Documents - Think Tank - Parlement européen

Briefing - Combating violence against women and domestic violence - 02-06-2022

Wed, 01 Jun 2022 22:00:00 GMT

This briefing provides an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's impact assessment (IA) accompanying the above-mentioned proposal, submitted on 8 March 2022 and referred to the European �Ϸ��վ's Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM). European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced in her political guidelines for the Commission's 2019-2024 term that the EU accession to the Council of Europe's Istanbul Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence remains a key priority, and that the EU should do all it can to prevent domestic violence, protect victims and punish offenders (IA, p. 6). The proposal is included in the 2022 Commission work programme and in the joint declaration on EU legislative priorities for 2022. The EU gender equality strategy 2020-2025 reiterates that gender-based violence and harassment have reached alarming levels, and remain under-reported and overlooked. It announces that action will be taken to tackle violence against women (VaW) and domestic violence. According to the Commission, the proposal sets out targeted rules for the protection of victims of VaW and domestic violence in order to strengthen the actions taken by the Member States. The proposal aims to ensure minimum rules on the level of protection across the EU against such violence, regardless of whether it takes place online or offline.

Source : © Union européenne, 2022 - PE

Briefing - Transparency and targeting of political advertising - 29-03-2022

Mon, 28 Mar 2022 22:00:00 GMT

The proposal on political advertising aims to require online platforms to also provide information about the political affiliation and on the funding of the ads. Binding EU harmonised rules on political advertising will help companies, especially the SMEs, to enter the internal market of cross-border advertising services, as well as promote transparency of political ads.

Source : © Union européenne, 2022 - PE

Briefing - Application of the equal pay principle through pay transparency measures - 22-07-2021

Wed, 21 Jul 2021 22:00:00 GMT

This briefing provides an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the impact assessment (IA) accompanying the Commission proposal for a directive aimed at strengthening the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women, enshrined in Article 119 of the Treaty of Rome. Following two negative opinions of the Regulatory Scrutiny Board and an exceptional third positive one, the IA provides a good problem definition. The IA coherently identifies the problem drivers and makes a compelling case for the consequences should situation remain unchanged. The options retained for assessment seem built around a pre-selected preferred option package. The analysis regarding the impact on SMEs appears to be insufficiently developed while the one on competitiveness is missing. The proposal includes all the measures presented in the IA's preferred package as well as two extra measures which were suggested, but not explicitly included in the preferred package.

Source : © Union européenne, 2021 - PE

Briefing - Updating the Crypto Assets Regulation and establishing a pilot regime for distributed ledger technology - 03-03-2021

Tue, 02 Mar 2021 23:00:00 GMT

The markets in crypto assets (MiCA) proposal intends to adapt to the latest technological trends in the FinTech sector. The briefing analyses the strengths and weaknesses of the impact assessment (IA) accompanying the MiCA and DLT proposals. The IA is quite technical and difficult to read for a non-expert. The policy options were compared against the criteria of effectiveness, efficiency and coherence, but not against proportionality, which is required by the better regulation guidelines. The preferred option is a mix of various options, and one of the preferred options is transferred into another, new legislative proposal, i.e., on the DLT. The IA foresees cost reduction for business due to the use of DLT, which saves costs compared to the traditional trading activities, with new entrants facing one-off costs similar to multilateral trading facilities (MTFs).

Source : © Union européenne, 2021 - PE

Briefing - European gender equality strategy and binding pay transparency measures - Pre-legislative synthesis of national, regional and local positions on the European Commission's initiatives - 26-11-2020

