and cross-border workers, seasonal workers 35 and logisticians have suffered from border controls;
Page 21 36 • free movement has clearly contributed a lot to the GDP of the member 37 states; 38 • restricting border crossings have led to an almost complete halt of 39 cross-border cooperation that further eroded the European single market.
40 Believes:
41 • the four freedoms proved to be an asset with both economic, political and 42 social benefits for the EU; 43 • by unilaterally imposing restrictions on the free movement without 44 coordinating with the other member states, some member states fuelled 45 resentment and conflicts between neighbours; 46 • pandemics, unlike epidemics, require cross-border responses that could be 47 most effectively and best addressed through coordination between EU 48 bodies and member states; 49 • even closed borders could not stop the spread of the Coronavirus but 50 instead made cooperation and coordination between member states more 51 difficult.
52 Calls on EU bodies and member states to:
53 • keep borders open between members states that face similar effects of 54 the pandemic; 55 • implement health and security measures such as increased testing that EU 56 bodies and members have already agreed upon; 57 • cooperate with each other on the basis of the same criteria and official 58 data, especially when the four freedoms are affected; 59 • close and control borders only at a last resort, respecting European 60 principles such as the four freedoms or the Schengen Border Code; 61 • acknowledge that unilateral measures must remain exceptional and should, 62 at the very most, be imposed in a proportionate way, locally and for a 63 limited period of time in extreme situations and may under no 64 circumstances lead to permanent border closures and controls; 65 • acknowledge that restoring freedom of movement is one of the most 66 important prerequisites for the EU’s economic recovery and that 67 commuters, freight transport, seasonal workers and logisticians were 68 exposed to severe hardship; 69 • promote European digitalisation by developing the digital green certificate 70 as an optional mechanism that facilitates the safe free movement of 71 citizens within the EU and advocate that all European citizens are allowed 72 to cross internal borders throughout the EU again without restrictions on 73 their freedom rights such as traveling; 74 • introduce specific exemptions and adaptions of the extraordinary 75 measures for the border regions and to react flexibly to their challenges; 76 • design border controls and entry restrictions in such a way that they can 77 be removed easily and that negative side effects are avoided as far as 78 possible.
Page 22
Page 23 Draft resolution 007
Title: Spending reviews as a path towards prioritizing durability Author: Open Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten (VLD) | Belgium; Mouvement Reformateur (MR) | Belgium
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Whereas:
4 • spending reviews are at the core of fundamental questions as regards the 5 use of public resources that can lead to create more efficient strategies for 6 the future; 7 • a spending review is the process of identifying and weighing saving 8 options, based on the systematic scrutiny of baseline expenditure. 9 • since the global financial crisis, the use of spending reviews has risen 10 dramatically. 11 • spending reviews have different purposes: the information on the 12 effectiveness and efficiency on the existing government expenditure gives 13 the government improved control over the level of aggregate expenditure 14 and allows expenditure prioritisation. 15 • countries with a longer experience of using spending review have 16 demonstrated that it can focus governments to improve expenditure 17 prioritization and to find fiscal space for new spending priorities. 18 • if spending review is to be institutionalised, it must be designed 19 appropriately. 20 • Historically there are two models of spending review: targeted annual 21 reviews (Netherlands and Denmark), and cyclical comprehensive reviews 22 (United Kingdom); 23 • in 2019, the European Commission Representation to Belgium held a 24 Conference with the intent to provide guidance and foods for thoughts to 25 the authorities on how to carry out spending reviews; 26 • the Recovery Plan for Europe will lead the way out of the COVID-19-crisis 27 and will lay the foundations for a modern and more sustainable Europe; 28 • the EU recovery plan is a unique opportunity, yet also creates an 29 unprecedented managerial commitment of the member states to efficiently 30 invest the funds in long-term sustainable projects and encourage growth.
31 Considering that:
32 • taxpayers contributions need to be administered as secure as possible; 33 • “Less is more” is not an idle principle or a contradiction in terms in the 34 allocation of taxes; 35 • liberals are keen on proper use of government funds;
Page 24 36 • taxpayers money should be spent as efficient as possible.
37 Believes:
38 • durability and the creation of durable jobs are at the heart of a sustainable 39 and futureproof economy; 40 • sharing of best practices on government spending can help national 41 governments on a better use of taxes; 42 • accessible tips, guidance and mutual sharing of best practices between 43 member states is still structurally missing; 44 • spending reviews are essential in targeting long-term sustainability; 45 • spending reviews also create an opportunity to detect ineffective 46 expenditures and improve the development of better strategies for the 47 future; 48 • the Recovery Plan for Europe must strengthen the member states’ 49 commitment to guarantee effective expenditures and improve the spending 50 reviews.
51 Calls on EU bodies and member states to:
52 • organise an EU-initiative on sharing best practices on spending reviews; 53 • enhance the technical support by preparing a best practices toolbox on 54 EU level; 55 • use the “freed” taxmoney to one part lower taxes and the other part focus 56 on durability and durable jobs in order to grow the national and 57 EU-economies; 58 • acknowledge that spending reviews represent an opportunity to detect 59 efficiency savings and opportunities for cutting ineffective expenditures; 60 • acknowledge that the EU Recovery Plan creates a unique opportunity to 61 invest in long-term sustainable projects creating; 62 • effectively spend the EU Recovery Fund, and closely monitor the 63 expenditures through improved spending reviews.
Page 25 Draft resolution 008
Title: Religions and LGBTI Rights: A Liberal Perspective Author: Più Europa | Italy; Mouvement Radical | France, Centar | Croatia, VVD | Netherlands, Liberalerna | Sweden; Freie Demokratische Partei (FDP) | Germany
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Recognises that:
4 • over decades, our history witnessed the fight of the LGBTI community for 5 equal rights and equal dignity. It was – and still is – a fight against 6 traditional conservative forces that often refer to religious beliefs when 7 arguing against the equality of LGBTI people.
8 Considers that:
9 • in our societies we are familiar with anti-LGBTI positions coming from 10 evangelical, strictly catholic or orthodox communities. Today, our open 11 society is facing an additional challenge due to the increased immigration 12 of people from conservative Muslim regions, leading to tensions with both 13 Jewish citizens and LGBTI persons, including those of Muslim belief. This 14 trend is exacerbated by the radicalisation process increasingly happening 15 in Europe. Muslim LGBTI people often face multiple discriminations due to 16 their sexual orientation or gender identity, their religion and their ethnic 17 background.
18 Notes that:
19 • while the left of the political spectrum plays down these tensions resulting 20 from the increased immigration of people from regions with a conservative 21 Muslim background, right wing populist parties try to instrumentalise this 22 topic for their political purposes creating fear and prejudice also inside the 23 LGBTI community.
24 Believes that:
25 • we as liberals should not accept neither that conflicts are swept under the 26 carpet nor their instrumentalisation by those trying to position themselves 27 as defenders of LGBTI rights against Islam while, at the same time, 28 denying equality to LGBTI people.
29 Calls on ALDE Party and its member parties to follow these policy 30 recommendations in their work at the local, national and European level:
Page 26 31 • human rights are individual, universal. The main raison d'être of a liberal 32 democracy is their protection; 33 • public authorities at any level should stick firmly to the concept of 34 secularism, thereby refusing any interference from religions when 35 legislating on LGBTI rights; 36 • freedom of religion can never be a pretext to question other basic rights, 37 including LGBTI rights; 38 • journalists, academics, policy-makers and intellectuals should never avoid 39 discussing, and even criticising, religions and their tenets, including when 40 they discuss about LGBTI rights; 41 • law enforcement agencies at any level must ensure an adequate 42 protection of LGBTI people against harassment, violence and 43 discrimination, in all neighbourhoods, with special attention to those where 44 most homophobic/transphobic episodes occur; 45 • authorities should make sure that any religious actor involved in social 46 services and education, directly or indirectly supported or promoted by the 47 State, commits to the constitutional principles guaranteeing individual rights 48 and does not promote discriminatory and autocratic narratives or the 49 supremacy of religion above the law; 50 • all religious communities and leaders are expected to accept – regardless 51 of their own personal or religious believes – the application of our 52 constitutional values for all state policies and individual rights; 53 • journalists' associations and editorial teams should encourage their 54 members to work according to a code of conduct that includes 55 non-discrimination regarding LGBTI people, regardless of the personal 56 religious background of the journalist; 57 • public authorities, political parties and NGOs, each in their own capacity, 58 should promote and support liberal and progressive religious actors 59 whenever they integrate religious groups in dialogues and activities; 60 • schools shall educate about diversity, tolerance and LGBTI rights, including 61 peer-education by LGBTI people to reduce prejudices. The State should 62 promote and not prohibit such education; 63 • governments have to ensure that LGBTI asylum seekers and refugees are 64 treated in a non-discriminatory way and that no discrimination against 65 them, caused by any religious belief, takes place; 66 • integration courses for newcomers should include compulsory education 67 on liberal-democratic values, including LGBTI rights; 68 • awareness should be raised on the experience of LGBTI asylum seekers 69 and refugees, in order to counter at once any theocratic views, as well as 70 the populist argument whereby migrants are coming to „destroy European 71 liberties“; 72 • an ongoing dialogue with religious communities about acceptance of 73 LGBTI people and their individual rights is necessary.
