EN Official Journal of the European Union C 359/1

FINANCIAL ACTIVITY REPORT 2014

Section II — European Council and Council

(2015/C 359/01)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION 2

2. OBJECTIVES AND BUDGET FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 2014 2

2.1 Main financial objectives 2

2.2 Establishment of the budget for the European Council and Council in 2014 2

2.2.1 General approach 2

2.2.2 Budget 2014 3

2.2.3 Budget 2014 and the Financial Perspectives of Heading 5 of the EU Budget 3

3. GLOBAL OVERVIEW OF BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION IN 2014 5

3.1 Activities and objectives in 2014 5

3.1.1 European Council and Council activities in 2014 5

3.1.2 Achievement of objectives in 2014 6

3.2 Revenue 6

3.3 Expenditure in 2014 8

3.3.1 Modification of the budget in 2014 8

3.3.2 Overview of implementation of the budget in 2005-14 9

3.3.3 Implementation of the appropriations by category in 2014 10

3.4 Appropriations carried over 12

3.4.1 Implementation of the carryover appropriations from 2013 to 2014 12

3.4.2 Appropriations carried over from 2014 to 2015 13

3.5 Assigned revenue 14

3.5.1 Assigned revenue accrued before 2014 14

3.5.2 Assigned revenue accrued in 2014 15

1. INTRODUCTION

In conformity with Article 142 of the Financial Regulation (FR) (1) this document constitutes a report on budgetary and financial management of Section II of the EU budget (European Council and Council) for the financial year 2014.

The report is based on the provisional accounts for 2014, the findings in the annual activity reports of the Council’s authorising officers and the budget implementation information from the Council’s financial system.

Chapter 2 of this report presents a summary of the framework which was established for the financial year 2014. A global overview on the implementation of the budget appropriations available in 2014 is given in Chapter 3.

The implementation of the budget 2014 by budget line is presented in the Annex.

2. OBJECTIVES AND BUDGET FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 2014

2.1 Main financial objectives

The main financial objectives of the General Secretariat of the Council for 2014 were:

— To ensure continuous support to the President of the European Council and to the Council by effective and efficient use of financial resources.

— To further proceed with the process of administrative modernisation with the objective to reinforce the quality of its organisation and proper use of resources.

— To continue to finance the construction of the Europa Building which should be delivered by the end of 2015.

2.2 Establishment of the budget for the European Council and Council in 2014

2.2.1 General approach

The establishment of the budget 2014 for the European Council and Council (EC/C hereafter) was based on the general objective not to exceed, in real terms, the overall level of the 2013 budget for all non-staff related expenditure.

Increases in certain projects or contractual obligations were compensated by introducing reductions in other domains. In addition, supplementary cuts were introduced in areas where the recent budget implementation had been clearly below the available appropriations.

As for the establishment plan, the GSC continued to streamline the organisation by implementing following actions:

— reducing the number of posts in the establishment plan by 31 in line with the Commission’s proposal to reduce the staff level by 5 % over 5 years (2nd year),

— transferring 10 posts to the EEAS,

— transforming 10 establishment posts into (less expensive) contractual agents,

— transforming 6 AST5 posts into 6 AD5 posts (continuation of the administrative modernisation),

— transforming 15 AST posts into 15 SC1 posts (technical correction).

2.2.2 Budget 2014

The budget authority established the overall EC/C budget 2014 at EUR 534,2 million. This corresponds to a decrease of EUR 1,3 million (– 0,2 %) compared to 2013.

The number of posts in the establishment plan for 2014 for the EC/C was 3 101.

Table 1 gives an overview on the budget 2014 by different categories. Given the estimated inflation of 1,6 % for 2014, the EC/C budget was in fact reduced in real terms by 1,8 %.

