EN Official Journal of the European Union CE 286/58

Thursday 17 December 2009

Draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2010 as modified by the Council (all sections)

P7_TA(2009)0115

European Parliament resolution of 17 December 2009 on the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2010 as modified by the Council (all sections) (11902/2009 – C7-0127/2009 – 2009/2002(BUD)) and Letters of amendment Nos 1/2010 (SEC(2009)1133 – 14272/2009 – C7-0215/2009), 2/2010 (SEC(2009)1462 – 16328/2009 – C7-0292/2009) and 3/2010 (SEC(2009)1635 – 16731/2009 – C7-0304/2009) to the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2010

2010/C 286 E/15

The European Parliament,

having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and in particular Article 314(9) thereof,

having regard to Protocol No 2 amending the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community, annexed to the Treaty of Lisbon, and in particular Articles 3 and 5 thereof,

having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 272(1) to (6) thereof,

having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community, and in particular Articles 177 (1) to (6) and 106a thereof,

having regard to Council Decision 2007/436/EC, Euratom of 7 June 2007 on the system of the European Communities’ own resources (1),

having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (2),

having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 17 May 2006 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and sound financial management (3) (IIA), and in particular the Multiannual Financial Framework provided for in Part I thereof and set out in Annex I thereto,

having regard to the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2010, which the Council established on 13 July 2009 (C7-0127/2009),

having regard to its resolution of 22 October 2009 on the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2010, Section III – Commission (C7-0127/2009) and Letter of amendment No 1/2010 ((SEC(2009)1133 - 14272/2009 - C7-0215/2009) to the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2010 (4),

having regard to its resolution of 22 October 2009 on the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2010, Section I – European Parliament, Section II – Council, Section IV – Court of Justice, Section V – Court of Auditors, Section VI – European Economic and Social Committee, Section VII – Committee of the Regions, Section VIII – European Ombudsman, Section IX – European Data Protection Supervisor (C7-0128/2009) (5),

having regard to Letter of amendment No 2/2010 (SEC(2009)1462 - 16328/2009 - C7-0292/2009) to the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2010,

having regard to Letter of amendment No 3/2010 (SEC(2009)1635 - 16731/2009 - C7-0304/2009) to the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2010 (Section II - Council),

having regard to its amendments and proposed modifications of 22 October 2009 to the draft general budget (6),

having regard to the Council's modifications of 18 November 2009 to the amendments and proposed modifications adopted by Parliament to the draft general budget,

having regard to the outcome of the budget conciliation meeting of 18 November 2009,

having regard to the statement by the Council on the outcome of its deliberations on the amendments and proposed modifications adopted by Parliament to the draft general budget,

having regard to Rules 75b to 75e of Parliament's Rules of Procedure,

having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A7-0083/2009),

Overall outcome of the budget conciliation

1. Recalls its political priorities for Budget 2010 as first set out in its resolutions of 10 March 2009 on the guidelines for the 2010 budget procedure - Section III - Commission and other sections and then further developed in its resolutions of 22 October 2009 on the draft general budget for the financial year 2010, Section III - Commission and other sections; stresses that these were the guiding principles for its approach to the budgetary conciliation with Council for Budget 2010 and its assessment of the budgetary framework for the year 2010;

2. Welcomes the overall agreement on Budget 2010, reached in the last traditional budgetary conciliation meeting with Council on 18 November 2009 before the entry into force of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, especially with regard to the financing of the European Economic Recovery Plan; emphasises that, as a consequence, very tight margins remain available under the ceilings in all the headings of the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for the 2010 budget, which might cause difficulties if any unforeseen events requiring a budget input occur in the course of 2010;

3. Recalls that since 2007 the budget authority has been obliged several times to revise the MFF 2007-13 and the IIA in order to provide adequate budgetary means for the financing of polices not sufficiently funded or unforeseen under the financial framework agreed in 2006;