Page 27 Draft resolution 009
Title: Towards a more inclusive society: the role of Liberal Mayors in the eradication of LGBTIQ+ phobia Author: Renew Europe (Committee of the Regions)
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Notes that:
4 • since 2019 the rights of LGBTIQ+ people in some EU Member States 5 have been progressively violated, with over 100 municipal councils and 6 regional parliaments in Poland passing resolutions that have created a 7 climate of fear and insecurity for LGBTIQ+ citizens, their families and 8 friends; 9 • these resolutions talk about LGBTIQ+ "ideology" as if sexual orientation 10 were something that one chooses rather than being inherent to a person's 11 nature; 12 • in doing so, they overlook and belittle the human suffering that LGBTIQ+ 13 people have endured for so long; 14 • the supporters of these resolutions claim that the defence and promotion 15 of the rights of LGBTIQ+ citizens undermine Christian values, such as the 16 "traditional family"; 17 • the resolutions have led to these municipalities and regions being labelled 18 as "LGBT-free zones"; 19 • the European Parliament has recently declared the European Union an 20 LGBTIQ Freedom Zone in response.
21 Believes that:
22 • the fundamental right to religious faith does not extend to denying the 23 basic human rights of other individuals; 24 • European cities and regions have grown more tolerant, open and 25 successful when embracing equality and diversity; 26 • Mayors and regional presidents have a crucial leadership role to set the 27 tone of inclusiveness in their municipalities and regions, showing 28 zero-tolerance towards discrimination and reaching out to their LGBTIQ+ 29 citizens; 30 • European culture and identity has become richer due to acceptance and 31 integration; 32 • Europe's attraction is based on freedom and freedom of expression; 33 • European strength is built upon the creation of bonds between citizens of 34 a diverse community;
Page 28 35 • sexual orientation is inherent to one's nature rather than a choice or an 36 ideology; 37 • there cannot be different classes of human beings in the European Union; 38 • diversity is not something to fear but to celebrate.
39 Calls on:
40 • liberal mayors throughout Europe to promote the compatibility between 41 the right to religious faith and the right of all human beings to be 42 themselves and to live their life as freely as all other human beings; 43 • liberal mayors to ensure a free society that respects the rights of the 44 majority while not oppressing the minority, building bridges not walls, and 45 bringing all citizens together for dialogue and joint projects; 46 • liberal mayors to work with mayors of other political persuasions in their 47 countries to demonstrate the benefits of inclusiveness and of embracing 48 diversity of lifestyles as a strength for local communities; 49 • ALDE representatives at all levels of government to collaborate between 50 one another for the promotion of tolerance and openness, so that our 51 communities and citizens can prosper in freedom and harmony.
Page 29 Draft resolution 010
Title: Strengthening the AI regulation proposal “A European Approach to Artificial Intelligence” by the European Commission to prevent surveillance and discrimination Author: Det Radikale Venstre | Denmark
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Is convinced that:
4 • AI should not be used if there is a risk for surveillance or discrimination 5 • the European Union should not allow gender reductionism.
6 Notes that:
7 • a prohibition is crucial because we need to recognise that people must be 8 given the space and freedom to determine and express their own gender 9 identity, and to do so beyond a rigid male-female binary, meaning that 10 gender cannot and should not be determined by a machine. Instead, we 11 should hold space for society to embrace the broad and rich variety of who 12 we uniquely are; 13 • the automated recognition of other protected characteristics - such as 14 race, ethnicity or sexuality - can be equally harmful. Like the automated 15 recognition of gender, these practices have their basis in flawed, highly 16 contested and discriminatory assumptions. Their use to stratify people for 17 different treatment based on their ethnicity or their sexual orientation simply 18 cannot have a legitimate basis; 19 • the European Union should support people’s rights to human autonomy 20 and self-determination, and therefore address the ethical and social harms 21 that are perpetuated by narrow gender perceptions in emerging 22 technologies and could influence system functionality and facilitate 23 stereotypical expectations of gender in society. The right way to address 24 these concerns does not happen by allowing AI to reinforce more 25 gender-related boxes in which to trap us. Instead, we should encourage 26 and empower European citizens to determine their own identities beyond 27 narrow societal stereotypes encoded into machines.
28 Keeps in mind that:
29 • if we look at a common method for an AI system to evaluate whether a 30 person is male or female, it is by looking at bone structure, facial hair or if 31 the person is using makeup. But gender is not and should not be reduced 32 to our physical features and fashion choices. A person is not defined by 33 what a developer assumes about them based on their facial hair, their
Page 30 34 choice to wear make-up (or not), how masculine or feminine they ”look”, or 35 any other arbitrary stereotype; 36 • these systems have also been shown to have poor accuracy on 37 transgender people, and can compound the harmful misgendering they 38 encounter in their daily lives. Moreover, such systems, which operate 39 according to a male-female binary, inherently discriminate against 40 non-binary and other gender non-conforming people who reject such 41 categorisation of their gender identity; 42 • even if AI systems do not use these above-mentioned sensitive 43 characteristics, they can still use a range of proxy variables related to 44 them. For example, shopping patterns can be used as a proxy for gender, 45 just as zip codes, last names and several other characteristics are used as 46 a proxy for race; 47 • these concerns go beyond just automated gender recognition, and extend 48 to equally harmful automated recognition of other sensitive characteristics 49 like race, ethnicity and sexuality, job application screenings, social scoring, 50 credit scoring, searching for criminal suspects and remote biometric 51 identification in publicly accessible places. In all such cases, the protection 52 of fundamental rights must be ensured.
53 Call on all member parties of ALDE party, Renew Europe Group, Members of 54 European Parliament, Commissioners and liberal members of national 55 governments to support:
56 • a ban on the use of automated recognition of sensitive characteristics 57 such as gender, sexual orientation and race/ethnicity in the proposed 58 regulation on a European approach for Artificial Intelligence; 59 • strengthen the obligations of the ‘High risk’ category, so they are sufficient 60 to protect fundamental rights. Arguments:
Sources:
Proposal for a Regulation on a European approach for Artificial Intelligence | Shaping Europe’s digital future (europa.eu)
Page 31 Draft resolution 011
Title: Levelling the Playing Field: Women’s Rights in Modern Liberal Europe Author: European Liberal Youth - LYMEC
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Believing that:
4 • gender equality and respect between all genders is an integral step on the 5 way towards more liberal and open-minded values in our societies; 6 • a truly liberal gender policy should take its starting point at the individual 7 human being and its rights, regardless of gender; 8 • global gender equality goes hand in hand with the reduction of poverty, a 9 general economic and social development, and democratisation; 10 • women should have the same legal and political rights and opportunities as 11 men; 12 • the empowerment and autonomy of girls and women, and improvements in 13 their political, social, economic and health status, are essential to the 14 achievement of sustainable development; 15 • it is utterly important to have an active presence of all genders in politics. 16 There is a need for the participation and representation of all genders in 17 decision-making bodies as a first step in ensuring well-balanced decisions 18 that reflect the societies that they legislate for; 19 • each person has autonomy over their own body. Sexual and reproductive 20 rights rest on the recognition of the right of all individuals to autonomy over 21 their own body as a fundamental human right; 22 • it is crucial for liberals to fight for the right of individuals to take 23 autonomous decisions over their own sexual and reproductive health rights.