Thu, 26 Nov 2020 14:23:09 GMT

This briefing forms part of an EPRS series offering syntheses of the pre-legislative state of play and consultation on key European Commission priorities during the current five-year term. It summarises the state of affairs in the relevant policy field, examines how existing policy is working on the ground, and, where possible, identifies best practice and ideas for the future on the part of governmental organisations at all levels of European system of multi-level governance. EPRS analysis of the positions of partner organisations at European, national, regional and local levels suggests that they would like the following main considerations to be reflected in discussion of gender equality and the forthcoming Commission proposal on binding pay transparency measures: * Input obtained from all levels of governance indicates that both gender equality and pay transparency measures require an effective combination of long- and short-term measures and legislative and non-legislative initiatives. There is a need expressed by the EU level for EU legislation covering certain aspects of violence against women. If the EU's accession to the Istanbul Convention remains blocked, an EU initiative could aim to achieve convention's main objectives. According to the European �Ϸ��վ, an EU legislative initiative should also address cross-border aspects, including human trafficking and cyber-violence. Local, regional and national governmental organisations show good practice in non-legislative measures, such as helplines, counselling services and shelters for women. * When it comes to gender equality at work, a long-term perspective focused on changing harmful gender stereotypes could usefully be combined with short-term measures to ensure a good work-life balance, according to obtained input. Governmental organisations at local and regional levels show good practice in both of these areas. When it comes to binding pay transparency measures, there is broad support for an EU initiative from national governmental organisations. * All levels of government are in agreement on the importance of gender mainstreaming, for example in the budgetary processes, in order to take account of the different needs of men and women. The European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) has produced a useful toolkit for applying gender perspective to EU funds. * There are also calls from various parts of the EU system of multi-level governance to improve the availability of gender-disaggregated data in the EU.

Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

Briefing - European Institute of Innovation and Technology and its Strategic Innovation Agenda, 2021-2027 - 12-12-2019

Thu, 12 Dec 2019 15:35:07 GMT

The main objective of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) is to stimulate and support innovation and competitiveness in Europe. In this light, it is regrettable that the impacts on SMEs, competitiveness, or territorial impacts are not discussed in the impact assessment. The budget of the EIT under Horizon 2021-2027 proposal is EUR 3 billion. As most innovation activities managed by EIT take place in 5 countries only, improved regional outreach is one of the objectives of this initiative. New activity - HEInnovate - is proposed to support entrepreneurial and innovation capacity of universities.

Source : © Union européenne, 2019 - PE

Briefing - European Maritime and Fisheries Fund 2021-2027 - 21-01-2019

Mon, 21 Jan 2019 10:58:57 GMT

The 2021-2027 European Maritime and Fisheries Fund is the major financial tool supporting the EU common fisheries policy (CFP). The new EMFF is focused “on evolution rather than radical changes” - and is supposed to be simpler and more flexible for the stakeholders involved. The notes on quality, research and analysis of the impact assessment concluded that the range of options, the scope and analysis of impacts, and the stakeholder consultation seem to be not always in line with the Better Regulation Guidelines for financial programmes.

Source : © Union européenne, 2019 - PE

Briefing - Erasmus 2021-2027 - 15-11-2018

Thu, 15 Nov 2018 10:48:03 GMT

The focus of the new Erasmus programme 2021-2027 is on inclusiveness and on better reach of young people with fewer opportunities. The priorities and action steps of the new programme are described in the impact assessment in detail, however, no description is given on the actual operation of these actions in practice.

Source : © Union européenne, 2018 - PE

Briefing - Revision of the Explosives Precursors Regulation - 10-07-2018

Mon, 09 Jul 2018 22:00:00 GMT

Explosives precursors can be found in various chemical products used by consumers, general professional users, and industrial users, for example, in detergents, fertilisers, special fuels, lubricants and greases, water treatment chemicals. They can be used by terrorists to produce home-made explosives (HME). In April 2018 the European Commission put forward a proposal for a new regulation, accompanied by an impact assessment (IA) and an evaluation, which have been performed at the same time. The IA has attempted to provide a rather detailed, albeit mainly qualitative, analysis of the various types of impacts, disregarding some limitations to obtain data, such as a risk of exposing vulnerabilities in Member States and of jeopardising ongoing investigations and prosecutions. The IA notes that many SMEs are not part of the EU level industry associations, which have been consulted while drafting the ex-post evaluation. A question arises if the SMEs have been targeted at the stakeholder consultation in any other way, which appears not to be the case. The public consultation took less than 12 weeks, which is not in line with the Better Regulation Guidelines.

