8th parliamentary term Josu JUARISTI ABAUNZ

EH Bildu has voted against the Girling report on the proposal for a regulation of the EP and the Council Amending Directive2003/87/EC the EU Emission trading System (EU-ETS) to continue current limitations of scope for aviation activities and to prepare to implement a global market-based measure from 2021.
We have always criticised carbon market systems such as ETS as we consider them a patch, a temporary and false solution, as by purchasing offsets there is no limitation of emissions but commercialisation of those. In that line, we believe that the real change relies on enhancing technological innovation, concretely, on enhancing on quality and performances of engines and fuels on the one hand, as well as its local application and its subsequent application by third States.
The CORSIA scheme agreed by ICAO, is a system under which aircraft operators that are in excess of baseline emissions will be required to purchase offsets in order to achieve carbon neutrality from international civil aviation from 2021.Even if the inclusion of the aviation system is needed to fulfil the Paris Agreement without undermining the other related legislative texts within the energy climate package; we cannot agree with such a scheme; and hence we have voted against the provisional agreement and abstained on the joint statement on the outcome of the ICAO.

EH Bildu abstained on the Fjellner report on the Agreement between the EU and the Swiss confederation on the linking of their greenhouse gas emissions trading systems
This file is linked to the agreement on the revision of the emissions trading system (ETS)-phase IV which was reached recently between the co-legislators. EH Bildu has always criticised carbon market systems such as ETS as we consider them a patch, a temporary and false solution, as by purchasing offsets there is no limitation of emissions but commercialisation of them. In that line, we believe that the real change relies on enhancing technological innovation, concretely, on enhancing quality and performance of engines and fuels on the one hand, as well as its local application and its subsequent application by third countries.
After several years of negotiations, the Commission has also finalised negotiations on linking the EU ETS with the ETS of Switzerland. The agreement sets out the institutional framework as well as the key objectives and principles for linking the two systems. It notably foresees that, once in force, participants in the EU ETS can use units from the Swiss system for compliance purposes and vice versa.
We oppose such a system, but once the system is established all parties should take part in it if it is to have an effect, hence we abstained.

EH Bildu voted against the EU Citizenship Report 2017.
The report is based on a positive approach to EU citizenship and includes several good elements. However, the following paragraph (Recital G) is a red line for our coalition: ‘Whereas any unilateral change in the borders of a Member State constitutes, at the very least, a violation of Articles 2, 3.2 and 4.2 of the Treaty on the European Union, as well as jeopardising enjoyment of all the rights deriving from EU citizenship.’
From the perspective of the Basque independentist coalition, we cannot accept this statement. EH Bildu would like to highlight that the inclusion of this paragraph is an attempt to discredit the ongoing Catalan process. Moreover, it could also be argued that it is not very relevant to the main purpose of the report.
Unilateral changes in the borders of a Member State can happen as a result of a democratic exercise, as a demand of its citizens’ will. Democracy is, after all, also one of the values enshrined in Article 2 of the TEU.
MEP Josu Juaristi was co-signatory to an amendment that would have deleted this problematic recital. However, as this amendment was rejected in plenary vote, and accordingly Recital G remained, EH Bildu did not support the report.