A4-0256/98

Resolution on the ad hoc procedures for the 1999 budget, as provided for in the Interinstitutional Agreements of 29 October 1993 on budgetary discipline and improvement of the budgetary procedure and 16 July 1997 on provisions regarding financing of the Common Foreign and Security Policy, and in the procedure concerning financing international fisheries agreements, pursuant to the Joint Declaration of 12 December 1996

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the preliminary draft budget of the Commission for 1999 (COM(98)0300),

- having regard to Annex II of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 29 October 1993 on budgetary discipline and improvement of the budgetary procedure ((OJ C 331, 7.12.1993, p. 1.)),

- having regard to the Joint Declaration of 12 December 1996 on improving the level of information provided by the budgetary authority on international fisheries agreements ((OJ C 20, 20.1.1997, p. 109.)),

- having regard to the Joint Declaration of 8 April 1997 ((OJ C 150, 19.5.1997, p.13.)),

- having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 July 1997 between the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission on provisions regarding financing of the Common Foreign and Security Policy ((OJ C 286, 22.9.1997, p. 80.)),

- having regard to its resolution of 2 April 1998 on the guidelines for the 1999 budgetary procedure - Section III - Commission, particularly paragraphs 13 and 14 ((Minutes of that sitting, Part II, Item 3(a).)),

- having regard to its resolution of 28 May 1998 on the role of the Union in the world: implementation of the common foreign and security policy in 1997 ((Minutes of that sitting, Part II, Item 10.)),

- having regard to the results of the trilogue of 23 June 1998,

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets and the opinions of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Security and Defence Policy, the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development and the Committee on Fisheries (A4-0256/98),

Classification of expenditureAgriculture

1. Notes the classification as proposed by the Commission in the preliminary draft budget for 1999;

2. Points out that in Case 41/95 the Court of Justice stipulated that the 'Council and Parliament (.......) come to an agreement' (paragraph 23) on the establishment of the maximum rate of increase for non-compulsory expenditure (NCE) and in particular on 'the total amount of expenditure to be classified as non-compulsory' (paragraph 26); notes that the Court considers such an agreement is not inferred and must therefore be explicit and repeated annually;

3. Regrets that the Council has not demonstrated any readiness to examine seriously the matter of classification, in spite of the commitments given at the time of the adoption of supplementary and amending budget 1/95;

4. Confirms its attachment to the principle that the nature of the legal act alone determines the nature of the expenditure;

5. Presents in Annex I to this resolution the redistributionof budget lines under the 1999 nomenclature; this redistribution represents its position for the dialogue to be held by the institutions under the 1999 procedure;

6. Invites the Council again to hold talks with Parliament on the classification of the budget lines in 1998 in order to reach an agreement on the maximum rate of increase for the 1999 budget;

Creation of the reserve

7. Underlines that the agreement to continue the ad hoc procedure for the 1999 budget until November 1998 should not reduce the importance of the budgetary authority's discussions on the proposals made by the Commission in its 1999 preliminary draft budget;

8. Considers that, although the Commission has tried successfully to reduce overestimation of agricultural spending, some lines still appear to be overbudgetised at this stage of the procedure, in comparison with previous years' implementation levels;

9. Approves the creation of a reserve for market uncertainties and accompanying measures with a corresponding, provisionally linear, reduction of all B1 lines as indicated in Annex II; considers nevertheless that when the Commission presents its letter of amendment to the preliminary draft budget the final appropriations per budget line should be determined on the basis of the most recent estimates;

10. Authorises its conciliation delegation to explore the possibilities of introducing appropriate regulatory changes so that this reserve can be entered in the budget, and can therefore be used by transfer, without the corresponding resources being paid into the Union budget until the moment they are to be used or otherwise applied;

Legal basis

11. Takes note that for some of the appropriations entered in the preliminary draft budget the legal basis is still pending before the Council; invites the Council not to enter amounts on the budget lines until a legislative decision is taken;

Budget presentation

12. Considers it opportune to begin in-depth discussions between the institutions on the B1 subsection nomenclature; suggests that a new presentation be made of the different budget lines according to the objectives of expenditure; mandates its conciliation delegation to open a discussion with the Council and Commission on a new presentation of the nomenclature as shown in the table in Annex III;

Miscellaneous agricultural issues

13. Requests a firm commitment from the Commission to draw up an evaluation report, going beyond the existing report, on the effectiveness of measures undertaken under budget items B1-5010( ((Expenditure disbursed under Regulation (EEC) 2078/92 on agricultural production methods compatible with the requirement of the protection of the environment and maintenance of the countryside (OJ L 215, 30.7.1992, p. 85.).))), B1-5011( ((Expenditure disbursed under Regulation (EEC) 2079/92 on instituting a Community aid scheme for early retirement from farming (OJ L 215, 30.7.1992, p. 91.).))) and B1-5012( ((Expenditure disbursed under Regulation (EEC) 2080/92 on instituting a Community aid scheme for forestry measures in agriculture; OJ L 215, 30.7.1992, p. 96.).))), and to present this report before Parliament's first reading of the 1999 draft budget;

