----

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

of 21 April 2004

closing the accounts in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the 2002 financial year (Commission)

(2004/720/EC)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

having regard to the general budget of the European Union for 2002,

having regard to the definitive annual accounts of the European Communities for the financial year 2002 - Volume I - Consolidated statements on budgetary implementation and consolidated financial statements (SEC(2003) 1104 - C5-0564/2003, SEC(2003) 1105 - C5-0565/2003) (1),

having regard to the annual report of the Court of Auditors concerning the financial year 2002, accompanied by the replies of the institutions audited (C5-0583/2003) (2), and the special reports of the Court of Auditors,

having regard to the statement of assurance as to the reliability of the accounts and the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions provided by the Court of Auditors pursuant to Article 248 of the EC Treaty (C5-0583/2003) (3),

having regard to the Council recommendation of 9 March 2004 (C5-0145/2004),

having regard to Articles 274, 275 and 276 of the EC Treaty and Articles 179a and 180b of the Euratom Treaty,

having regard to Article 3 of Council Decision 2003/76/EC of 1 February 2003 establishing the measures necessary for the implementation of the Protocol, annexed to the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the financial consequences of the expiry of the ECSC Treaty and on the Research Fund for Coal and Steel (4),

having regard to Annex 1(3) to Decision 2002/234/ECSC of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council, of 27 February 2002 on the financial consequences of the expiry of the ECSC Treaty and on the research fund for coal and steel (5),

having regard to the Financial Regulation of 21 December 1977, and in particular Article 89 thereof, and to the Financial Regulation of 25 June 2002 (6), in particular Articles 145 to 147 thereof,

having regard to Article 93 of and Annex V to its Rules of Procedure,

having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinions of the other committees concerned (A5-0200/2004),

The Secretary-General

Julian PRIESTLEY

The President

Pat COX

----

(1)OJ C 316, 29.12.2003, p. 1.

(2)OJ C 286, 28.11.2003, p. 1.

(3)OJ C 286, 28.11.2003, p. 12.

(4)OJ L 29, 5.2.2003, p. 22.

(5)OJ L 79, 22.3.2002. p. 42.

(6)OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

----

RESOLUTION

of the European Parliament accompanying the decision concerning discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the 2002 financial year (Commission)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

having regard to the general budget of the European Union for 2002,

having regard to the definitive annual accounts of the European Communities for the financial year 2002 - Volume I - Consolidated statements on budgetary implementation and consolidated financial statements (SEC(2003) 1104 - C5-0564/2003, SEC(2003) 1105 - C5-0565/2003) (1),

having regard to the annual report of the Court of Auditors concerning the financial year 2002, accompanied by the replies of the institutions audited (C5-0583/2003) (2), and the special reports of the Court of Auditors,

having regard to the statement of assurance as to the reliability of the accounts and the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions provided by the Court of Auditors pursuant to Article 248 of the EC Treaty (3) (C5-0583/2003),

having regard to the Council recommendation of 9 March 2004 (C5-0145/2004),

having regard to Articles 274, 275 and 276 of the EC Treaty and Articles 179a and 180b of the Euratom Treaty,

having regard to Article 3 of Council Decision 2003/76/EC of 1 February 2003 establishing the measures necessary for the implementation of the Protocol, annexed to the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the financial consequences of the expiry of the ECSC Treaty and on the Research Fund for Coal and Steel (4),

having regard to Annex 1(3) to Decision 2002/234/ECSC of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council, of 27 February 2002 on the financial consequences of the expiry of the ECSC Treaty and on the research fund for coal and steel (5),

having regard to the Financial Regulation of 21 December 1977, and in particular Article 89 thereof, and to the Financial Regulation of 25 June 2002 (6), in particular Articles 145 to 147 thereof,

having regard to Article 93 of and Annex V to its Rules of Procedure,

having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinions of the other committees concerned (A5-0200/2004),

A.   HORIZONTAL ISSUES

Shared management

General issues

Commission's responsibility

Member States' responsibility

Position of the Court of Auditors on shared management

Recommendations

Auditing and shared management

Recovery

The reform of the Commission

General aspects

Decentralised financial control and risk assessment

The reform of the accounting system

The post-reform control structures

General issues

The directors-general as delegated authorising officers

The Internal Audit Service

The Audit Progress Committee

The Internal Audit Capabilities (DG level)