4. Stresses that margins available according to the financial programming published by the Commission in May 2009 for the budget years 2011-2013 are very tight; emphasises that this will prevent the institutions from taking any new, meaningful political initiative in areas set as priorities by the newly appointed President of the Commission such as, for example and to name only a few, addressing climate change or the ‘EU 2020’ strategy; emphasises, moreover, that, following the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, a number of policies will be strengthened at EU level, which will require additional EU funding; therefore calls on the new Commission to publish, as soon as possible, a report on the functioning of the (IIA), as provided for in Declaration 1 thereof, together with an adjustment, a review and a revision of the current MFF 2007-13, including its prolongation until 2015/2016;

5. Recalls that the Commission should also initiate the process of the next MFF, as provided for in Declaration 3 of the IIA, in order to launch a proper public and open debate on the next Multiannual Financial Framework;

6. Deplores the fact that the Council was not willing to increase financing so as to further support the EU's needs in facing the current crisis, under existing programmes under ‘Competitiveness for growth and employment’ in sub-heading 1a; considers that this heading should be examined in depth and, if needed, be revised to ensure that it fulfils its objectives in future years;

7. Recalls the agreed joint declarations annexed to this resolution; has taken them into account in the preparation of its amendments for the second reading;

8. In respect of overall figures, sets the final level of commitment appropriations at EUR 141 452 827 822, equivalent to 1,2 % of EU GNI; sets the overall level of payments at EUR 122 937 000 000, equivalent to 1,04 % of EU GNI; notes that this leaves a significant margin of EUR 11 220 000 000 below the payments ceiling of the MFF for 2010;

9. Considers that the level of payments does not contribute to diminishing the disparity between the level of commitments and payments; points out its concern with regard to the consequences it could have on the development of the overall unpaid commitments (reste à liquider - RAL), which according to the Court of Auditors’ report for 2008 stands at EUR 155 billion, and the need to reverse this development for future budgets;

10. Recalls Council declaration of 10 July 2009, which asks the Commission to submit an amending budget if the payment appropriations entered in the 2010 budget are insufficient to cover expenditure under sub-heading 1a (Competitiveness for growth and employment), sub-heading 1b (Cohesion for growth and employment), heading 2 (Preservation and management of natural resources) and heading 4 (EU as a global player);

11. Has taken note of the Commission's Letter of Executability regarding the amendments to the draft budget adopted by Parliament at first reading; decides to create new budgetary lines on climate change, on the Small Business Act (SBA) and on the EU Baltic Sea Strategy; has decided to take some of the Commission's comments into account in the second reading of the budget; will, however, abide by its first reading decisions;

On the European Economic Recovery Plan

12. Stresses that the financing of the second phase of the European Economic Recovery Plan was a priority for Parliament; recalls that it amended the Draft budget of the Council in this spirit, giving impetus to economic growth, competitiveness, cohesion and job protection; calls on the Commission to ensure that all projects to be financed under the recovery plan will be fully compatible with EU environmental legislation;

13. Welcomes the agreement with the Council on the European Economic Recovery Plan as a key objective of the 2010 budget, particularly the fact that it enabled completing the second step of its financing in 2010, confirming that the EU budget is a tool helping to overcome the recent economic crisis; underlines the fact that the Parliament's action was aimed at putting European citizens first, proving that the European Union is not at the origin of the problem, but can be instrumental in the solution; welcomes the use of the tools provided for in the IIA in order to guarantee its financing, especially point 21 to 23 and the use of the flexibility instrument according to point 27 of the IIA; recalls, in this context, that the Council did not present its proposal on this issue in its first reading;

On the Lisbon Treaty

14. Endorses the joint declaration on the continuity of the budgetary procedure for 2010 agreed by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission during the budgetary conciliation of 18 November 2009, by which the three institutions accept the results of the previous decisions taken during the different steps of the budgetary procedure as if they had been taken under the powers vested in them by the Treaty of Lisbon;

15. Stresses the need to provide the EU with the appropriate financial means to effectively develop measures to meet the existing and new needs for the implementation of new Lisbon Treaty-related EU policies; requests the Commission to take into account the undertaken budgetary commitments and their multiannual budgetary implications when presenting the proposals for the adjustment, review and revision of the current MFF 2007-13 and the financing of new Lisbon Treaty-related policies; calls on the new Commission to make a clear commitment to complying with this request;