Table 1

EC/C budget 2014 compared to 2013 (by category)

(EUR) Category Budget 2013 Budget 2014 Change 2014/2013 with EB (2) 1 2 3=2/1 Establishment plan 30 0 2 44 000 29 2 9 89 059 - 2,4 % Other staff expenditure 2 3 5 58 000 2 3 2 18 480 - 1,4 % Buildings (excluding acquisitions) 3 9 2 33 000 4 0 5 37 800 3,3 % Computer systems 3 6 7 91 000 3 7 3 82 430 1,6 % Furniture 9 30 000 8 06 850 - 13,2 % Technical equipment 3 5 70 000 2 5 86 390 - 27,6 % Transport 9 18 000 2 1 46 217 133,8 % Delegations' travel expenses 1 9 9 72 000 2 0 3 02 000 1,7 % Interpreting costs 8 3 9 62 300 8 6 9 91 444 3,6 % Meetings and conferences 7 8 33 000 8 7 20 570 11,3 % Information 9 1 32 000 8 8 90 660 - 2,6 % Miscellaneous 1 6 68 000 1 9 30 400 15,7 % Reserve 2 7 00 000 2 7 00 000 0,0 % Total (excl. acquisition) 53 0 5 11 300 52 9 2 02 300 - 0,2 % Acquisition of immovable property 5 0 00 000 5 0 00 000 0,0 % Grand total 53 5 5 11 300 53 4 2 02 300 - 0,2 %

2.2.3 Budget 2014 and the Financial Perspectives of Heading 5 of the EU Budget

Table 2 gives an overview on the evolution of the EC/C budget in 2007-14. The EC/C share in the Heading 5 of the Multiannual Financial Perspectives has declined from 8,3 % in 2007 to 6,4 % in 2014.

Table 2

Evolution of the Section II of the EU budget (European Council and Council) under Heading 5 of the Financial Perspectives in 2007-14

2007 2008 2009 (3) 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 (Amounts at current prices) M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change Heading 5 7 115 6,1 % 7 457 4,8 % 7 603 2,0 % 7 962 4,7 % 8 173 2,7 % 8 607 5,3 % 9 181 6,7 % 8 405 - 8,5 % EC/C 594 0,3 % 595 0,2 % 603 1,3 % 634 5,1 % 563 - 11,2 % 534 - 5,2 % 536 0,3 % 534 - 0,2 % EC/C share in Heading 5 8,3 % 8,0 % 7,9 % 8,0 % 6,9 % 6,2 % 5,8 % 6,4 %

The EUR 60 million reduction achieved in 2007-14 is largely the result of prudent budget management. The reduction in 2011 is mainly due to the transfer of resources to the EEAS, whereas the decreases in 2012 and 2013 relate to reductions of appropriations of certain activities in view of the previous years’ implementation and actual needs.

3. GLOBAL OVERVIEW OF BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION IN 2014

3.1 Activities and objectives in 2014

3.1.1 European Council and Council activities in 2014

In the framework of the financial activity report, the GSC provides information on its core activities which are relevant from the financial point of view, and which describe the functioning of the European Council and Council during the financial year. It also highlights the principal accomplishments of the year.

Table 3 gives an overview of the development of the number of meetings organised by the GSC for the European Council and Council in 2004-14. In addition to the 4 241‘institutional’ meetings, the GSC organised a further 2 189 meetings (e.g. seminars, information sessions and briefings, and meetings with third countries) in 2014.

Table 3

Development of the number of meetings in 2004-14

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Summits 5 3 3 3 5 7 7 9 7 6 9 Councils 76 80 76 68 81 74 86 85 77 74 81 Coreper 128 123 120 106 144 140 122 135 140 140 135 Working groups 3 971 3 918 4 037 4 183 4 480 4 272 4 127 4 373 4 480 4 164 4 016 Total 4 180 4 124 4 236 4 360 4 710 4 493 4 342 4 602 4 704 4 384 4 241 Other meetings 2 392 2 791 2 713 1 735 2 051 2 021 1 996 2 075 2 189 2 027 2 189 Grand total 6 572 6 915 6 949 6 095 6 761 6 514 6 338 6 677 6 893 6 411 6 430

For the first time in 2014, the GSC hosted a Multilateral Summit. The 4th EU-Africa Summit brought together more than 60 EU and African leaders, and a total of 90 delegations, to discuss the future of EU-Africa relations and to reinforce the links between the two continents.

The state-of-the-art organisation requiring significant security and logistic resources as well as an important diplomatic effort has been estimated at a cost of EUR 2,5 million.

Another quantitative indicator of activities is the number of legal acts published in the Official Journal (OJ) (table 4). In 2014, 1 437 legal acts were published in the OJ. It should be noted that the publication on the legal acts in the OJ is the last step of the legislative process.

