On behalf of his group, Reinhard Bütikofer (Greens/EFA, Germany) has tabled a series of amendments for a range of additional safeguards to the content of the inter-institutional agreement reached between Parliament and the Council on the regulation establishing the European Defence Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP) ahead of its vote in plenary, on Tuesday 3 July.
The Greens/EFA group are proposing an amendment to exclude from the scope of action of the programme all development activities concerning the development of prohibited or inhumane military technologies. These include, for instance, weapons of mass destruction, cluster munitions, landmines and autonomous weapons. The Greens/EFA group also wish to limit actions concerning exports of weaponry.
The Green MEPs also hope to amend article 13 concerning the multiannual work programme, which currently provides for decisions to be made by means of implementing acts, to replace them with delegated acts, so that the European Parliament can have a say and thereby reinforce democratic control, Bütikofer explained.
The group is also proposing to extend, within article 16, the list of observers for budgetary payments, which currently features only the European Defence agency, to add MEPs, civil society and academic environments. In order to guarantee transparency, it is vital to allow civil society, universities and parliamentarians to monitor the work of the programme committee, the explanations state.
Another proposal concerns the creation of a consultative group made up of independent experts, universities and civil society organisations to accompany the programme committee in its accountability and to ensure compliance with ethical and moral obligations under international law.
The amendments have almost no chance of being adopted, as the S&D has issued instructions to vote against, a source told us.
The EFDD and GUE/NGL groups have tabled amendments to reject them.
Readers may recall that the European Commission's plans for the forthcoming European Defence Fund over the period 2021-2027 (see EUROPE 12040) was based largely on the content of the inter-institutional agreement of the EDIDP (see EUROPE 12025). (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)