16. Takes note that the financing of the European Council was agreed for the financial year 2010; recalls that a new section must be presented for its financing, as provided for in Article 316 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU;

17. Recalls its resolution on the transitional measures applicable to the budgetary procedure after the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty; stresses that those should not depart from the budgetary principles established for the annual budgetary procedure; proposes to deal with all changes to the Financial Regulation at the same time in its 2010 tri-annual revision;

On sub-heading 1a

18. Welcomes the financing of the decommissioning of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant for 2010 through the flexibility instrument; recalls that this issue was not initially foreseen in the current MFF; believes though that this issue, being a new budget item, deserves an appropriate multiannual funding solution, which should be provided in the context of the forthcoming budgetary proposals;

19. Deplores Council's additional cuts on lines supporting the Lisbon strategy, which is based on a European Council decision; points out that this is contrary to what should have been done in order to address the current economic crisis; intends, on the contrary, to support these lines, even if in a limited way;

20. Calls for full use of the appropriations available to activities and policies under sub-heading 1a which foster sustainable growth and job creation, including new green jobs, and which deliver solutions to European citizens namely by providing greater energy security, increasing support for research and innovation, particularly on clean and renewable energy technologies, promoting small and medium-sized enterprises and reinforcing life-long learning; recalls the importance of optimising the implementation of framework programmes and calls on the Commission to act, in respect of those implementation problems, on Parliament's observations as expressed in paragraphs 113 to 123 of its resolution on the 2007 discharge for the Commission (7), in particular by simplifying recovery procedures through the use of appropriate flat-rate procedures and taking into account the good faith and legitimate expectations of beneficiaries;

On sub-heading 1b

21. Regrets and is surprised by the budgetary cuts introduced by the Council in a period when structural and cohesion funds could be stimulating sustainable economic growth and recovery; recalls that it has increased payments on the main lines to boost implementation of structural policy in the Member States, so as to enhance economic recovery, for the benefit of all European citizens;

22. Is concerned by the low rate of payments implementation for Research Framework programmes in 2009 and intends to monitor their implementation, in a constructive spirit, in 2010; in this regard, calls on the Commission for continued good cooperation in the follow-up to those programmes;

23. Points out that the current weak implementation of structural and cohesion policy is mainly due to the low flexibility in the system of complicated rules and requirements imposed by the Commission and Member States;

24. Welcomes the joint declaration calling for the simplification and a more targeted use of structural and cohesion funds to facilitate overcoming the effects of the economic crisis; recalls the possibility of adaptation and revision of the operational programmes with this aim, while also putting greater emphasis on using these funds more wisely in support of European and national policies against climate change;

On heading 2

25. Welcomes the agreement with the Council on additional support for the milk-producing sector, which is currently in crisis, to reach the amount of EUR 300 million as requested by Parliament; considers Council's endorsement as application of the ‘spirit of the Lisbon Treaty’ as this will place Parliament on an equal footing on agriculture expenditure; regrets the fact that the Parliament's call for establishing a permanent EU Dairy Fund to help the sector through the readjustments was not retained; requests though that the Commission re-examine the necessity of alternative or further measures in the light of the market evolution and the report of the High Level Expert Group on milk in order to support the restructuring process for milk producers; reiterates its request for the creation of a budgetary line, permanently establishing a Dairy Fund;

26. Recalls that the fight against climate change will remain one of the top priorities for the European Union, as the Copenhagen conference in December 2009 has shown; considers, however, that this priority is not sufficiently reflected in the EU budget and intends, consequently, to put stronger emphasis on this key policy; calls on the new Commission to submit a financing proposal following the climate change conference;

On sub-heading 3a

27. Acknowledges European citizens’ wish for a safe and secure Europe and welcomes the increases in this sub-heading relative to the 2009 budget; acknowledges that all countries in the Union are facing many challenges in relation to policies covered by this sub-heading;