24 Noting that:
25 • in the European Union, women earn on average 16% less than men; 26 • only 15% of mayors and 29% of regional representatives/local councillors in 27 Europe are women, resulting in a lack of representation of women's issues 28 at a local and regional level; 29 • the ratio of women MEPs increased from 36% to 39% in the last elections 30 to the European Parliament, but despite this, men still account for a big 31 majority of MEPs; 32 • the average rate of employment among women in the EU is 67.3%, while 33 it is 79% for men, resulting in a gender employment gap of 11.7 34 percentage points;
Page 32 35 • through additional costs on women’s products (“Pink Tax”), women pay 36 13% more for personal care products and 8% more for health care 37 products than men; 38 • the rate at which the “Tampon Tax” (VAT on women’s sanitary products) is 39 levied varies within the EU and can sometimes reach the Standard Rate 40 (22% in Italy, 25% in Denmark or 27% in Hungary). This tax has unfair 41 social and economic repercussions for women.
42 Considering that:
43 • one in three women in the EU have been victims of physical violence; one 44 in two have been sexually harassed; and around two in five women have 45 endured psychological violence; 46 • more and more European countries have left or are close to leaving the 47 Istanbul Convention, a treaty that requires signatories to adopt legislation 48 prosecuting domestic violence and other forms of abuse against women; 49 • although the general trend has been one of progress towards liberalization, 50 in recent years some countries in Europe have witnessed attempts to roll 51 back existing legal protections for women’s access to abortion. For 52 example, Poland, a Member State of the European Union, has enforced a 53 near-total ban on abortion and has also taken the first steps toward leaving 54 the Istanbul Convention. 55 • at the current pace, it will take around 100 years to achieve gender 56 equality in Europe.
57 Recognising that:
58 • there is a clear need for having fair representation of all genders in 59 different areas of life - research, business, labour market and, last but not 60 least, in decision-making; 61 • it is the responsibility of governments at all levels to create the conditions 62 which will enable women to exercise their personal autonomy and ensure 63 that they are adequately represented in the process of democratic self- 64 determination; 65 • Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights should also be promoted as an 66 element of equal opportunity and development; 67 • forcing women to procure illegal abortions jeopardises women’s health and 68 potentially threatens their lives; 69 • forcing victims of rape and incest to carry pregnancies to term is an 70 assault on their autonomy and dignity, and jeopardises their mental and 71 physical health.
72 Calls for:
73 • ALDE Member Parties to actively work to uphold the principle that the 74 rights of girls and women are an inalienable and indivisible part of human 75 rights, to be protected not only in areas of public life but also in the privacy 76 of the home;
Page 33 77 • political commitment at the European level and the definition of targets and 78 indicators to achieve substantive gender equality with regard to taxation; 79 • member states to remove VAT on all feminine hygiene products and ideally 80 contemplate the possibility of delivering feminine hygiene products for free 81 in public areas. 82 • ALDE member parties to recognise reproductive decision-making, including 83 choice in marriage, family formation, and determination of the number, 84 timing and spacing of one's children; and the right to the information and 85 the safe means to exercise those choices; 86 • ALDE member parties to encourage and promote all under-represented 87 genders within their organisations as it makes politics more representative, 88 the political outcome more balanced and the results more sustainable, as 89 well as to put all effort in to reaching a fair distribution of gender within 90 their organisation and make initiatives to combat any existing gender gap 91 or gender discrimination. 92 • ALDE member parties to fight for the introduction of Sexual Education and 93 Information as mandatory part of the school programme: this includes 94 comprehensive courses on contraception and the effects of pregnancy on 95 the body, as well as the discussion of topics such as consent, boundaries 96 and healthy relationships; 97 • the European governments to introduce a burden-shared parental leave 98 policy that ensures that all employers offer sufficient parental leave, 99 regardless of the gender of their employees. We support the introduction 100 of greater entitlements to paternity leave in all member states, while 101 supporting the rights of all families to decide how to manage their childcare 102 needs. 103 • open discussions between member states regarding the access to safe 104 abortion and would encourage Member States to seek consensus on this 105 matter; 106 • EU countries to remove criminal sanctions for abortion practices; 107 • all European states to ratify and fully implement the Istanbul Convention 108 without delay; 109 • European leaders to work together towards completely eradicating Female 110 Genital Mutilation in Europe and worldwide and to take preventive and 111 protective initiatives for girls and women at risk; 112 • EU countries to bring their legislation on rape in line with international 113 standards and to define rape on the basis of the absence of consent.
Page 34 Draft resolution 012
Title: Expanding the EU Magnitsky Act Author: Centerpartiet | Sweden
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Taking note that:
4 • since the U.S. Congress passed The Magnitsky Act in 2012, the bill has 5 gained global influence and other countries have adopted similar legislation 6 to sanction individuals who violate human rights by freezing their assets 7 and banning them from entry; 8 • the EU Magnitsky sanctions legislation, unlike those in the United States, 9 Canada and the Baltic states, not including systematic corruption and 10 money-laundering offenses; 11 • the clear link between corruption and human rights violations, well 12 documented within the EU, i.e. in the European Parliaments annual report 13 on human rights and democracy in the world; 14 • the current situation in Russia, particularly the Navalny case, requires an 15 urgent supplement to ensure that Magnitsky sanctions cover systematic 16 corruption and money-laundering.
17 Believes that:
18 • individuals who have contributed physically, financially or through 19 systematic corruption to human rights violations should be sanctioned and 20 held accountable under Magnitsky Act; 21 • the EU must not risk becoming a safe haven for people who commit 22 crimes of systematic corruption; 23 • such a risk is significant when other countries but not the EU have such 24 corruption offenses included in their Magnitsky legislation.
25 Calls on:
26 • the ALDE party and its members to push the EU to use Magnitsky 27 sanctions to target individuals responsible for human rights violations; 28 • the EU and its members states to broaden their Magnitsky Act be to 29 cover systematic corruption and money-laundering as described above; 30 • the EU to use Magnitsky sanctions on individuals responsible for serious 31 human rights violations to which Russian opposition politician Navalny and 32 the publisher Jurij Dmitrijev has been subjected to; 33 • the EU to broaden the list of names of individuals and companies 34 responsible for systematic corruption and money, and to implement 35 Magnitsky sanctions against them.
Page 35
Page 36 Draft resolution 013
Title: Restoring fundamental rights and freedoms in light of the pandemic Author: Centerpartiet | Sweden
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Noting that:
4 • the corona pandemic is not only a threat to our health and economies, but 5 also to liberal democracy itself; 6 • the trend of declining democracy in and outside of Europe is only growing. 7 The Covid-19 pandemic exacerbates this decline and there is a risk that 8 European democracy takes steps backwards and democratic gains are 9 reversed globally; 10 • the COVID-19 pandemic has become a litmus test for most democracies, 11 prompting societies to discuss their fundamental rights concerns; 12 • the pandemic has shown weaknesses in governments’ abilities to 13 safeguard fundamental rights, freedoms and the rule of law in the face of 14 the pandemic; 15 • the health crisis has forced inevitable trade-off between public health 16 imperatives and human rights considerations in even the most advanced 17 democracies; 18 • some governments have used the public health crisis to limit fundamental 19 rights and damage democracy. Countries with stronger democratic 20 traditions have shown some worrying signs, and those who showed 21 authoritarian trends already before have used the COVID-19 pandemic as 22 an excuse to clamp down on opposition and roll back democracy.
23 Keeps in mind that:
24 • the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) 25 requires that restrictions on rights for public health reasons or at a time of 26 national emergency be lawful, necessary, and proportionate; 27 • fundamental rights such as freedom of speech, association and access to 28 information is crucial to give people the tools to ensure governments act in 29 their best interests, particularly when navigating a public health crisis.
30 Notes with concern that:
31 • more than half of EU governments have failed to safeguard people’s right 32 to peaceful assembly, according to one study;
Page 37 33 • a number of European governments have curtailed public access to 34 information, making it more difficult to scrutinise how authorities have been 35 using their reinforced executive powers; 36 • governments also restricted the freedom of expression, punishing activists 37 and journalists for questioning and criticizing government information 38 regarding the spread of the virus; 39 • expedited law making and changes to parliamentary procedures in some 40 Member States have severely limited opportunities for citizens, activists and 41 civil society organisations to have their say on governments’ actions; 42 • surveillance has greatly increased during the pandemic, and broad 43 monitoring runs the risk of becoming excessive and intimidating; 44 • in some Member States, governments took advantage of the state of 45 emergency to further weaken environmental and social standards; 46 • many EU Member States’ refusal to follow the EU Commission’s 47 recommendations on a coordinated approach to the restriction of free 48 movement in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and have continued to 49 impose internal border checks and unilaterally close borders; 50 • many cases of scapegoating the Roma and ethnicisation of the 51 Coronavirus crisis were reported across European countries; 52 • reports from several countries point to higher rates of COVID-19 infections 53 among migrants, asylum seekers and refugees, as well as poor hygiene 54 conditions and limited access to medical services in reception facilities.