14. Considers that the present requirements on sustainable agriculture which is appropriate to its location in the different Council Regulations are too imprecise and non-committal; requests the Commission to present, at the same time as the letter of amendment to the preliminary draft budget at the end of October 1998, specific proposals to promote sustainable agriculture, e.g. by developing codes of good agricultural practice (per product and per region) and operational environmental and production standards or indicators( ((As announced by Commissioner Fischler at the joint meeting of the Committee on Budgets and the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Protection in Strasbourg on 16 July 1996.)));

15. Is of the opinion that the national agriculture ministries, the farming organisations and the farmers themselves should assume their responsibilities concerning food safety and the avoidance of the spread of animal diseases on a large scale, such as BSE and swine fever; requests that financial responsibilities should be assumed accordingly, in order to avoid passing on to the Union's budget, without sufficient attention and control, the significant financial consequences of the costs to redress the effects of the outbreak of such diseases; considers, in the light of recent experience, that a re-evaluation of the European and international strategy to this end is urgently needed; expects an insurance fund to be created to compensate for damage or loss suffered as a result of animal diseases or disasters thereby minimizing the impact on the EU budget;

16. Believes that an amount should be placed in the B0-40 reserve to strengthen the fight against fraud and calls on the Commission to present an assessment and plans to intensify fraud control;

Fisheries

17. Notes that the amounts entered against the line 'International fisheries agreements' (B7-8000) are overestimated and cover also an agreement with Gambia, on which negotiations are not yet concluded; proposes therefore to transfer ECU 0.5 m into the reserve (B0-40); considers that the global amount of the reserve could not be in line with reasonable forecasts and approves the reduction shown in Annex II;

18. Notes that the amounts entered against Item B7-8000 also cover agreements on which Parliament has not yet been officially consulted (Comoros, Gabon and Madagascar); expects the Commission and the Council to provide in due time information required to allow Parliament to adopt its opinion before the budgetary decisions; failing that proposes that the corresponding amounts should be entered into the reserve (B0-40);

19. Welcomes the commitment to extend the Tillich-Mulder procedure to international fisheries agreements, allowing the Commission to present a late letter of amendment to the 1999 preliminary draft budget; notes that the letter of amendment should not permit an increase for Item B7-8000;

20. Recalls that such a letter of amendment should reflect the real situation of the negotiations on new international fisheries agreements, and the real possibility of concluding them before June 1999; notes therefore the Commission agreement to present updated information on the situation of the ongoing negotiations by the end of September and that, if no real expectations for closing negotiations in due time are forthcoming, further reductions of the amounts entered into the reserve (B0-40) should be decided;

Common foreign and security policy

21. Gives a mandate to its delegation to propose a modification of the breakdown and in particular the funding for emergency measures (Article B8-015) which should be reduced to benefit the support for democratic transition and electoral process (B8-010), European Union Special Envoys (Article B8-011) and prevention of conflicts and support for peace processes (B8-013), so as to fulfil the political requirements agreed by the relevant institutions such as support for the Royaumont process;

22. Expresses its dissatisfaction at the form and substance of the document on the main aspects and basic choices of the CFSP on which the Presidency of the Council consulted Parliament; notes that this document describes past actions rather than future choices; considers that the financial information provided shows the disparate but detailed nature of financial statements drawn up for joint actions;

23. Is not aware that the Council has communicated to Parliament, since the entry into force of the Interinstitutional Agreement, an estimate of the costs envisaged each time it has adopted a decision in the field of CFSP;

24. Considers that the spirit of the Interinstitutional Agreement has not been fully respected by the Council in the presentation of the Presidency's document on past actions, and in the lack of any communication of the necessary costs envisaged for joint actions;

25. Invites the Council and the Commission to give their views of the application of the Agreement at the trilogue and at conciliation;

26. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission.

Annex I

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B1-1000 ce/nce Refunds on common wheat grain and flour

B1-1001 ce/nce Refunds on barley grain and malt

B1-1002 ce/nce Refunds on durum wheat and on durum wheat flour, groats and meal

B1-1003 ce/nce Refunds on other cereals

B1-1011 ce/nce Technical costs of public storage

B1-1012 ce/nce Financial costs of public storage

B1-1013 ce/nce Other public storage costs

B1-1019 ce/nce Other intervention storage

B1-1022 ce/nce Production refunds for starch

B1-1040 ce/nce Aid for producers of maize (base area for maize)

B1-1041 ce/nce Aid for producers of cereals not subject to the base area for maize

B1-1042 ce/nce Aid for producers of soya beans, colza seed and sunflower seed

B1-1043 ce/nce Aid for producers of peas, beans, field beans and sweet lupins

B1-1044 ce/nce Aid for producers of non-textile flax seed

B1-1050 ce/nce Aid for producers of maize (base area for maize)