The Central Financial Service in DG Budget

The Accounting Officer's Department in DG Budget

The European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)

Presentation of audit results

Corruption

B.   SECTORAL ISSUES

Own resources

The taxpayers and the EU budget

The Community's transit system

Agriculture

Setting of export subsidy rates

The prefinancing regime

Support for less-favoured areas

The Structural Funds

Implementation of the budget in 2002

Member States’ forecasts

Simplification

The N+2 rule

Reasons for underutilisation

Structural Fund effectiveness

Implementation of Regulations (EC) No 1681/94 and (EC) No 438/2001

Issues related to the future of the Structural Funds

Internal policies and research

Employment and social affairs

Environment, public health and consumer protection

Equal opportunities

Enlargement

Enlargement and sound financial management

Preaccession environmental projects and twinning arrangements

External measures

Organic issues

Controls relating to external measures

Development policy

Humanitarian aid

Transparency of the Commission's operations vis-à-vis the European Parliament

Administrative expenditure

The invalidity pensions scheme of the European institutions

Procurement practices

Financial instruments

----

(1)OJ C 316, 29.12.2003, p. 1.

(2)OJ C 286, 28.11.2003, p. 1.

(3)OJ C 286, 28.11.2003, p. 12.

(4)OJ L 29, 5.2.2003, p. 22.

(5)OJ L 79, 22.3.2002, p. 42.

(6)OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

(7)  Annual report for the 2002 financial year, point V.

(8)  Annual report for the 2002 financial year, chapters 1, 4, and 5.

(9)  Each Member State is required to set up an integrated administration and control system (IACS) which comprises an electronic database of farms and applications for aid, a system for identifying land, a system for identifying and registering animals and an integrated control system for administrative control and on-the-spot checks.

(10)  Replies to the questionnaire - part 1, Commission's reply to question No 92 (PE 328.732/fin. 1).

(11)  Replies to the questionnaire - part 1, annex to question No 19, pp. 120-121 (PE 328.732/fin. 1).

(12)  http://europa.eu.int/comm/commissioners/schreyer/Reform/SEC %20_2001_2037_Internal_Control_Standards_en.pdf.

(13)  'Moreover, it is clear from the limited progress made in general, that DGs and services are some way short of having a fully embedded risk management culture in place (COM(2003) 391, point 3.2).

(14)  Replies to the questionnaire - part II, Commission's reply to question No 1 (PE 328.732/fin. 2).

(15)  P5_TA(2003) 0551.

(16)  P5_TA(2004) 0049.

(17)  http://www.theiia.org/iia/index.cfm?doc_id=1499.

(18)  http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/internal_audit/charter/charter_en.pdf.

(19)  Replies to questionnaire - Part 1; Commission's reply to Question No 28 (PE 328.732/fin. 1).

(20)OJ C 295, 28.11.2002, p. 1.

(21)  Replies to questionnaire - Part 1; Commission's reply to Question No 28 (PE 328.732/fin. 1).

(22)  http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/internal_audit/documents/audit_dg_sec1803_en.pdf.

(23)  Replies to questionnaire - Part 1; Commission's reply to Question No 189 (PE 328.732/fin. 1).

(24)OJ L 136, 31.5.1999, p. 1.

(25)  Replies to questionnaire - Part 1; Commission's reply to Question No 12 (PE 328.732/fin. 1).

(26)OJ C 286, 28.11.2003, p. 88.

(27)  The following table shows the EU budget (outturn figures) as a percentage of Member States' total tax income for the years 2000 to 2002:

(28)  Payments in the year in question under payment appropriations of the year as well as under payment appropriations of the previous year carried forward.

(29)  Total tax income of the 15 Member States. Social security contributions are not included.

(30)  Replies to the questionnaire - part 1; Commission's reply to question No 60 (PE 328.732/fin. 1)

(31)OJ C 211, 5.9.2003, p. 1.

(32)  Special report No 2/90 on the management and control of export refunds (OJ C 133, 31.5.1990, p. 1).