Table 4

Development of the number of legal acts in 2004-14

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Legal acts published in OJ 1 118 1 056 1 317 1 000 1 274 829 825 986 958 1 132 1 437

In 2014, the GSC has also continued to improve its organisational structure in view of increasing the efficiency and the quality of its functioning. In the framework of constant administrative modernisation several management rotation exercises took place resulting in renewing the resources and introducing new skills and competencies in key areas.

Last but not least, 2014 was the year of the introduction of the renewed visual identity that brought together all the ‘Council family’, that is all institutions and entities served by the GSC, namely the European Council and its President, the Euro Summit and its President, the Council and its rotating Presidency (with specific instructions for co-branding), the High Representative when acting and communicating in her/his capacity as President of the Foreign Affairs Council and the Eurogroup and its President. The logo, combining the flag of the European Union with a design inspired by the Europa building that soon will house both the European Council and the Council, suggests unity, continuity, diversity, heart and light.

3.1.2 Achievement of objectives in 2014

Achievement of the objectives established for the budget year 2014 may be summarised as follows:

— Establishment plan In 2014, the GSC recruited 193 officials (107 permanent officials and 86 temporary agents). During the year 216 officials (153 permanent officials and 63 temporary agents) left, resulting in a net decrease of 23 occupied posts in the EC/C establishment plan. As part of the GSC’s administrative modernisation, the number of posts in the establishment plan was reduced by 20 in addition to the 31 related to the reduction of the staffing level by 5 % in 5 years’ time.

— Financial management In 2014, the GSC continued to further improve its financial management and performance. The internal financial processes measured by used time and accuracy improved compared to 2013. In the context of improving the cash flow position of European businesses, the average payment delay of invoices in the GSC was 17 days in 2014, the maximum time limit being 30 calendar days (Directive 2011/7/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (4)).

— Building Policy The project to renovate the Residence Palace and convert it into the seat of the European Council and the Council of European Union (Europa Building) continued in 2014 with further construction work including, among other things, building up floors, insulation and technical installations.

3.2 Revenue

Table 5 gives an overview on the global outcome of revenue operations in 2014. The expression ‘Established rights 2013’ refers to the recovery orders which were made in 2013 but for which the recovery of the amounts took place only in 2014. The expression ‘Established rights 2014’ in turn corresponds to recoveries launched in 2014.

Table 5

Overview of revenue operations in 2014 budget

(EUR) Chapter Established rights 2013 Recovered revenues from 2013 Established rights 2014 Recovered revenues from 2014 Total established rights 2013+2014 Total recovered 2013+2014 To be recovered in 2015 1 2 3 4 5=1+3 6=2+4 7=5-6 4 0 Deductions from staff remuneration 0 0 2 8 2 69 786 2 8 2 69 786 2 8 2 69 786 2 8 2 69 786 0 4 1 Contributions to the pension scheme 8 52 902 6 03 939 2 2 9 17 394 2 1 9 06 445 2 3 7 70 296 2 2 5 10 383 1 2 59 912 5 0 Proceeds from the sale of movable and immovable property 400 400 1 04 000 1 04 000 1 04 400 1 04 400 0 5 1 Proceeds from letting and hiring 32 144 32 144 2 81 611 2 49 134 3 13 755 2 81 278 32 478 5 2 Revenue from investments or loans granted, bank and other interest 0 0 12 468 12 468 12 468 12 468 0 5 5 Revenue from the proceeds of services supplied and work carried out 14 114 12 908 75 397 58 973 89 511 71 881 17 630 5 5 EEAS Revenue from the proceeds of services supplied and work carried out 0 0 1 4 44 244 1 3 27 100 1 4 44 244 1 3 27 100 1 17 144 5 7 Other contributions and refunds in connection with the administrative operation of the Institution 5 9 59 125 5 5 05 870 1 9 1 99 968 1 7 0 82 664 2 5 1 59 093 2 2 5 88 534 2 5 70 558 5 8 Miscellaneous compensation 0 0 22 603 17 828 22 603 17 828 4 775 5 8 EEAS Miscellaneous compensation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 9 Other revenues from administrative operations 0 0 1 332 1 332 1 332 1 332 0 6 3 Contributions under specific agreements 0 0 1 1 77 276 1 1 77 276 1 1 77 276 1 1 77 276 0 9 0 Miscellaneous revenue 0 0 8 8 8 8 0 Total 6 8 58 685 6 1 55 261 7 3 5 06 086 7 0 2 07 013 8 0 3 64 771 7 6 3 62 274 4 0 02 497

The total volume of revenue operations in terms of established rights, i.e. issued recovery orders, was EUR 80,4 million in 2014. From this amount EUR 76,4 million was recovered during the financial year whereas EUR 4 million will be collected in 2015.