55 Calls on:
56 • the Commission to act as the Guardian of the Treaties and protect 57 fundamental rights and freedoms by calling out EU governments that 58 impose excessive restrictions on our democratic rights and by restricting 59 access to EU funding, using the Rule of Law Mechanism 60 ; 61 • the Member States of the EU to adhere to the ICCPR when putting in 62 place measures to tackle this and any future public health crises, making 63 sure measures are lawful, necessary and proportionate; 64 • all member parties of ALDE Party, Renew Europe Group members of the 65 European Parliament and Commissioners, and liberal members of national 66 governments to make sure that restrictions made on individual rights and 67 freedoms during the pandemic can and will be walked back as we 68 transition out of the public health crisis, and to ensure the freedom of 69 movement and the function of the internal market are restored as soon as 70 possible.
Page 38 Draft resolution 014
Title: Corelation Between Enlargement of the European Union to the Western Balkans and Strengthening Europe’s Geopolitical Position Author: Nasa Stranka | Bosnia and Herzegovina; LDP | North Macedonia; SAB | Slovenia
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Recalls:
4 • the 2003 EU Thessaloniki Agenda for the Western Balkans which 5 confirms the ultimate EU membership of the countries form the region, 6 • the ALDE Resolution on European Integration of the Western Balkans 7 adopted by the 2015 ALDE Congress in Budapest, 8 • the ALDE Party European Election Manifesto 2019 which supports greater 9 strategic EU engagement and the future enlargement perspective for the 10 countries of the Western Balkans, 11 • the ALDE Council Resolution from February 2019 on North Macedonia’s 12 membership in NATO and the EU, 13 • the ALDE Congress Resolution from October 2019 on Opening of EU 14 Accession Negotiations, 15 • the expressed urge to support Western Balkans in their attempt to 16 transform their society and political systems according to EU standards, as 17 stated in the ALDE Congress Resolution from October 2019 on Improving 18 Europe’s Capabilities to Address the Rise of China, 19 • the ALDE Congress Resolution from October 2019 on Strengthening the 20 European Union as a Global Actor.
21 Recognises:
22 • that the positive and stable image of Europe has been jeopardized by the 23 pandemic and the inability of the EU to offer clear, prompt and resolute 24 response to growing number of geopolitical challenges, 25 • the possible further increase of influence and popularity of other foreign 26 geopolitical actors across Europe, 27 • the danger of posed by narratives that question that existing realities in 28 the Western Balkans, including ideas for division of Bosnia and 29 Herzegovina and the creation of “great” ethnic-based states, as seen in 30 non-papers and unofficial documents circulating inside and outside the EU, 31 • the destabilising connection between the promoters of illiberal values 32 throughout Western Balkans and the EU, which have the capacity to 33 destabilise Europe at large.
Page 39 34 • that “United in Diversity” perfectly describes the European values and that 35 Western Balkans, diverse as they are, would be the perfect ingredient for 36 underlining these values within the EU, 37 • that the people in the Western Balkan region have a strongly developed 38 European identity, which can be confirmed by the withstanding strong 39 support for EU membership in the region, 40 • that the integration of the Western Balkan countries in European Union 41 should be a process that is parallel with the reform of the Union, 42 • that the people of the Western Balkans cannot be excluded from the 43 debate on future of Europe, as well as of the European Union.
44 Expresses concern for:
45 • the lack of Council and Presidency Conclusions at the end of 2020 with 46 regards to the enlargement process, 47 • the blocked start of the accession talks with North Macedonia due to the 48 veto by the Bulgarian government over matters of bilateral nature, 49 • the stalled accession talks with Montenegro and with Serbia due to 50 insufficient progress in the respective countries, 51 • the lack of visa liberalisation for the citizens of Kosovo despite the fulfilled 52 criteria, 53 • the insufficient reaction from all EU member states regarding the 54 diplomatic scandals caused by non-papers and unofficial documents 55 circulating inside the EU, 56 • the vaccination process against Covid-19 in the Western Balkans, where 57 majority of available vaccines are provided by non-EU actors and entities, 58 thus shaking the public perception of the EU solidarity.
59 Calls for:
60 • firm and clear stance by all in rejecting the spread of dangerous and 61 destabilising ideas, be it official or unofficial, especially ones that propagate 62 redrawing of the borders or creating new ones in the Western Balkans, 63 • EU Member States making it an absolute priority to complete the 64 incomplete process of European integration and strengthen EU’s 65 geopolitical position in the Western Balkans, sending a clear message to 66 the rest of the world, 67 • a new creative approach on enlargement for accelerated membership of 68 the countries from Western Balkans to the EU, 69 • an immediate start of the accession talks with North Macedonia and 70 Albania, as well as accession incentives for Bosnia and Herzegovina and 71 Kosovo, not hampered by bilateral historical issues, 72 • inclusion of representatives from the Western Balkan countries in the 73 discussions and decisions on the Conference of the Future of Europe i.e., 74 the European Union, especially with regards to EU enlargement, social 75 cohesion, environment, trade and foreign and security policy,
Page 40 76 • better promotion of EU investments in the Western Balkans, across 77 Europe and rest of the world, 78 • greater promotion of EU enlargement not solely as a goal for Western 79 Balkan and European Partnership counties, but as strategic geopolitical 80 move of the EU and its member states, 81 • engaging efforts to nurture the European identity in the Western Balkan 82 and across Europe. 83 • acknowledgement of the dangers posed by compromising and weakening 84 the EU’s global image, 85 • emphasising the positive EU fundamental values and not give in to 86 populist rhetoric, thus providing inspiration for younger generations of 87 Europeans, 88 • advocacy for increased cultural exchange between all European countries 89 to better achieve European unity, cultural inclusion, and appreciation for 90 cultural diversity, 91 • investing of greater effort for creation of common historical narratives and 92 incorporating studying of history of all European countries in the history 93 curriculums, 94 • advocating for a broad culture of remembrance of the Srebrenica genocide 95 and other sufferings of the people in the Western Balkan region in recent 96 European history, 97 • inclusion of all EU member states and prospective members states into a 98 common strategy for economic recovery and development in the 99 post-COVID-19 pandemic era.
Page 41 Draft resolution 015
Title: Creation of a Common European Army Author: Più Europa | Italy
1 Creation of a Common European Army
2 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe ALDE 3 Party having met in Brussels on 11 and 12 June 2021 4 A. whereas the shift in America’s strategic centre of gravity from Europe to the 5 Pacific, which began under the Obama administration, intensified under the 6 Trump administration and has remained largely unchallenged by the Biden 7 administration, reinforces the need for the European Union to equip itself with a 8 genuine autonomous security policy and common instruments to implement it;
9 B. whereas defence policy in the strict sense remains the responsibility of the 10 Member States and whereas a European security policy is therefore not only 11 compatible with, but complementary to the NATO membership of many EU 12 Member States;
13 C. whereas, as the interventions in Libya and Syria have shown, no EU Member 14 State is any longer capable of conducting and concluding medium-intensity 15 military operations on its own;
16 D. having regard to the strong risks of further destabilisation in the 17 Maghreb-Sahel and Middle East regions and the significant migratory pressures it 18 is likely to provoke;
19 E. having regard to the consolidation at the Union’s frontiers of deeply 20 anti-liberal regimes pursuing nationalist and neo-imperialist policies;
21 F. whereas experiments in the integration of European military corps have not 22 been convincing, mainly because of the continuing links of the various “parties” 23 with their respective national governments;
24 G. whereas a European army project must be sufficiently ambitious, including in 25 budgetary terms, to provide a strong incentive for national defence industries to 26 regroup within European groups;
27 H. whereas a European integration project in the field of security cannot start or 28 go hand in hand with the creation of a single European army, but rather with the 29 establishment of an initial core of a common, Community army, under the 30 authority of the European institutions, to deal with emergencies and contribute to 31 the common security of Europe;
Page 42 32 I. whereas to this end the enhanced cooperation procedure, as provided for in 33 Article 20 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU), can be institutionally activated 34 with a few marginal changes to the Treaties;
35 The ALDE Party, the member parties, the Liberal prime ministers and ministers, 36 the Commissioners, the Liberal MEPs and the Liberal national MPs undertake to 37 ask the European Commission to set up a working group composed of 38 personalities with recognised expertise in the military and political fields, two 39 from each of the four institutions of the Union (Commission, European Council, 40 Council and Parliament) and two from each Member State of the Union wishing 41 to participate in enhanced cooperation with a view to the creation of a common 42 European army;
43 The ALDE Party and the member parties also undertake to ask the Commission 44 to commission this group of personalities:
45 - to draft up a White Paper on the security of the Union, analysing all the 46 security threats to which the European Union as a whole is exposed and which 47 it must be able to face together;
48 - to carry out an in-depth feasibility study of a common European army, taking 49 into account in particular the following criteria;
50 (a) the full institutional and political integration of such an army into the existing 51 Union institutions; in this framework the European Council should act as the 52 Union’s Security Council empowered to authorise, upon the proposal from the 53 President of the Commission, the deployment of the common army;
54 (b) the exclusion of the option of mere coordination or functional integration of 55 segments of national armies, in favour of the option of creating ex nihilo a 56 common European army composed of European soldiers and officers;
57 c) a budget allocation of 0.3% of the combined GDP of the countries 58 participating in this enhanced cooperation;
59 The ALDE Party and its member parties also undertake to ask the Commission, 60 their governments and/or the European Parliament to put the proposal for the 61 creation of a common army on the agenda of the Conference on the Future of 62 Europe.