(33)  http://europa.eu.int/comm/commissioners/schreyer/Reform/SEC %20_2001_2037_Internal_Control_Standards_en.pdf.

(34)OJ C 98, 24.4.2003.

(35)OJ C 285, 21.11.2002, p. 1.

(36)OJ C 273 E, 14.11.2003, p. 66.

(37)OJ C 151, 27.6.2003.

(38)  The Court of Auditors points out that between 1975 and 1998, the percentage of less-favoured areas in Italy rose from 37,7 to 53,6 % and in Ireland from 51,2 to 70,9 % (SR4/2003:8). Previous reports show that the percentage in the Federal Republic of Germany went up from 33,1 to 50,9 % in 1986 and from 50,9 to 53,5 % in 1989, and in France from 40 to 45,1 % in 1989 (Annual Report for 1990, paragraph 9.21 (OJ C 324, 13.12.1991).

(39)  ‘Article 48

1. The Commission and the Member States shall ensure effective monitoring of implementation of rural development programming.

2. Such monitoring shall be carried out by way of jointly agreed procedures.

Monitoring shall be carried out by reference to specific physical and financial indicators agreed and established beforehand.

Member States shall submit annual progress reports to the Commission.

3. Where appropriate, monitoring committees shall be established.’ (OJ L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 80).

(40)  In 2002, amounts paid out to candidate countries from the Solidarity Fund were also included in heading 7. However, these amounts are not included in this analysis of implementation of preaccession aid.

(41)  The Commission's explanations on implementation of preaccession aid are available in section 2.6.5 of the Commission's Report on Budgetary and Financial Management for the Financial Year 2002.

(42)OJ L 148, 16.6.2003, p. 21.

(43)OJ L 161, 26.6.1999, p. 1.

(44)  P5_TA(2003) 0448.

(45)OJ L 178, 12.7.1994, p. 43.

(46)OJ L 63, 3.3.2001, p. 21.

(47)  Replies to the questionnaire - Part I; Commission's reply to question no. 75 (PE 328.732/fin. 1)

(48)  Replies to the questionnaire - Part I; Commission's reply to question no. 78 (PE 328.732/fin. 1)

(49)  Replies to the questionnaire - Part I; Commission's reply to question no. 79 (PE 328.732/fin. 1)

(50)  Replies to the questionnaire — Part I; Commission's reply to questin No 83 (PE 328.732/fin. 1).

(51)  Replies to the questionnaire - Part II; Commission's reply to question no. 39 (PE 328.732/fin. 2).

(52)  Directorate-General for Energy and Transport, Directorate-General for Research, Directorate-General for the Information Society and the Directorate-General for Legal and Internal Affairs.

(53)  Possibly in the form of a letter to the chairman of its competent Committee on Budgetary Control before the next annual report.

(54)  Directorate-General for Research, Directorate-General for the Information Society, Directorate-General for Energy and Transport, Directorate-General for Industrial Policy and Directorate-General for Fisheries.

(55)  Replies to questionnaire - part I; Commission's reply to question No 99.

(56)  Replies to the questionnaire - Part I; Commission's reply to question No 103

(57)  External relations, EuropeAid, Trade, ECHO, Enlargement and Development

(58)OJ L 345, 19.12.1998, p. 49.

(59)  The European Union's Development Policy, conclusions of the 2304th meeting of the Development Council 10 November 2000.

(60)  4,1 % for education and 3,0 % for health. These figures include sector-specific budget support.

(61)  Outlined in the Annual Report on the EC Development Policy and the Implementation of External Assistance in 2002, Chapter 3.

(62)  Among improvements observed by the Commission are: reduction in time taken for tenders and calls for proposals and implementation of better-quality programmes.

(63)  Public service, public contracts, external audit etc.

(64)  Replies to the questionnaire - Part I; Commission's reply to question No 104 (PE 328.732/fin. 1)

(65)OJ L 120, 8.5.1999, p. 1.

(66)OJ L 120, 8.5.1999, p. 8.

(67)OJ C 109, 7.5.2003.

(68)OJ C 25 E, 29.1.2004, p. 390.

(69)  Council Decision 2001/777/EC (OJ L 292, 9.11.2001, p. 41).

----