S&D Times - Issue 44
Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament
We fight for social justice, sustainability & equality for all European citizens
This week
The last plenary session of this mandate has come to an end. It was a plenary where nearly 90 votes took place and where our Group’s leadership was key in achieving the adoption of many key laws.
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Right to Repair Directive
On Tuesday, the plenary voted?on new rules?that?enhanced?consumers’?right to repair. It is?a?big victory for our Group who, as leading negotiators, have shown their commitment to?extending?consumers’ rights whilst protecting the environment. Under the new rules, the scope of the right to repair will be?widened?after the expiry of the minimum guarantee period; there will be an extension of the legal guarantee by 12 months in cases of repair;?and?member states?will?have to establish incentives, such as repair vouchers or national repair funds.
EU legislation on platform work
On Wednesday, the European Parliament ratified the historic agreement on the protection of over 30 million platform workers and the European social model. It was the last stretch on a rough journey to this new legislation, which started in 2016 in Prague, where the Socialists and Democrats first pledged to fight for?the?protection of all workers in the digital era.
The groundbreaking legislation is a result of?the?relentless efforts of the progressive family. Our Group led the negotiations on behalf of the European Parliament, and all this would not have been made possible without?the Commissioner for jobs and social rights, Nicolas Schmit,?who put forward a far-reaching legislative proposal. See more here
Ecodesign regulation
Under our leadership, the plenary voted to give its final consent to the agreement on the revised Ecodesign Regulation, which aims?to make sustainable products the norm in the European Union. Compared to the current legislation, the revision expands its scope beyond energy-related products to introduce requirements on a wider range of items.?
Under the new rules, the European Commission will have to set specific environmental requirements for products, including durability, reparability, environmental footprint, and the presence of harmful chemical substances. Additionally, new products on the market will be accompanied by a ‘digital product passport’ to provide further information to citizens about the environmental sustainability of the goods they buy.?
At the S&Ds’ initiative, the European Commission will prioritise, already in the coming months, highly environmentally harmful products such as iron, steel, aluminium, textiles, furniture, tyres, detergents, paints, lubricants and chemicals.?
Prohibiting products made with forced labour on the Union market
The European Parliament also voted for a first ever EU law to ban products made with forced labour. Shirts, shoes or cars, made by enslaved Uyghurs, Turkmens, or forced workers anywhere, will not be sold in our shops or online anymore.
For us, it is a huge victory, as it was our Group who initiated?this fight to create a robust instrument to help eradicate modern slavery. Under the new rules, the Commission will be responsible for carrying out investigations into cases of forced labour outside the EU, while member states will carry out investigations within the EU. If the investigation concludes that forced labour has been used, goods will have to be withdrawn from the EU market and online marketplaces, and then donated, recycled or destroyed. The Commission will establish a database with a list of specific economic sectors in specific geographic areas where state-imposed forced labour takes place.? This is one of our main achievement of this legislature.
Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence
After a decade of calls and insistent pressure and campaigning done by our Group, the EU will finally have the first-ever law to combat violence against women – a first step to eradicate the pandemic of gender-based violence. The directive was voted on Wednesday and is the first EU legal instrument to combat gender-based cyber violence, like cyberstalking and cyber-flashing. It also makes female genital mutilation (FGM) a criminal offence, punishable across the EU, and forced marriage is criminalised at EU level too. Furthermore, the new law details the rights for victims of all forms of violence against women or domestic violence and provides for their protection.
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New EU Ethics Body
This week, our Group also led a progressive majority endorsing a new EU ethics body. The new inter-institutional body, agreed on at a political level last month, will set standards for ethics in the EU institutions and will be composed of representatives of the institutions and five independent experts. You can see more here
Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive
On Wednesday, the Parliament voted on new binding rules on making sure businesses behave responsibly. This is a major victory for the Socialists and Democrats, who initiated this fight four years ago with an own initiative report, calling on the Commission to come forward with a?proposal, and led the negotiations on behalf of the European Parliament.
The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive is the most ambitious legislation in the world to oblige companies, both inside and outside the EU, to take responsibility for the impact of their activities on human rights and the environment in their subsidiaries and value chains.
Ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe
On Wednesday, the European Parliament also gave its approval to the agreement forged with the EU Council on the revised Ambient Air Quality Directive, establishing more stringent regulations to combat air pollution.?
Leading the negotiations on the revised Ambient Air Quality Directive, our Group has been pivotal in making air quality monitoring across Europe more effective, introducing the concept of ‘air pollution hotspots’ to ensure that air pollution is monitored in areas where the population is exposed to significant pollution sources.
Our Group also strengthened the provisions on public information and the protection of the most vulnerable groups through the expansion of information thresholds to other pollutants not covered by current legislation. Another key victory for the Group is the introduction of the right to compensation for individuals adversely affected by air pollution.
What’s coming up
Open Days - Europe Day in Strasbourg and Brussels
Tomorrow, from 10 am to 6 pm, European Parliament will kick off its open days event in Strasbourg. Next week, on May 4,? it’ll be the turn of the European parliament in Brussels to open its doors.
Join us at our S&D stand. We’re ready to answer your questions, discuss about the EU, take selfies, sing, share smiles and goodies. As always, children will be welcome with special games and everyone is welcome to take our quizzes, to find out exactly how much they know about the European Union.
May 1
On 1 May we are celebrating a double anniversary this year. We’re marking 2 decades since Cyprus, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia joined the European family in the biggest-ever enlargement of the EU.
We’re also marking a key date in our progressive calendar - Labour Day. Follow us on our socials to see how we mark these two key anniversaries.
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