Page 43 Draft resolution 016
Title: Freedom of bio-medicine research and its safe applications Author: Più Europa | Italy
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Considering that:
4 • the criteria for funding biomedical research must consider all those 5 experimentations that can protect and promote scientific progress in the 6 treatment of serious diseases in order to guarantee the primary interest of 7 patients and future generations of Mankind; 8 • the studies of embryonic stem cells and on germ-line genome editing are 9 promising experimentations respectively to find cures for several types of 10 severe diseases and to prevent inheritable ones in the offspring, so they 11 should not be excluded a priori from funding; 12 • it is also important that in the future the results of all these experiments 13 are shared among all the people and benefit the entire world population, 14 European citizens included, so it is wrong to let them take place only 15 outside a region with a tradition of democratic values and respect for the 16 rule of law like European Union because this would have no control over 17 the process leading to the applications of such results; 18 • the European Union should impede only the clinical use of activities that 19 have not yet yielded effective and safe results in basic and pre-clinical 20 research or do not respect human dignity.
21 Is aware that:
22 • the transfer of the nucleus of a somatic cell of a patient into an egg cell 23 deprived of its nuclear genetic material would allow the production of 24 embryonic stem cells compatible with the patient's own immune system, in 25 order to avoid the transplant rejection; 26 • while newly or yet to be developed medical advances, like somatic genetic 27 therapies, are certainly welcome because they are necessary to treat sick 28 people, they do not block the passage of harmful germ-line mutations from 29 generation to generation and rather allow them to elude natural selection 30 by transmitting from patients to their children, so to descendants; 31 • harmful mutations occur spontaneously with a greater frequency than 32 beneficial ones; 33 • all that could cause an accumulation of harmful mutations in the offspring 34 increasing the incidence of hereditary genetic diseases in the human 35 population over the generations, constraining to resort more and more 36 often to the same therapies that indirectly cause their spread;
Page 44 37 • unfortunately, pre-implantation genetic analysis and embryos selection 38 have limits that do not always make them sufficient or useful to deliver a 39 "healthy" child and, mostly, a child in any case not carrier of the dangerous 40 genetic or chromosomal variant inherited from her\his parents and, in turn, 41 transmissible to her\his future children; 42 • if appropriate basic research were carried out on human gametes 43 precursor stem cells, “fertilized oocytes”, zygotes, and very early embryos 44 in future it may become feasible to modify the human genetic heritage 45 through genome editing with safety and efficacy and to use this possibility 46 to prevent the hereditary diseases for all the descendants; 47 • the overwhelming majority of the international scientific community has 48 asked for a moratorium of a few years on the clinical use of germ-line 49 genome editing, because the research is still far behind and therefore any 50 clinical applications are for now too risky and therefore premature, but does 51 not asked for a ban and considers very important to continue basic 52 research in the meantime, because these experiments promise to make 53 germ-line genome editing become a better method to prevent hereditary 54 diseases linked to nuclear DNA than pre-implantation genetic analysis and 55 embryos selection alone; 56 • while genome editing techniques are not yet ready to be applied to the 57 germ-line in the clinic, some mitochondrial replacement techniques are 58 because these "by replacing mitochondria replace their DNA without directly 59 altering its sequence" (unlike genome editing), some of them have already 60 successfully passed both basic and pre-clinical trials and two of them 61 (spindle transfer and pro-nuclear transfer) have already been tested in the 62 clinic leading to the birth of some children who are all healthy; 63 • in general mitochondrial replacement techniques are the only concrete 64 possibility available to date capable of preventing the transmission of 65 mitochondrial DNA related diseases from mother to her children and from 66 her daughters to future generations.
67 Concludes that:
68 • clinical use of germ-line genome editing is still imprudent but the European 69 Union should revise the article 14 of the Program Horizon Europe 2021 – 70 2027 to allow the European Union to fund confined in vitro(not in 71 clinic)activities intended to genetically modify the human germ-line and the 72 research on nuclear transfer for biomedical reasons, notwithstanding that 73 cloning persons for reproductive purpose must remain forbidden; 74 • the European Union should revise article 90 of Regulation 536/2014 on 75 clinical trials of medical products for human use to allow mitochondrial 76 replacement techniques in clinic for preventive purpose; 77 • the ALDE Party will politically mobilise to achieve these legislation 78 changes.
Page 45 Draft resolution 017
Title: Strengthening the EU health system Author: Freie Demokratische Partei (FDP) | Germany
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Appreciates:
4 • the EU bodies and national states showing cohesion and taking initiatives 5 to advance further towards a real political union when combating the 6 impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic; 7 • the EU reacting properly and enabling fast but safe research and approval 8 processes during the crisis; 9 • the EU being the primary negotiation party carrying out the negotiations 10 with vaccine producers and organising a central procurement for the whole 11 Union.
12 Urges for quick implementation of the following initiatives already taken by 13 the Commission and the European Parliament:
14 • an effective alarm mechanism for health crises such as pandemics, 15 sanitary crises or drug shortages; 16 • a RescEU stockpile of medical equipment; 17 • rapid and safe approval procedures for critical pharmaceuticals; 18 • ensuring the functionality of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), on 19 weekends and even during public holidays; 20 • the provision of recommendations for necessary lockdown, border traffic 21 restrictions and quarantine measures that are differentiated according to 22 the regional impact; 23 • the development of EU standards as a recommendation for the treatment 24 and prevention of situations that can become life-threatening; 25 • the implementation of Europe's Beating Cancer Plan, which sets out a 26 new and joint EU approach to cancer prevention, treatment and care.
27 Believes:
28 • in the positive effects of free, open and fair worldwide trade fostering 29 global wealth; 30 • that protectionist reactions would be a wrong signal to the world and 31 WTO, e.g. export restrictions or excessive subsidies for production of 32 pharmaceutical ingredients and medical equipment in the EU; 33 • that as long as the supply of medicines and vaccines cannot be 34 guaranteed by the current monopolistic and unfree world market, measures
Page 46 35 like cuts in bureaucracy, investment protection subsidies for production 36 facilities or subsidies for security of supply may be imposed at EU-level.