The majority of the total recovered revenues (66 % or EUR 50,8 million out of EUR 76,4 million) in 2014 relates to community taxes, levies and dues collected from the GSC’s personnel. From this amount EUR 28,2 million covers the deductions from staff remuneration whereas EUR 22,5 million corresponds to contributions and transfers of pension rights to the pension scheme.

The remainder, or 34 % (EUR 25,6 million), is accrued from various administrative operations. This amount comes mainly from the following sources:

— Recovery of parts of the amounts paid to Member States in previous years for delegates’ travel expenses following their declarations for 2012 and 2013 (EUR 4,5 million and EUR 5,8 million respectively, Chapter 5 7).

— Recovery of payments by Member States for supplementary on-request interpretation into certain languages (EUR 9,1 million, Chapter 5 7).

— Transfers from the EEAS to the Council as advance payments for the services rendered by the GSC to the EEAS (EUR 1,3 million, Chapter 5 5).

— Contributions to the administrative costs arising within the framework of the ‘Schengen acquis’ with Iceland and Norway (EUR 1,2 million, Chapter 6 3).

— Contributions by other institutions and payments by Council officials for the Council crèche (EUR 1,2 million) (Chapter 5 7).

— Payments by the Court of Justice and the Court of Auditors as their contributions to the common financial system with the Council (EUR 0,3 million, Chapter 5 7).

— Proceeds from letting and hiring premises and reimbursements related to them, inter alia, the Commission’s part of rent of the EU Info Point on Rue Archimède in Brussels (EUR 0,3 million, Chapter 5 1).

3.3 Expenditure in 2014

3.3.1 Modification of the budget in 2014

During the financial year 2014, the appropriations were reallocated by different transfers. Table 6 shows the decisions which modified the budget appropriations in 2008-14.

Table 6

Number of budget modifications by type in 2008-14

Modification Year Type Legal basis 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Amending budget FR Article 34 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 Transfer B FR Article 25 72 46 47 23 23 22 32 Transfer C FR Article 25 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 Transfer D FR Article 27 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 76 49 49 25 25 24 34

The C-transfers, which involve informing the budget authority (in accordance with Article 25 of the Financial Regulation), were made to reinforce following subjects in 2014:

— C1-transfer of EUR 4 50 000 on 8 August 2014 in order to: — cover the supplementary legal expenses related to 10 unforeseen anti-dumping cases (EUR 3 00 000), — cover the expenditure for reimbursement of lost Court cases (EUR 1 50 000),

— C2-transfer of EUR 6 4 00 000 on 5 November 2014 in order to: — cover the advance payment for the acquisition of the Europa Building (EUR 5 4 50 000), — cover the retroactive payment of the difference between the old and the new rental contract of the Council’s new conference facilities in Luxembourg (EUR 9 50 000).

In 2014, the EC/C budget was internally modified by 32 B-transfers based on Article 25(4) of the FR.

Table 7 gives an overview of the budget lines which were significantly (5) modified in 2014 by different transfers.