Source : © Union européenne, 2018 - PE

Briefing - Multi-annual plan for western Mediterranean demersal fisheries - 13-06-2018

Tue, 12 Jun 2018 22:00:00 GMT

The development of a multiannual plan as the preferred policy choice seems rather pre-determined, as such plans are a priority measure for the sustainable management of fish stocks under the current CFP. The description of the impacts of the options provides certain quantitative data. However, not enough details are given in the impact assessment on the financial impacts on the fishermen and the fleets, including broken-down information per country, or on ancillary jobs, such as servicing the vessels or sale of fish. The Regulatory Scrutiny Board also criticises the impact assessment for the lack of a dedicated territorial impact assessment. A more detailed and thorough analysis of the impacts on SMEs would have benefited the analysis, as the majority of the fishing sector in the fishing areas covered by this proposal is SMEs.

Source : © Union européenne, 2018 - PE

Briefing - Clean Vehicles Directive - 22-03-2018

Wed, 21 Mar 2018 23:00:00 GMT

This note seeks to provide an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's impact assessment (IA) accompanying the above-mentioned proposal, adopted on 8 November 2017 and referred to the �Ϸ��վ's Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI). The proposal aims to increase the market uptake of clean – low- and zero-emission — vehicles in the context of public procurement operations, thus contributing to reduction of transport emissions, as well as stimulating competitiveness and growth in the transport sector (explanatory memorandum of the proposal, p. 3).

Source : © Union européenne, 2018 - PE

Briefing - Import of cultural goods - 19-12-2017

Tue, 19 Dec 2017 10:04:53 GMT

This note seeks to provide an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's impact assessment (IA) accompanying the above proposal, adopted on 13 July 2017 and now under discussion in �Ϸ��վ and Council. The proposal aims to prevent the import and storage in the EU of cultural goods illicitly exported from a third country, in order to reduce trafficking in cultural goods, combat terrorism financing and protect cultural heritage, especially archaeological objects in source countries affected by armed conflict (explanatory memorandum of the proposal, p. 3). The market for antiques, ancient art and collectibles of older age constitutes 24 % of the global legal art and antiques market. The European market share accounts for 35 % of this global market, with the UK in the lead with 24 % (due to its large auction houses), followed by Switzerland (6 %), France (5 %), Germany (3 %), and Austria, Spain and the Netherlands (each around 0.5% respectively). Based on Eurostat figures, the estimated annual value of imports of classical antiquities and ancient art declared to EU customs may be around €3.7 billion per year (IA, p. 10). The IA explains that the current Common Nomenclature tariff heading (9705) used for import of antiquities and ancient art objects is rather broad, including also a variety of other goods of interest to collectors, making it difficult to estimate the total EU imports of cultural goods (IA, p. 10). Regarding the illicit trade of cultural goods, there are numerous underlying factors, which cannot be changed by this initiative, according to the IA (p. 11). These include, for example, poverty and military conflicts prevalent in many regions rich in cultural heritage sites, technological progress in various digging tools (such as metal-detectors, power drills, explosives), the market demand for such objects, mostly concentrated in Europe and North America, as well as cross-border transaction and e-commerce (IA, pp. 11-12). Estimates show that 80-90 % of global antiquities sales are of goods with illicit origin, and these sales are worth US$3 to 6 billion annually (IA, p. 12). The illicit sales of cultural goods often stem from terrorist activities and serve as a means to finance terrorism (IA, p. 14). For example, the Islamist profit from illicit trade in antiquities and archaeological treasures is estimated at US$150-200 million (IA, p. 15).

Source : © Union européenne, 2017 - PE

Briefing - Service de médias audiovisuels - 23-09-2016

Fri, 23 Sep 2016 13:59:53 GMT

Analyse d’impact (SWD(2016)0168, SWD(2016)0169 (résumé)) portant sur une proposition de la Commission relative à une directive du Parlement européen et du Conseil modifiant la directive 2010/13/UE visant à la coordination de certaines dispositions législatives, réglementaires et administratives des États membres relatives à la fourniture de services de médias audiovisuels, compte tenu de l’évolution des réalités du marché (COM(2016)0287)