28. Stresses the importance of further funding being made available via the EU budget to manage legal immigration and integration of third-country nationals while in parallel tackling illegal immigration in full respect of human fundamental rights and international agreements and strengthening border protection, including the European Return Fund and the European Refugee Fund to facilitate solidarity between the Member States;

On sub-heading 3b

29. Recalls that sub-heading 3b covers vital policies that have a direct impact on the everyday life of European citizens; disagrees with the Council's cuts in this sub-heading and endorses the specialised committees’ approach, ensuring that the increase of the appropriations is justified;

On heading 4

30. Reiterates its serious concerns about the narrow margin for manoeuvre resulting from chronic under-financing of a heading constantly under pressure as a result of crises occurring in third countries;

31. Calls on the European Council not to make far-reaching political commitments calling for stronger EU financial support without at the same time providing for the requisite budgetary appropriations when there is an obvious contradiction with the funds available under the annual ceilings of the current MFF;

32. Emphasises the importance of the EU in supporting developing countries in their struggle to fight climate change; notes the European Council conclusions of 10-11 December 2009 that the EU and its Member States are ready to contribute with fast-start funding of EUR 2,4 billion annually for the years 2010 to 2012; stresses however the need for information on participation and contribution from the EU budget during 2011 and 2012; stresses that climate finance needs to come from additional funding and not from cuts in existing development aid, in order for the EU to honour its commitment to achieve the Millennium Development Goals;

33. Welcomes the creation of the European external action service, which, as a matter of urgency, must be subject to parliamentary scrutiny and control in both budget and budgetary control matters; in that regard, stresses its demand for an all-encompassing and rapid communication of an overall strategy for the implementation of the external action service, including plans for future cooperation with Parliament and the Presidency of the Council as well as estimates on staff and administrative costs and other requirements and the possible savings with regard to synergies stemming from the joint use of facilities and personnel;

34. Calls on the new Commission to take into account the abovementioned points in addressing problems under heading 4 when proposing a revision of the MFF 2007-13 as soon as possible;

35. Continues to count on support for the peace process in Palestine and the reconstruction needs in Gaza Strip; calls on the Commission to communicate which measures it has taken to minimise the risks that projects and programmes financed under this budget line are used or diverted to terrorist organisations or acts of terrorism, or inefficient bureaucracy, and to specify whether part of the aid is aimed at rebuilding premises or infrastructure previously financed by the Union or its Member States and damaged by military action;

36. Considers securing energy supply to be a crucial issue for the Union; therefore welcomes the signature of all participatory countries to the Nabucco project, and expects consistency from all of them when dealing with other projects that might put Nabucco at risk;

37. Stresses the necessity of allocating sufficient funding to the EU Baltic Sea Strategy in order to finance actions that cannot be financed from other budget lines (coordination, information and pilot projects in any of the four pillars of the action plan);

On heading 5 and other sections

38. Welcomes the agreement reached on heading 5, which should safeguard the administrative functioning of the EU institutions while, at the same time, through a transfer of EUR 126,5 million, contributing to the completion of financing for the European Economic Recovery Plan;

39. Underlines, at the same time, that the tight margin of heading 5 for 2010, partly resulting from this shift of resources, will lead to a need for strict budgetary management by the institutions in 2010 in order to use the resources available in a prudent and cost-effective way;

40. Agrees that the priority for use of the margin available should be given to finance any additional expenditure directly stemming from the entry into force of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU, but only after a thorough examination of the current resources and needs, and the scope for any further savings by all the institutions;

41. Notes that the adoption of Letter of Amendment No. 3/2010 concerning section II (Council) was agreed for an amount of EUR 23,5 million, leaving a margin under heading 5 for 2010 of EUR 72 million; regrets that the Council presented this proposal without considering, and before having a comprehensive overview of, all institutions’ administrative requirements;

42. In this context, draws attention to the joint declaration obtained in respect of heading 5, which encompasses the above points and will serve as a basis to ensure the necessary financing of any supplementary needs for Parliament and the other institutions; underlines that this exercise should be motivated exclusively from new functions stemming from the Treaty and only after thorough examination of the use and potential for reorganising current arrangements and posts; also stresses, for its own section of the budget and with regard to such potential supplementary needs, the need to arrive at a fair distribution between the general secretariat, political groups and Members;