37 Calls the EU bodies and its member states to:
38 • build a stockpile of medical goods; 39 • ensure that the upcoming decisions on the EU Health Technology 40 Assessment regulation respect the principle of subsidiarity. Member states 41 should be obliged to consider clinical Health Technology Assessments on 42 EU level, but have to remain entitled to deviate from clinical assessments 43 when deciding on reimbursement by national Social Security systems; 44 • develop a genomic strategy that aims at connecting national data base 45 projects to improve access to knowledge e.g. on rare diseases; 46 • protect intellectual property rights as a prerequisite for innovation, 47 especially with regard to pharmaceuticals for patients with rare diseases. 48 The EU pharma strategy should refrain from weakening patent rights in this 49 field; 50 • cut back bureaucracy and create an entrepreneur and innovation friendly 51 environment to attract the necessary industries, e.g. in the field of 52 genetics; 53 • invest in basic academic research in areas where the market does not 54 sufficiently supply the needs of the population, e.g. vaccination or 55 antibiotics. The knowledge created by academic research can reduce 56 production costs, which makes it more profitable for private corporations to 57 develop a product; Formatted: Font: (Default) +Body (Arial) 58 • address the risk of a digital divide as we are moving towards more eHealth options Formatted: Bulleted + Level: 1 + Aligned at: 0 cm + 59 and therefore calls for putting in place policies and funding that support high digital Indent at: 0.63 cm 60 connectivity especially in rural areas; 61 • stick to high EU standards with regard to the environment, health and 62 safety of the workforce and production process requirements; 63 • develop the necessary legislation to allow the European Commission with 64 subsequent approval of the European Parliament and the Council of the 65 EU to mandate proportional and uniform travel restrictions (e. g. mandatory 66 health checks, quarantine or travel bans) for travel into the EU and 67 Schengen Area in order to stop the spread of infectious diseases with 68 pandemic potential at an early stage like Taiwan did during the Covid-19 69 pandemic; 70 • create a European Medical Corps within existing EU civilian crisis response 71 structures in order to assist member states in case of a health emergency; 72 • revise the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of 73 Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) also known as the Washington Convention 74 with a view to regulating the trade with wild animals in order to stop new 75 zoonoses from emerging.
Page 47 Draft resolution 018
Title: Greater EU coordinating role for tackling healthcare emergencies Author: Più Europa | Italy
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Noting that:
4 • the COVID-19 pandemic showed the urgency to reinforce the role of the 5 European Union (EU) in healthcare policies and emergency response; 6 • the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), and in 7 particular Article 168 thereof, assigns to the EU only a number of 8 supporting tasks in relation to healthcare policies, while the latter remain 9 exclusively national-oriented even when "combating serious cross-border 10 threats to health"; 11 • Article 196 TFEU similarly provides a mere supportive action to civil 12 protection activities, even in the event of "natural or man-made disasters"; 13 • the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, via its rescEU medical reserve and 14 distribution mechanism, has developed a quicker response to health crises, 15 as the swift delivery of medical equipment during the COVID-19 emergency 16 proves; 17 • the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) 18 maintains preventing and coordinating functions, although without an 19 adequate and autonomous operational capacity to tackle healthcare 20 emergencies, as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic shows; 21 • the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA) was 22 established on 16 February 2021 and is operational since 1 April 2021, 23 with the mission of addressing the European Commission’s ambition to 24 help rebuild a post-COVID-19 Europe at its heart, which will be greener, 25 more digital, more resilient and better fit for the current and forthcoming 26 challenges. Its activities will also best support the future tasks of the 27 Health emergency preparedness and response authority (HERA) in tackling 28 health emergencies; 29 • it is, therefore, possible to extend the EU competencies over healthcare, 30 even without modifications to the TFEU to a certain extent; 31 • six EU member states have been summoned by the European 32 Commission to lift limitations to non-essential travels abroad, which 33 disrupted free movement and supply chains, in spite of the European 34 Commission’s recommendations based on the colour codes assigned by 35 the ECDC;
Page 48 36 • the Commission’s unprecedented capacity of governance in the equally 37 unprecedented pandemic emergency is the result of a transitional situation 38 because this capacity is not written in the Treaties; 39 • furthermore, some undoubted criticalities emerged, in particular in regard 40 to the acquisition of vaccines especially in the perspective of the 41 Commission’s contractual weakness in an emergency context; 42 • the European Commission developed and activated on 1 June 2021 a 43 Digital Green Certificate to facilitate the safe free movement of citizens 44 within the EU during the COVID-19 pandemic. It contains necessary key 45 information, which cannot be retained by visited countries. However, some 46 Member States claim to retain data collected for purposes beyond free 47 movement.
48 Recalls that:
49 • the ALDE Party Resolution of 18 November 2020 on ‘Lessons learned 50 from COVID-19 pandemic’ (the ‘Bureau Resolution’) called for greater 51 coordination role for the EU in the area of public health, through the 52 empowerment of the European Commissioner for Crisis Management to 53 coordinate in similar future scenarios of pandemics and emergencies, as 54 well as the creation of a European Health Response Mechanism to better 55 respond to future types of European health crisis; 56 • the Bureau Resolution recommended that the role of the public health 57 agencies such as the ECDC and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) 58 be strengthened to enable monitoring, surveillance, testing and tracing of 59 future diseases; 60 • the Bureau Resolution stressed that tracking and tracing facilities should 61 never become a threat to our fundamental freedoms and privacy, and 62 condemned the governments (‘corona dictators’) who used the pandemic 63 as an opportunity to expand their powers, calling for the establishment of 64 mechanisms to monitor for abuses of power and the rule of law; 65 • the Bureau Resolution called for even greater cooperation amongst EU 66 member states; 67 • the EU member states should keep a coordinated approach when 68 introducing COVID-19-related restrictive measures to fundamental freedoms 69 and rights.
70 Calls on:
71 • ALDE parties to sound their respective Member States’ willingness to 72 launch an «enhanced cooperation» for healthcare – capable of attracting 73 the participation of all EU Member States over time -, according to Article 74 20 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and Articles 326 to 334 of 75 the TFEU, aiming at the creation of a ‘rapid intervention force’ both in the 76 healthcare sector and in support of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. 77 Such enhanced cooperation should be adequately and permanently 78 established and equipped (starting from the envisaged and strengthened 79 role of HERA), assisted by a specific database interoperability system
Page 49 80 defining homogenous codification and info-gathering criteria, in order to 81 immediately cope with the EU citizens needs in case of healthcare threat. 82 This intervention force would be financed by the Member States 83 participating to the enhanced cooperation; 84 • the ALDE Party to initiate, via its member parties represented in the 85 European Parliament or by any appropriate means, the procedure to 86 modify the TFEU for establishing healthcare as a shared competence 87 between the EU and its Member States in the meaning of Article 4 TFEU, 88 therefore extending the current shared competence in public health matter, 89 now exclusively provided for by Article 168(4) TFEU. This way, according 90 to the subsidiarity principle under Article 5(1) TEU, the EU would be 91 granted the powers to create, organise, train and implement a rapid 92 intervention and executive force, and to coordinate and operatively support 93 the EU national and regional healthcare systems in case of serious and 94 massive transnational emergency; 95 • the ALDE Party to promote the attribution of competences, skills and 96 expertise to HERA, so that it is able to acquire vaccines in a preventive 97 way within an adequate contractual framework; 98 • the ALDE Party to promote, via its member parties represented in the 99 European Parliament or by any appropriate means, enhancing the HaDEA 100 mission, in order to create a fully-fledged ‘EU healthcare agency’. This 101 agency would have the power to recruit and train its own staff, coordinating 102 its statutory activities with EU national and regional healthcare systems and 103 acting within specialised and research medical hubs. Such agency would 104 have consulting functions in forecasting the healthcare skills needed in 105 case of emergency. Its staff could be immediately deployed in the event of 106 viral or bacterial epidemic or other healthcare emergencies. The agency 107 should also coordinate and finance medical research and production of 108 medicines and vaccines. It should be provided with its own budget (at a 109 next stage, benefitting from a dedicated new own resource of the EU 110 budget) and administrative authority, with the capacity of calling for funds 111 and producing healthcare equipment and material in partnership with 112 private enterprises. The agency should decide, in case of healthcare 113 emergency, on the best distribution of tasks between the local-regional, 114 national and EU level; 115 • ALDE parties to monitor and ensure, in their respective Member States, 116 the respect for the European Commission’s recommendations on the 117 COVID-19-related measures restricting the freedom of movement of citizens 118 and goods; 119 • ALDE parties to monitor and ensure, in their respective Member States, 120 that the Digital Green Certificate is not used for other purposes than it was 121 created or in breach of fundamental freedoms and privacy rights.
Page 50 Draft resolution 019
Title: Climate Change - Expand ETS: include all emissions, reach net zero, and use market forces. Author: ALDE Individual Members
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Acknowledges that:
4 • many, many technical solutions will be needed to avoid climate change – 5 from building materials, to greener production and smarter transport; thus 6 covering both more efficient energy use and cleaner energy production; 7 • that the EU ETS is the largest quota system and the largest system of 8 emissions with a carbon price. Emission allowances are the ‘currency’ of 9 the EU ETS, and Each can address the possessor the right to emit 10 amounts of CO2 as the foremost greenhouse gas, or the equivalent 11 amount of two more potent greenhouse gases, nitrous oxide (N2O) and 12 perfluorocarbons (PFCs). “Carbon emissions” mentioned later is really short 13 for CO2-equivalents including these gases.