Source : © Union européenne, 2016 - PE

Briefing - Mesures techniques de pêche - 06-06-2016

Mon, 06 Jun 2016 10:56:00 GMT

L’utilisation d’informations diversifiées et apparemment solides obtenues dans le cadre d'études externes, de réunions et de consultations, ainsi que la présentation convaincante des avis des parties prenantes et des résultats de la consultation publique tout au long du rapport sont les principales forces de l’analyse d'impact. L’analyse d'impact semble être bien illustrée par des exemples; toutefois, ces derniers ne permettent pas toujours de mieux comprendre les problèmes actuels du fait de leur présentation parfois incohérente et plutôt confuse. L’analyse des différentes incidences sur les parties prenantes et les régions de pêche est plutôt faible. En particulier, l’analyse des incidences sur les PME est brève, qualitative et très générale et aurait peut-être mérité une approche plus approfondie. La raison pour laquelle les options 1 et 2.1 ont été retenues pour une analyse plus approfondie n’est pas claire, étant donné que l’analyse d'impact affirme qu’elles contribueraient peu à résoudre les problèmes d’application des mesures techniques. Une analyse plus approfondie est donnée pour l’option 2, l’option privilégiée, par rapport aux autres options, ce qui pourrait suggérer que l’apparent choix d’options n’est pas aussi large qu’il y paraît. Enfin, l’analyse d'impact aurait pu donner un meilleur aperçu de la manière dont les règlements relatifs aux mesures techniques qui subsistent et les actes de la Commission seraient affectés dans la pratique suite à la proposition.

Source : © Union européenne, 2016 - PE

Briefing - Stratégie de l'aviation — Systèmes d'aéronefs télépilotés (RPAS) - 14-04-2016

Wed, 13 Apr 2016 22:00:00 GMT

Cependant, l'éventail des options étudiées est plutôt limité et les descriptions qui en sont faites sont si générales qu'il est très difficile de les évaluer et de les comparer entre elles. Ainsi, l'analyse ne fournit aucune explication au sujet des critères de classification des risques liés aux drones ni sur la question de la procédure et des autorités de délivrance des certificats. Elle répète à longueur de texte que certaines questions, comme la classification des drones à risques ou les facteurs de définition d'une approche centrée sur les opérations pour réglementer les drones, seront bordées dans les prochaines analyses d'impact qui accompagneront les futurs actes délégués. Il est regrettable que l'analyse ne comporte pas d'examen plus approfondi du contenu probable des mesures à adopter par des actes délégués ou du recours à de tels actes. Toutefois, la classification des risques (définition des opérations présentant des risques élevés ou des risques faibles) aurait pu être exposée plus en détail, étant donné que tous les aspects des règles en matière de drones ne seront pas établis uniquement en fonction des progrès technologiques. Un exposé mieux illustré et plus fouillé du problème ainsi que des descriptions plus détaillées des options stratégiques auraient contribué à une meilleure compréhension des incidences de la nouvelle proposition, tout particulièrement pour les lecteurs qui ne connaissent pas nécessairement bien les règles en vigueur en matière de sûreté dans l'aviation civile.

Source : © Union européenne, 2016 - PE

Briefing - Aviation strategy — European Union Aviation Safety Agency: Initial Appraisal of a European Commission Impact Assessment - 25-02-2016

Wed, 24 Feb 2016 23:00:00 GMT

The main strengths of the IA are its apparently solid information base, including the two supporting studies, as well as good presentation of stakeholder views and the results of the public consultation throughout. It is, however, unfortunate that the external supporting studies do not appear to be publicly available. The IA would have benefitted from a clearer and more complete presentation of the background information and problem definition, as well as more direct reference to the evidence identified. There appears to be a certain bias towards the preferred options, as far as the way in which options are presented is concerned; the question remains as to whether additional options could have been considered in order to provide a broader choice of genuine alternatives. There are also some technical presentation issues, such as rather inconsistent numbering of the items in some sections. It is striking that no reference whatsoever appears to be made to the existence of a second, separate IA (on drones) which accompanies the same proposal and thus is presumably intended to complete the overall analysis.