43. Urges all institutions, as far as possible, to cover all administrative needs resulting from salaries and pensions adjustments within the appropriations now budgeted for each section;

44. Welcomes the joint declaration on building policy and reiterates that this area, which constitutes a significant part of the administrative expenditure of the EU, is of great importance for ensuring the effective and transparent use of available resources; calls on the executive organs of all the institutions to implement the principles agreed without delay;

45. Intends to follow up closely, within its own section of the budget, the issues related, inter alia, to the agreed hearing on internal information resources (use and resources spent) and ‘knowledge management’, as well as all relevant issues concerning the House of European History, including the issues of possible co-funding and cooperation on this project; recalls the agreement reached at its internal budget conciliation meeting in this connection;

46. Decides to restore fully its first reading position as regards the ‘other institutions’ on the grounds already expressed in its first reading resolution;

On pilot projects and preparatory actions

47. Considers pilot projects and preparatory actions an indispensable tool for Parliament to initiate new policies for European citizens; has decided to take advantage of the full amounts provided for in the IIA for pilot projects (up to EUR 40 million in any budget year) but to leave a margin for preparatory actions (IIA up to EUR 100 million, out of which a maximum of EUR 50 million may be allocated to new preparatory actions);

48. Has given priority to the implementation of pilot projects and preparatory actions in their second or third year; intends to monitor closely the implementation of these and the newly established projects and actions during the financial year 2010;

*

* *

49. Instructs its President to declare that the budget has been finally adopted and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;

50. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the European Council, the Council, the Commission, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors, the European Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions, the European Ombudsman, the European Data Protection Supervisor, and the other bodies concerned.

(1) OJ L 163, 23.6.2007, p. 17.

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

(3) OJ C 139, 14.6.2006, p. 1.

(4) Texts adopted, P7_TA(2009)0051.

(5) Texts adopted, P7_TA(2009)0052.

(6) Texts adopted of that date, Annex.

(7) European Parliament resolution of 23 April 2009 with observations forming an integral part of the Decisions on the discharge for implementation of the European Union general budget for the financial year 2007, Section III – Commission and executive agencies (OJ L 255, 26.9.2009, p. 36).

Thursday 17 December 2009

ANNEX I DECLARATIONS AGREED AT THE CONCILIATION MEETING OF 18 NOVEMBER 2009 Joint declaration on the continuity of the 2010 budgetary procedure ‘The European Parliament, the Council and the Commission note that, up to 30 November 2009, the budgetary procedure for the 2010 budget has been conducted under the Treaty of Nice. With the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon on 1 December 2009, the procedure will be completed under Article 314(9) created by that Treaty, with the declaration by the President of the European Parliament that the budget has been definitively adopted. The three institutions consider the budgetary procedure a continuum under the two abovementioned Treaties; they therefore agree that the stages of the procedure completed under the Nice Treaty constitute completed stages of the procedure within the meaning of Article 314 created by the Lisbon Treaty. In keeping with that transition, the three institutions consider that the agreement reached by the European Parliament and the Council at the conciliation meeting on 18 November 2009, followed by the Council's second reading, on the 2009 and 2010 budgets and the outcome of the European Parliament's second reading may be considered in substance as agreement on a joint draft budget within the meaning of Article 314 TFEU, in full compliance with the multiannual financial framework.’