14 Recognises that:
15 • the near universal agreement among economists that the only efficient 16 way to reduce carbon emissions is to get a carbon price – for as much of 17 the economy together and for as much as the world together. A system 18 that supports all green technologies in general, but no technology in 19 particular. For instance all green energy production gains a competitive 20 advantage against the heavily carbon priced traditional fossil fuels; 21 • the global emissions covered by a carbon price has increased from 5% in 22 2010 to 15% - soon to reach 20%; 23 • the December 2020 decision of the European Council endorsing a new 24 2030 target for emission reduction. EU leaders agreed on a binding EU 25 target for a net domestic decrease of at least 55% in greenhouse gas 26 emissions by 2030 compared to 1990.
27 Notes that:
28 • in December 2019, EU leaders approved the objective of attaining a 29 climate-neutral EU by 2050; 30 • the share of allowances to be auctioned will be 57%.
31 Regrets that:
32 • the ETS only covers about half of the economy - transport, construction 33 and agriculture are exempt.
Page 51 34 Welcomes:
35 • the cap on the total volume of emissions will be reduced annually by 36 2.2% (linear reduction factor), but realises that the decrease must be faster 37 to reach net zero on time.
38 Acknowledges that:
39 • the EU (including its Member states, and their predecessor states) have 40 been leading the way in getting carbon into the atmosphere, therefore we 41 have a responsibility to take the lead in stopping emissions; 42 • even the large lockdowns of 2020 weren't enough to make carbon 43 emissions sustainable. It is clear that less consumption will not solve the 44 problem in itself – a carbon price for all the economy is needed (price rises 45 will then, probably, lower some consumption, in excess of cleaning 46 production); 47 • while national targets are necessary as long as not all of the economy is 48 included in the ETS, they are inefficient, since they don't have the cross 49 border effect of directing cuts to where they are cheapest to make; 50 • the sad truth, that the promises given under the Paris Climate accord are 51 not nearly enough to achieve the no more than 2 degrees warming since 52 the beginning of industrialisation ”decided” in the same accord; 53 • net zero emissions does not mean no emissions, but that all emissions 54 must be balanced by equal amounts of carbon sequestration. 55 • the European Union to include the whole economy, including transport, 56 construction and agriculture in the ETS; thus the national quotas will be 57 phased out; 58 • the European Union to go to net zero in 2050 at the latest; 59 • all liberal parties and ALDE to reject conservative business as usual 60 rejection of acting on the climate, and to reject socialist micromanagement 61 of the economy under cover of saving the climate – but follow the liberal 62 way: of democratically deciding the size of allowed emissions, but letting 63 the market, that is the collective wisdom of companies, workers and 64 consumers, find the best way to do that; 65 • the EU to auction off all quotas until we reach net zero, making the 66 reductions as efficient as possible; 67 • the EU to maintain a market place for carbon emissions also after net 68 zero, such that would be carbon emitters can buy quotas from carbon 69 sequestrators.
Page 52 Draft resolution 020
Title: Freedom of movement and sustainable mobility Author: ALDE Individual Members
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Acknowledges that:
4 • freedom of movement in the European Union, which was undermined 5 during the Coronavirus pandemic, must more than ever be guaranteed and 6 enhanced by a policy of sustainable mobility and carbon-free modes of 7 transport; 8 • transport is responsible for almost 30% of the European Union's total CO2 9 emissions. Of these emissions, 72% come from road transport; the 10 European Union is committed within the framework of the European Green 11 Deal to reduce 90% of greenhouse gas emissions from transport by 2050; 12 • more or less significant delays have been observed in: the construction of 13 large battery factories and the transition of car manufacturers to electric or 14 rechargeable hybrid vehicles; the development of rapid charging 15 infrastructures for electric vehicles on major roads; interconnected rail 16 networks to develop piggybacking and river transport routes as alternatives 17 to road transport; 18 • taxation of kerosene fuel at the European level: the current price level of 19 emission allowances for the aviation sector on the European carbon market 20 (ETS) is very insufficient in relation to the cost of the negative external 21 climate created by air transport; 22 • the fight against pollution from maritime transport in ports, starting with 23 the lack of decarbonated energy supply for ships at berth; 24 • Rapid technological progress has been observed in: the efficiency of 25 renewable energies, their lower cost and their complementarity with the 26 expected growth of vehicles powered by non-fossil fuels; batteries, their 27 increasing density for lower weight, lower cost per kWh, and the increasing 28 maturity of recycling processes; the storage of electricity distributed in 29 electric vehicles, making it possible to contribute to the regulation of the 30 network (Vehicle2Grid and Virtual Power Plant). 31 • the growing awareness of European citizens that the challenges of energy 32 transition and the fight against global warming are inseparable and call for 33 a coordinated, determined, rapid and wide-ranging response at European 34 level to change our modes of transport and our behaviour toward 35 sustainable mobility.
36 Expresses an ambitious vision that:
Page 53 37 • the European Union must guarantee and reaffirm the importance of 38 freedom of movement in order to develop the mobility of European citizens, 39 both in their employment prospects and in discovering the richness of both 40 the natural and cultural heritage; 41 • the European regions must be accessible and opened up, which implies 42 better maintained and extended road, river and rail networks, and that 43 access not be limited to the major routes; 44 • the public investment strategies must give priority to the synergy between 45 the development of renewable energies and carbon-free modes of 46 transport, in particular by decentralising energy production and 47 consumption, developing distributed storage and its interconnection with 48 electricity supply needs through regulated and intelligent networks such as 49 TEN-E (Trans-European Networks for Energy); 50 • the European Union must strongly support investment in research and 51 development of new generation batteries, the construction of giant battery 52 factories and the transformation of European car manufacturers toward 53 emission-free engines; 54 • a sustainable mobility policy must promote individual freedom as well as 55 collective responsibility, and must give priority to: the quality of public 56 transport in urban areas, primarily railways, as well as electric, NGV or 57 hydrogen buses; the promotion of last-mile logistics in city centres using 58 small electric vehicles; the development of car-sharing or small shuttles in 59 suburban and rural areas combining electric mobility and transport on 60 demand; the development of electric mobility, whether individual or shared; 61 o Inter-regional piggybacking and the development of carbon-free river 62 transport to avoid freight transport by road, favouring better interconnected 63 rail and river lines; the development of secondary railway lines in rural 64 areas to complement road or air on-demand transport; gradual 65 decarbonisation of long-distance means of transport: limitation of air 66 transport to the longest distances, development of very high-speed rail 67 routes (such as Hyperloop), evolution of motorised maritime transport. 68 • sustainable mobility is also inextricably linked to spatial planning, such as the design Formatted: Font color: Dark Red 69 and location of building developments for housing, workplaces, services and cultural 70 activities, as well as of footpaths, cycle paths, public transport stops, parking spaces, 71 etc. Therefore, all spatial plans should include the facilities needed for enabling 72 sustaible mobility or at least lay down the criteria for their construction.
73 Calls on the ALDE Party, its Bureau and its member organisations:
74 • to promote these proposals on all occasions in national parliaments, the 75 Commission, the European Parliament and the Council; 76 • to integrate these proposals into our European programme, in the 77 framework of the "Conference on the Future of Europe" from January 2021 78 and in preparation for the European Parliament elections of 2024.