Table 7

Budget lines which were subject to significant transfers in 2014

(EUR) Item Heading Initial Budget 2014 Transfers Final appropriations Difference 1 1 0 0 Basic salaries 21 9 5 81 059 - 4 4 77 000 21 5 1 04 059 -2 % 1 1 0 2 Entitlements under the Staff Regulations 5 6 7 47 000 - 1 0 00 000 5 5 7 47 000 - 2 % 2 0 0 0 Rent 1 6 92 000 1 1 40 000 2 8 32 000 67 % 2 0 0 2 Acquisition of immovable property 5 0 00 000 5 0 00 000 1 0 0 00 000 100 % 2 0 0 3 Fitting-out of premises 7 4 62 000 - 3 25 000 7 1 37 000 - 4 % 2 0 1 0 Cleaning and maintenance 1 4 3 24 000 - 3 00 000 1 4 0 24 000 - 2 % 2 0 1 1 Water, gas, electricity and heating 4 1 63 000 - 4 00 000 3 7 63 000 - 10 % 2 1 0 0 Acquisition of equipment and software 8 8 90 430 - 1 8 57 027 7 0 33 403 - 21 % 2 1 0 1 Outside assistance for the operation and development of computer systems 2 0 1 35 000 2 3 32 720 2 2 4 67 720 12 % 2 1 0 2 Servicing and maintenance of equipment and software 5 2 14 000 7 36 307 5 9 50 307 14 % 2 1 0 3 Telecommunications 3 1 43 000 - 1 2 12 000 1 9 31 000 - 39 % 2 2 0 0 Travel expenses of delegations 2 0 3 02 000 7 3 20 746 2 7 6 22 746 36 % 2 2 0 2 Interpreting costs 8 6 9 91 444 - 7 3 91 746 7 9 5 99 698 - 8 % 2 2 0 3 Entertainment and representation expense 2 9 97 560 - 3 76 354 2 6 21 206 - 13 % 2 2 0 4 Miscellaneous expenditure on internal expenses 3 6 79 000 3 76 354 4 0 55 354 10 % 2 2 3 6 Legal expenses and costs, damages and compensation 1 0 00 000 4 50 000 1 4 50 000 45 %

3.3.2 Overview of implementation of the budget in 2005-14

The overall implementation rate of the EC/C budget has been on average 94 % over the past 10 years (Graph 1). The implementation rate refers to the commitments made during the budget year out of the available voted budget.

The actual annual payments between 2005 and 2014 have been on average 81 % of the budget. The difference between the overall implementation and payments of a given year (i.e. non-paid commitments) has been carried over, in conformity with Article 13(4) of the Financial Regulation, to the next budget year for payments.

The carried over appropriations break down into two major categories: functioning of the GSC and buildings. The first is related to obligations duly contracted before the end of the budget year but where the goods have not yet been delivered and/or for which no invoices have been received before the end of the year.

Graph 1

Global budget implementation in 2005-14

(1) In 2009, the Council budget was reduced by ‘Amending budget No 10/2009 to the EU budget’ by EUR 40 million. The amount was transferred as the Council’s contribution to the European Economic Recovery Plan (EERP).

The second category refers to the GSC’s acquisition of buildings such as LEX, the crèche and the Europa Building. In the last few years, the GSC has been able to use the savings made during the budget implementation to finance these acquisitions.

In 2014, EUR 10 million was committed for the acquisition of the Europa Building. The amount has been carried over to 2015 for the actual payment.

3.3.3 Implementation of the appropriations by category in 2014

The analysis of expenditure in 2014 is presented at the level of 14 expenditure categories.

Table 8 compares the final budget after transfers (column 2) with the outturn of the budget in terms of commitments (column 3). The difference between the final budget and the committed appropriations corresponds to the amounts not used in 2014 and therefore lost.

Table 8

Overview of the implementation of the 2014 budget (by category)

(EUR) Category Budget 2014 (initial) Budget 2014 (final (6)) Commitments (7) Outturn rate Cancelled appropriations 1 2 3 4=3/2 5=2-3 Establishment plan 29 2 9 89 059 28 7 5 39 059 28 2 2 14 956 98,1 % 5 3 24 103 Other staff expenditure 2 3 2 18 480 2 3 2 18 480 2 0 0 15 064 86,2 % 3 2 03 416 Buildings (excluding acquisitions) 4 0 5 37 800 4 0 5 37 800 3 9 0 97 282 96,4 % 1 4 40 518 Computer systems 3 7 3 82 430 3 7 3 82 430 3 7 3 45 304 99,9 % 37 126 Furniture 8 06 850 8 06 850 7 07 802 87,7 % 99 048 Technical equipment 2 5 86 390 2 5 86 390 2 3 34 978 90,3 % 2 51 412 Transport 2 1 46 217 2 1 46 217 1 4 79 282 68,9 % 6 66 935 Delegations' travel expenses 2 0 3 02 000 2 7 6 22 746 1 4 0 74 731 51,0 % 1 3 5 48 015 Interpreting costs 8 6 9 91 444 7 9 5 99 698 6 4 9 53 834 81,6 % 1 4 6 45 864 Meetings and conferences 8 7 20 570 8 7 91 570 6 0 66 822 69,0 % 2 7 24 748 Information 8 8 90 660 8 8 90 660 7 5 21 462 84,6 % 1 3 69 198 Miscellaneous 1 9 30 400 2 3 80 400 1 9 63 451 82,5 % 4 16 949 Reserve 2 7 00 000 2 7 00 000 — 0,0 % 2 7 00 000 Total (excl. acquisition) 52 9 2 02 300 52 4 2 02 300 47 7 7 74 968 91,1 % 4 6 4 27 332 Acquisition of immovable property 5 0 00 000 1 0 0 00 000 1 0 0 00 000 100,0 % 0 Grand total 53 4 2 02 300 53 4 2 02 300 48 7 7 74 968 91,3 % 4 6 4 27 332