Source : © Union européenne, 2016 - PE

Briefing - Veterinary medicinal products: Initial Appraisal of a European Commission Impact Assessment - 29-04-2015

Wed, 29 Apr 2015 15:56:00 GMT

This note seeks to provide an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's Impact Assessment (IA) accompanying the proposal for a Directive of on veterinary medicinal products. The proposal on veterinary medicines, together with the parallel proposal on medicated feed, is part of an overarching goal of the Commission to address the problem of rising threats from antimicrobial resistance in the EU. This note, prepared by the Ex-Ante Impact Assessment Unit for the Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) of the European �Ϸ��վ, analyses whether the principal criteria laid down in the Commission’s own Impact Assessment Guidelines, as well as additional factors identified by the �Ϸ��վ in its Impact Assessment Handbook, appear to be met by the IA.

Source : © Union européenne, 2015 - PE

Briefing - Medicated feed: Initial Appraisal of a European Commission Impact Assessment - 13-04-2015

Mon, 13 Apr 2015 09:40:00 GMT

This note seeks to provide an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's Impact Assessment (IA) accompanying the proposal for Regulation on the manufacture, placing on the market and use of medicated feed and repealing Council Directive 90/167/EEC (COM (2014) 556). This note, prepared by the Ex-Ante Impact Assessment Unit for the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (AGRI) of the European �Ϸ��վ, analyses whether the principal criteria laid down in the Commission’s own Impact Assessment Guidelines, as well as additional factors identified by the �Ϸ��վ in its Impact Assessment Handbook, appear to be met by the IA.

Source : © Union européenne, 2015 - PE

Briefing - Multiannual plan for the Baltic Sea stocks of cod, herring and sprat: Initial Appraisal of a European Commission Impact Assessment - 05-02-2015

Wed, 04 Feb 2015 23:00:00 GMT

This note seeks to provide an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's Impact Assessment (IA) accompanying the proposal for Regulation establishing a multiannual plan for the stocks of cod, herring and sprat in the Baltic Sea. The impact assessment has been prepared in line with the established procedure of DG MARE for the evaluation of fish stock management plans. The analysis of specific impacts remains rather general and both this and the problem definition could usefully have been strengthened and assessed in more detail. The language used is clear and accessible. Stakeholder consultation appears to have been thorough, although a breakdown of results would have been helpful. The question of impacts on SMEs, in particular, might merit further attention. This note, prepared by the Ex-Ante Impact Assessment Unit for the Committee on Fisheries (PECH) of the European �Ϸ��վ, analyses whether the principal criteria laid down in the Commission’s own Impact Assessment Guidelines, as well as additional factors identified by the �Ϸ��վ in its Impact Assessment Handbook, appear to be met by the IA. It is drafted for informational and background purposes to assist the relevant parliamentary committee(s) and Members more widely in their work.

Source : © Union européenne, 2015 - PE

Briefing - Prohibition on driftnet fisheries: Initial Appraisal of a European Commission Impact Assessment - 29-01-2015

Wed, 28 Jan 2015 23:00:00 GMT

This note seeks to provide an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's Impact Assessment (IA) accompanying the Proposal laying down a prohibition on driftnet fisheries. In Council Regulation (EC) No 809/2007 a driftnet is defined as a gillnet ‘held on the sea surface or at a certain distance below it by floating devices, drifting with the current, either independently or with the boat to which it may be attached. The overall impression is of an impact assessment prepared in some haste. Even if elements of the draft version of at least one of the two external studies commissioned were apparently used in its preparation, the timing of their completion seems to have been far from ideal. The IA is clearly hampered by the acknowledged lack of adequate data regarding the core problems. Although a genuine attempt has evidently been made to describe the current situation, and in particular to establish how many driftnet fisheries and vessels are concerned, the presentation of the various figures coming from different sources is confusing and does not provide a clear overview. Finally, other issues identified, such as, for example, the monitoring and control difficulties, some of which would presumably persist in case of a total ban, might have deserved further consideration in the context of the preferred option.