Thursday 17 December 2009

ANNEX II Joint declaration on the building policy of EU Institutions and bodies ‘The European Parliament and the Council recall their respective conclusions on the Court of Auditors’ special report No. 2/2007 concerning the Institutions’ expenditure on buildings and, acknowledging that building costs represent a significant part of overall administrative expenditure of the EU Institutions, reaffirm that sound financial management of building expenses is essential. They reiterate the importance of effective interinstitutional cooperation in this field and invite the Institutions to further enhance such cooperation and, whenever appropriate, without hindering each Institution's functioning, to share facilities. They welcome efforts already made by the institutions in this field. They stress that the establishment of medium to long-term building strategies is essential from the point of view of sound planning and sound financial management. They underline that transparent and controllable procedures are essential to achieve effective and efficient solutions and sound financial management. They encourage the Institutions to continue and to intensify energy efficiency and environmental measures in their buildings, including certification according to environmental standards, wherever this is appropriate and feasible with the given resources, and warmly welcome progress already achieved in this field. With respect to the provisions of the Financial Regulation, notably consultations under Article 179, they attach great importance to receive all the information concerning the project, required for decision-making, in good time. Notwithstanding the formal deadlines, this information should be made available so that both arms of the budgetary authority can establish their positions without time pressure. The information should include needs assessments and cost benefit analyses for the various alternatives, outlining the options to rent or buy, as well as transparent information concerning the alternative financing possibilities, the long-term financial consequences, and compatibility with the MFF. They welcome the work undertaken by the Commission on alternative financing methods and await the coming report. They call on the secretaries-general of the Institutions to provide comprehensive information on building matters with the preliminary draft budget/estimates. While recognising each Institutions’ specific needs and the particular character of each project, they ask the Institutions to pursue work towards harmonising such information through common definitions and indicators to allow comparisons of building space and building costs, including a common understanding of the method for calculating annual costs of property spread over the entire period of utilisation. In this context they note with satisfaction the agreement on common guidelines for defining and measuring building space recently reached by interinstitutional working groups. They recall that, when applicable, these observations apply equally to the specific situations of executive and decentralised agencies. They take note of the excellent cooperation between the Institutions and the administrations of the host Member States.’

Thursday 17 December 2009

ANNEX III Joint declaration on simplification and a more targeted use of structural and cohesion funds in the context of the economic crisis ‘The European Parliament and the Council recall the joint declarations of the three institutions on the implementation of the Cohesion policy of November 2008 and April 2009 and underline the necessity to further accelerate the implementation of structural and cohesion funds. They note that the approval rate of Management and Control Systems (MCSs) and Major Projects (MPs) has gradually improved, but consider that the pace of approval was too slow. They urge the Commission to continue efforts to simplify implementing procedures in close cooperation with Member States and in particular, to speed up the approval of MPs, and thus accelerate payments. The European Parliament and the Council believe that all opportunities provided by the use of structural funds, could be mobilised for more targeted actions that facilitate overcoming the effects of the economic crisis, particularly those which support growth and competitiveness and limit job losses. The European Parliament and the Council underline that the possibility of adaptation and revision of the operational programmes already exists under the present regulation. The European Parliament and the Council call on the Commission to enable, by means of efficient and fast procedures, the undertaking of such requests by the Member States. Moreover the European Parliament and the Council recall the importance of full and efficient use of the available appropriations.’

Thursday 17 December 2009

ANNEX IV Joint declaration on Heading 5 ‘Noting that the adoption of letter of amendment No 3/2010 concerning Section II - Council - for the financing of the European Council in 2010 for an amount of EUR 23.5 million is without prejudice to the use of the margin under heading 5 which remains at EUR 72 million, the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission agree that given the tight margin of heading 5 in 2010 and the need to ensure the full financing of the European Economic Recovery Plan (EERP), the priority for the use of the available margin of heading 5 should be given to financing additional expenditure directly stemming from the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty. In this regard, the three Institutions will aim to cover all administrative needs related to staff remuneration with the appropriations budgeted in their respective sections of the 2010 budget. The European Parliament and the Council call on the other institutions to make all the possible efforts to finance the administrative needs related to their staff remunerations within the appropriations budgeted in their respective sections of the 2010 budget. Requests for additional appropriations will be considered only after they showed that all the possibilities for internal redeployment have been exhausted.’

Thursday 17 December 2009

ANNEX V Unilateral declaration of the Commission on the decommissioning of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant The Commission took note that the European Parliament raised the issue of the multiannual budgetary implications of the proposed new legal act for the continuation of the financing for the decommissioning of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant till 2013. In its assessment on the functioning of the Interinstitutional Agreement the Commission will also take those implications into account.