19. Expresses disappointment with the low levels of implementation of Milk Package measures in outermost regions and mountainous, insular and disadvantaged areas, and underlines that it is indispensable to maintain dairy farms as viable and competitive businesses in all of the territories of the Union; considers, in this respect, that these areas must be the focus of special attention and specific studies by the Commission and Member States and that the use of short supply chains, giving preference to local production in these specific c ...[+++]ases, must be encouraged in order to ensure continued production in these regions and to avoid abandonment of the sector; urges the Commission and the Member States furthermore to improve and strengthen the milk distribution regimes in schools, favouring short supply chains and thereby enabling the distribution of production in these regions; highlights the fact that in these areas production costs are typically close to or above farm-gate prices and considers that the current uncertainties of the supply chain are particularly detrimental to these areas, which have the strongest barriers and reduced opportunities for economies of scale; recalls that farmers in these areas depend directly and exclusively on a small number of input suppliers and buyers for their agricultural production because of their geographic isolation; stresses that support for the setting-up and activities of producer organisations should better reflect the realities of these regions; stresses that it is necessary to carry out ambitious policies to support these regions with the aid of policies for rural development, the Investment Plan and the promotion and fine-tuning of CAP aid, as permitted by the latest reform; calls on the Commission, therefore, to encourage the Member States to implement such measures, in order to enable the preservation of milk production in these regions; urges the Commission to closely monitor the evolution of dairy production i ...

19. Expresses disappointment with the low levels of implementation of Milk Package measures in outermost regions and mountainous, insular and disadvantaged areas, and underlines that it is indispensable to maintain dairy farms as viable and competitive businesses in all of the territories of the Union; considers, in this respect, that these areas must be the focus of special attention and specific studies by the Commission and Member States and that the use of short supply chains, giving preference to local production in these specific c ...[+++]ases, must be encouraged in order to ensure continued production in these regions and to avoid abandonment of the sector; urges the Commission and the Member States furthermore to improve and strengthen the milk distribution regimes in schools, favouring short supply chains and thereby enabling the distribution of production in these regions; highlights the fact that in these areas production costs are typically close to or above farm-gate prices and considers that the current uncertainties of the supply chain are particularly detrimental to these areas, which have the strongest barriers and reduced opportunities for economies of scale; recalls that farmers in these areas depend directly and exclusively on a small number of input suppliers and buyers for their agricultural production because of their geographic isolation; stresses that support for the setting-up and activities of producer organisations should better reflect the realities of these regions; stresses that it is necessary to carry out ambitious policies to support these regions with the aid of policies for rural development, the Investment Plan and the promotion and fine-tuning of CAP aid, as permitted by the latest reform; calls on the Commission, therefore, to encourage the Member States to implement such measures, in order to enable the preservation of milk production in these regions; urges the Commission to closely monitor the evolution of dairy production i ...

45. Insists that the focus on structural deficits since the 2005 reform of the SGP, together with the introduction of an expenditure rule with the 2011 reform as well as the concept of output gap which is difficult to quantify, create uncertainty, complexity and margins for flexibility and thus the discretionary implementation of the SGP; fears that the calculation of potential growth and output, which underpins the assessment of structural deficits, and that of the expenditure rule, are subject to several questionable assumptions which lead to substantial revisions between the Commission's autumn and spring forecasts, thereby leading t ...[+++]o various calculations and diverging assessments as regards the implementation of the SGP;

71. Expresses concern that despite the expense of equipping Parliament with state-of-the-art studios and its employment of a large team of communications professionals, media coverage of the Parliament's work may be discouraged by the requirement that broadcasters using Parliament's studios pay satellite charges; requests the Secretary-General to assess whether a change in arrangements would promote greater coverage of parliamentary debates and discussions involving Members and to report thereafter;

2. Believes that policymakers should have at their disposal more accurate, up-to-date and comprehensive scientific data to enable them to make informed choices; agrees, therefore, with the European Council that Europe’s potential for the sustainable extraction and use of shale gas and shale oil resources, without putting the availability and quality of water resources at risk, should be assessed and mapped in order to potentially enhance security of supply; welcomes the assessments made by Member States and encourages them to continue this work, and asks the Commission to contribute to assessing the potential of shale gas and shale oil reserves in the EU by assembling results from Member States’ assessments and available results from expl ...[+++]oration projects, as well as by analysing and evaluating the industrial, economic, energy and environmental and health aspects of domestic shale gas production;

For land-based biological resources, research will focus on: soil fertility, improved crops and production systems in all their diversity, including organic farming, quality production schemes and monitoring and assessment of the impact of GMOs on the environment and humans; plant health, sustainable, competitive and multifunctional agriculture, and forestry; rural development; animal health and welfare, breeding and production; infectious diseases in animals, including epidemiological studies, zoonoses and their pathogenic mechan ...[+++]isms, and diseases linked to animal feedstuffs; other threats to the sustainability and security of food production, including climate change; safe disposal of animal waste.