B1-1051 ce/nce Aid for producers of cereals not subject to the base area for maize

B1-1052 ce/nce Aid for producers of soya beans, colza seed and sunflower seed

B1-1053 ce/nce Aid for producers of peas, beans, field beans and sweet lupins

B1-1054 ce/nce Aid for producers of non-textile flax seed

B1-1055 ce/nce Supplementary aid for durum wheat

B1-1060 ce/nce Set-aside related to per hectare aid

B1-1062 ce/nce Five-year set-aside

B1-110 ce/nce Refunds on sugar and isoglucose

B1-120 ce/nce Refunds on olive oil

B1-1211 ce Schemes related to production

B1-1220 ce/nce Consumption aid

B1-1239 ce/nce Other storage measures

B1-130 ce/nce Production aid for dried fodder

B1-131 ce/nce Production aid for grain legumes

B1-139 nce Other

B1-1409 ce/nce Other intervention

B1-149 nce Other

B1-1500 ce/nce Export refunds

B1-1502 nce Operational fund for producer organizations

B1-1504 nce Specific measures for hazelnut producers

B1-1505 nce Measures to improve production

B1-1507 ce/nce Nuts

B1-1509 nce Other intervention

B1-1510 ce/nce Export refunds

B1-1511 ce/nce Production aid for processed tomato products

B1-1512 ce/nce Production aid for fruit-based products

B1-1513 nce Production aid and intervention for processed dried grape products

B1-1514 ce/nce Production aid for tinned pineapple

B1-1515 ce/nce Compensation to encourage processing of citrus fruits

B1-1516 nce Production aid for processed raspberries

B1-1517 ce/nce Specific measures

B1-1519 nce Other intervention

B1-160 ce/nce Refunds on products of the vine-growing sector

B1-1610 ce/nce Intervention storage of wine and grape must

B1-1611 ce/nce Distillation of wine

B1-163 ce/nce Aid for the use of must

B1-175 nce Community fund for research and information

B1-179 nce Other

B1-184 nce Table olives

B1-1850 ce/nce Refunds for rice

B1-1851 ce/nce Technical costs of public storage

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B1-1855 ce/nce Production refunds for starch and brewing

B1-1858 ce/nce Per hectare aid

B1-189 nce Other

B1-2000 ce/nce Refunds on butter and butter oils

B1-2001 ce/nce Refunds on skimmed-milk powder

B1-2002 ce/nce Refunds on cheese

B1-2003 ce/nce Refunds on other milk products

B1-2099 nce Other

B1-210 ce/nce Refunds on beef/veal

B1-2124 ce/nce Premiums for fattening young male calves

B1-2126 ce/nce Exceptional support measures

B1-2129 ce/nce Other intervention

B1-221 ce/nce Intervention in the form of storage of sheepmeat and goatmeat

B1-2220 ce/nce Ewe and goat premiums

B1-2221 ce/nce Fixed flat-rate ewe and goat premium in less-favoured and mountain areas

B1-2300 ce/nce Refunds on pigmeat

B1-2301 ce/nce Intervention for pigmeat

B1-2310 ce/nce Refunds on eggs

B1-2311 ce/nce Refunds on poultrymeat

B1-239 ce/nce Other

B1-253 nce Measures to control epizootic diseases

B1-254 nce Specific aid for bee-keeping

B1-259 nce Other

B1-300 nce Refunds on cereals exported in the form of certain spirituous beverages

B1-3010 nce Cereals and rice

B1-3011 nce Sugar and isoglucose

B1-3012 nce Skimmed milk and other milk products

B1-3013 nce Butter

B1-3014 nce Eggs

B1-3019 nce Other agricultural products

B1-309 nce Other

B1-310 nce Distribution of agricultural products to deprived persons in the Community

B1-312 nce School milk

B1-319 nce Other

B1-3200 nce Supply

B1-3201 nce Other measures

B1-3210 nce Supply

B1-3211 nce Other measures

B1-3220 nce Supply

B1-3221 nce Other measures

B1-3230 nce Supply

B1-3231 nce Other measures

B1-3240 nce «Fisheries» programme for the most remote regions

B1-3600 nce Monitoring and preventative measures - Payments by the Member States

B1-3601 nce Monitoring and preventative measures - Direct payments by the European Union

B1-3800 nce Promotion measures - Payments by the Member States

B1-3801 nce Promotion measures - Direct payments by the European Union

B1-500 nce Accompanying measures (former system)

B1-5010 nce Early retirement

B1-5011 nce Environment

B1-5012 nce Afforestation

B1-509 nce Other

B7-510 nce Provision of paid-up shares of subscribed capital

B7-511 nce Callable portion of subscribed capital

B7-8000 nce International fisheries agreements

B7-8001 nce Contributions to international organizations

Annex II

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Annex III

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