Source : © Union européenne, 2015 - PE

Briefing - Approvisionnement responsable en minerais originaires de zones de conflit - 05-12-2014

Fri, 05 Dec 2014 07:40:00 GMT

La qualité générale de l'analyse d'impact est bonne; il est toutefois regrettable que la richesse des informations centrales incluses dans les annexes ne soit pas pleinement exploitée dans l'analyse des options et des incidences potentielles. Une synthèse et une analyse des données qui soient disponibles plus facilement auraient pu être présentées dans le corps de l'analyse d'impact dans un souci de meilleure lisibilité. Enfin, il convient de relever que l'utilité de certaines options, par exemple les options 1 et 2, n'apparaît pas clairement, étant donné que les tableaux comparatifs (pages 62 et 63) montrent que peu des objectifs déclarés auraient pu de manière réaliste être atteints par les options en question.

Source : © Union européenne, 2014 - PE

Briefing - Cableway installations: initial appraisal of the Commission's impact assessment - 29-10-2014

Wed, 29 Oct 2014 10:16:00 GMT

This note seeks to provide an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's Impact Assessment accompanying the proposal for a Regulation on cableway installations. Following the European Commission’s New Legislative Framework for simplifying EU legislation in the area of free movement of industrial products, the proposed Regulation on cableway installations aims to replace the existing Directive 2000/9/EC on cableway installations designed to carry persons (applicable from 3 May 2002). European cableway installations amount to 60 per cent of the world total (mainly in mountainous regions in France, Austria, Italy, Germany and Switzerland). 80 to 90 per cent of the global cableways market is represented by three big European companies, and the remaining 10 to 20 per cent by European SMEs. This note, prepared by the Ex-Ante Impact Assessment Unit for the European �Ϸ��վ's Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection, analyses whether the principal criteria laid down in the Commission’s own Impact Assessment Guidelines, as well as additional factors identified by the �Ϸ��վ in its Impact Assessment Handbook, appear to be met by the IA. It does not attempt to deal with the substance of the proposal. It is drafted for informational and background purposes to assist the relevant parliamentary committee(s) and Members more widely in their work.

Source : © Union européenne, 2014 - PE

Étude - Novel Foods - Impact assessment - 26-09-2014

Thu, 25 Sep 2014 22:00:00 GMT

This research paper was undertaken at the request of the European �Ϸ��վ’s Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI). It provides a complementary impact assessment, reviewing and updating the 2008 European Commission Impact Assessment of a proposal for a Regulation replacing Regulation (EC) No. 258/97 on Novel Foods and Novel Food Ingredients. In particular, it assesses the impacts of the Commission’s 2013 proposal on the various parties concerned, i.e., EU-level and Member State-level decision-makers, European consumers, and the food industry. This complementary impact assessment focuses on key aspects of the 2013 proposal, namely: the scope of its ‘Novel Foods’ definition; the efficiency and the impact of the centralised authorisation procedures on the various parties concerned; the role of national authorities and agencies in the centralised system, and the proposed Regulation’s coherence with other EU regulatory requirements.

Source : © Union européenne, 2014 - PE

Briefing - Cloning of Animals: Initial Appraisal of the Commission's Impact Assessment - 16-06-2014

Thu, 26 Jun 2014 16:01:09 GMT

This note seeks to provide an initial analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's Impact Assessment (IA) accompanying its proposals for a directive of the European �Ϸ��վ and of the Council on the cloning of animals of the bovine, porcine, ovine, caprine and equine species kept and reproduced for farming purposes, and for a Council Directive on the placing on the market of food from animal clones (COM (2013) 892 and COM (2013) 893), adopted on 18 December 2013. It does not attempt to deal with the substance of the proposals and is drafted for informational and background purposes to assist the AGRI committee and its Members in their work.

Source : © Union européenne, 2014 - PE

Briefing - Déploiement d’une infrastructure pour carburants de substitution : première évaluation de l'analyse d'impact de la Commission européenne - 14-06-2013

Tue, 16 Jul 2013 16:28:31 GMT

La présente note a pour objectif de fournir une première évaluation des forces et des faiblesses de l'analyse d'impact de la Commission accompagnant la proposition de directive sur le déploiement d'une infrastructure pour carburants de substitution.

Source : © Union européenne, 2013 - PE