Page 54 Draft resolution 021
Title: Innovation in sustainable agriculture: European Union needs CRISPR and cultured meat Author: Più Europa | Italy
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Considering that:
4 • human people do not eat “natural” plants but eat domesticated plants. 5 Plants have been domesticated by humans to be more productive and 6 adapted to agricultural practices some 10.000 years ago: this event brought 7 to human civilisation. The ecological impact was dramatic resulting in 8 deforestation, reproduction of very few plants (thus loss of biodiversity) and 9 changes in landscapes to irrigate fields. Before the advent of agriculture 10 humans people were some 5 million on the planet, with agriculture persons 11 are now close to 8 billion. Domesticated plants cannot survive in the wild. 12 Domesticated plants need our protection, they are extremely weak 13 compared to wild plants but they are productive and give us delicious 14 fruits. Domesticated plants need a human constant care in terms of water, 15 nutrients, protection against parasites and weeds. If crop plants are not 16 taken care by humans, they do not produce food; 17 • an often mistakenly considered sustainable option for agriculture is organic 18 farming. Organic methods, differently from advanced conventional 19 technologies, rely on a limited and often outdated number of tools. For 20 example, most of organic fungicides are based on copper, a heavy metal 21 that intoxicates fields; most of organic fertilizers are based on animal 22 powder deriving from slaughter residues (thus from intensive animal 23 husbandry). Because of its limitations, organic farming reduces production 24 by some 40% compared to technological farming, making it unsustainable 25 as the lack of produced food needs to be offset by imports. 26 • a recent document published in Nature by experts of FAO and the 27 European Commission Joint Research Center, explain that a third of 28 greenhouse gas emissions derives from the food system Deforestation and 29 further greenhouse gas emissions come from the developing countries 30 producing food for Europe. By reducing its internal food production the 31 European Union is not being more sustainable, but it is becoming more 32 dependent on foreign countries and it is delocalizing the negative 33 environmental impacts, often in developing countries and at the expenses 34 of native forests; 35 • the recent pandemic crisis has shown the dangers of being overdependent 36 on imports to feed European citizens. Though it is true that trade is vital 37 for our economic systems, both for imports and exports, it is urgent to
Page 55 38 improve our self-sufficiency regarding food and feed, in order to guarantee 39 food security.
40 Is aware that:
41 • to reduce external inputs, protect plants and animals, lead to sufficient 42 yields, make Europe more self-sufficient and make better profits for 43 European farmers, a sustainable way is to genetically improve our plants 44 and animals to be more resistant and require less inputs. Genetic 45 improvement is a process lasting decades or even centuries, that has led to 46 the current wide crop biodiversity. But Climate Changes are now putting 47 under pressure plant and animal breeding that needs new rapid solutions; 48 • genome editing technologies and the CRISPR strategy are among the 49 best solutions to promote a timely genetic improvement of plants, new 50 biodiversity, reduce pesticide use, decrease fertilizers field release leading 51 to more sustainable agriculture and production of abundant and nutritious 52 food. Indeed, the Nobel Prize 2020 for CRISPR to two women is the sign 53 of a new era to face the treats of the third millennium; 54 • the Intergovernmental Panel for Climatic Changes (IPCC), to prevent 55 reaching a further 1.5 °C temperature improvement suggests the use of 56 CRISPR to improve/adapt crops to a changing climate. The Farm to Fork 57 strategy by the European Commission has recognized that “innovative 58 techniques, including biotechnology (…), may play a role in increasing 59 sustainability, provided they are safe for consumers and the environment 60 while bringing benefits for society as a whole”; 61 • cultured meat is meat produced by in vitro cell culture of animal cells, 62 instead of from slaughtered animals. It is a form of cellular agriculture. 63 Cultured meat is produced using many of the same tissue engineering 64 techniques traditionally used in regenerative medicine. Cultured meat is 65 animal rights friendly and ecologically sustainable but, unfortunately, it is 66 still too expensive.
67 Concludes that:
68 • the European Union should promote the application for both scientific and 69 commercial purposes of plants edited by technologies as CRISPR, 70 removing the constraints deriving from regulating genome editing by 71 Directive 2001/18; 72 • the ALDE Party will politically mobilise to achieve this legislation change; 73 • the European Union should organise a funding grants programme to build 74 up the project of cultured meat with the aim to make cheaper his 75 production cost; 76 • the ALDE Party will politically mobilise to achieve this goal. Arguments:
The concept of cultured meat was popularized by Jason Matheny in the early 2000s after co-authoring a seminal paper on cultured meat production and creating New Harvest,
Page 56 the world's first nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting in vitro meat research. The first cultured beef burger patty was created by Dr. Mark Post at Maastricht University in 2013. It was made from over 20,000 thin strands of muscle tissue, cost Dr. Post over $300,000 to make and over 2 years to produce. The burger was tested on live television in London on 5 August 2013. It was cooked by chef Richard McGeown of Couch's Great House Restaurant, Polperro, Cornwall, and tasted by critics Hanni Rützler, a food researcher from the Future Food Studio, and Josh Schonwald. Since then, Dr Mark Post claims the cost of production in 2020 has fallen to $ 3.410 (or else it is about 88 times cheaper); Current day in the world there are more or less forty start-ups, of which about twenty have developed a prototype and at least about ten have forecast to build a pilot plant. (In the EU there are five start-ups, two prototypes and two pilot plants;)
Page 57 Draft resolution 022
Title: Offshore Wind Author: Det Radikale Venstre | Denmark
1 The Congress of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 2 Party convening on 11-12 of June 2021:
3 Notes that:
4 • starting initially with a small test site in the North Sea, the offshore wind 5 sector has evolved into a European success story; 6 • offshore wind is an example of European leadership; 7 • offshore wind is able to provide a vast amount of cheap, clean and stable 8 energy, and is a central element in the shift towards a decarbonized 9 Europe; 10 • deployment of offshore wind has been increasing over the years, driven 11 by the strong ambitions and high competitiveness of the private sector; 12 • the current permitting process for offshore wind parks provides uncertainty 13 to the developers, and often provides setbacks in form of unnecessarily 14 long delays; 15 • private investment has been an important driver in offshore wind progress 16 and will continue to play an important role in the sector going forward; 17 • the required investments will reach magnitudes of 500 billion Euros across 18 the EU to cover the connections of both offshore and onshore wind farms 19 to the consumers, and the increase in need for cross-border electricity 20 transmission.
21 Believes that:
22 • Europe needs to up the pace of offshore energy deployment, if we want 23 to combat climate change; 24 • offshore wind holds the potential to contribute radically to the European 25 Green Transition; 26 • EU leadership in the offshore wind sector has to be preserved as it will 27 become a strong contributor to the European economy through products 28 and technology export, and creation of jobs; 29 • the current deployment pace of offshore wind is not strong enough and a 30 change of gear is necessary if we are to reach the goal of the EU Strategy 31 on Offshore Renewable Energy; Formatted: Font: (Default) +Body (Arial) 32 • special role needs to be reserved for ports in the EU's offshore renewable energy 33 strategy through modernising them and ensuring that they take advantage of the new 34 business opportunities for the assembly, production and maintenance of offshore 35 energy installations;
Page 58 36 • legislative efforts to foster the best conditions for rolling out the required 37 capacity is needed for the EU to make the most use of its strong 38 advantages of offshore renewable energy; 39 • green energy and biodiversity objectives should not be pitted against each other, but 40 practical ways should be found to achieve them, thereby making it easier to realise 41 the offshore energy potential more quickly in practice and ensuring concrete maritime 42 spatial planning, also taking into account people's desire to preserve the marine 43 landscape, the growing potential of eco-tourism and demands to preserve the 44 attractiveness of natural surroundings; 45 • in order to ensure the continued interest in offshore wind, the regulatory 46 frameworks governing offshore renewable energy must provide certainty 47 and clarity for investors; 48 • the rules we set in place must facilitate the most effective use of our 49 energy capacity and avoid the unnecessary curtailing of energy; 50 • investments will not only be needed in the deployment of offshore wind 51 parks but also in the infrastructure needed to support the transmission of 52 the increasing amounts of electricity produced; 53 • it is of critical importance to ensure an internal energy market where 54 cheap and clean offshore energy can flow freely.
55 Calls upon its members to:
56 • make a push toward improving the conditions for rolling out the required 57 capacity in the European Parliament, and in the Council as well as in the 58 individual member states; 59 • work on securing that relevant legislative acts and financial tools reflect 60 the huge infrastructure needs and facilitate anticipatory investments.
61 Calls for the EU and member states to:
62 • remove excessive bureaucracy that hinders actual progress; 63 • harmonise national permitting procedures across member states in order to 64 simplify the work required to deploy projects across borders; 65 • harmonise overlapping regulations and directives such as the Maritime 66 Spatial Planning directive and the National Energy and Climate Plans 67 regulation; 68 • reconsider the distribution of income between developers and transmission 69 system operators; 70 • reconsider the regulatory regime regulating hybrid projects to account for 71 the particularities of this new project type; 72 • eliminate the market distorting mechanism that prevent the successful 73 introduction of offshore renewable energy.