The global implementation rate of the 2014 budget is 91,3 %. The difference between the final budget and implementation can be explained as follows:

— The total under-spending in the category of establishment plan amounts to EUR 5,3 million. This under-spending relates principally to the lower net occupancy in the establishment plan in 2014 compared to what was budgeted for it.

— In the category of other staff expenditure, 61 % of the under-spending (EUR 1,9 million out of EUR 3,2 million) relates to fewer payments for contractual agents, seconded national experts and other outside services. Smaller spending in mission related costs corresponds to a saving of EUR 0,8 million. The remainder of EUR 0,5 million is mostly related to provisions for the entry into service of the new President of the European Council which were not completely used, as well as some minor savings in the areas of medical service and trainings.

— The global implementation of the building related expenditure (without the Europa-Building) resulted in a saving of EUR 1,4 million. From this amount EUR 0,8 million is due to lower costs in building maintenance and cleaning, consumption of water, gas and electricity as well as lower expenditure on security. The remaining EUR 0,6 million comes from savings in certain fitting-out, installation and security works.

— In the IT domain the budget implementation was almost 100 %.

— The underspending of EUR 0,1 million in furniture relates to reduced need of replacing certain office furniture in 2014.

— EUR 0,25 million saving in technical equipment is mainly due to a lower need for technical installations like multimedia and audio equipment in the conference rooms.

— Saving of EUR 0,7 million in transport costs relates mainly to lower needs for the leasing of vehicles and special transportation in the framework of the EU-Africa Multilateral Summit (EUR 0,5 million saving).

— The implementation of the delegations’ travel expenses resulted in a saving of EUR 13,5 million. The amount available for delegations’ travel expenses after transfers amounted to EUR 27,6 million. The initial budget was EUR 20,3 million to which EUR 8,7 million was transferred from the savings in some interpretation envelopes. On the other hand, during the year EUR 1,3 million was transferred to finance supplementary interpretation in certain languages and EUR 0,1 million to finance other travel expenses. Since the Member States had to reimburse unused amounts from previous years, only EUR 14,1 million was committed for subsequent payments in the 2014 budget.

— The underspending in appropriations for interpretation amounts to EUR 14,7 million. It should be noted that this underspending is the final result after the transfer of EUR 8,7 million from interpretation envelopes to delegations’ travel envelopes (8). The final result includes also a transfer back of EUR 1,3 million from some travel envelopes to cover the supplementary interpretation in certain languages.

— EUR 1 million out of the total underspending of EUR 2,7 million in organising meetings and conferences reflects a lower contract price for catering in 2014 and fewer meetings in 2014 than was foreseen in the budget. Further saving of EUR 0,9 million relates to a significantly smaller need for renting meeting and conference rooms outside of the Council’s premises and EUR 0,6 million to economies related to the organisation of the EU-Africa Multilateral Summit. Finally, lower needs for specific travel expenses have allowed for additional saving of EUR 0,2 million.

— The implementation rate of the appropriations in the category information was 85 % which results in a saving of EUR 1,4 million. From this amount EUR 0,9 million corresponds to the lower number of co-decisions and other legal acts published in the Official Journal in 2014. The remaining EUR 0,5 million comes mainly from a smaller need for publications and documentation and for expenditure on publicity and public events.

— In the category miscellaneous, the underspending of EUR 0,4 million is explained among other things by smaller needs for office supplies, postal charges, studies, removals and insurances.

3.4 Appropriations carried over

3.4.1 Implementation of the carryover appropriations from 2013 to 2014

As presented in table 9, an amount of EUR 47,8 million was carried over from 2013 to 2014.

Table 9

Implementation of appropriations carried over from 2013 to 2014 (by category)

(EUR) Category Appropriations carried over from 2013 Payments 2014 Outturn rate Cancelled appropriations 1 2 3=2/1 4=1-2 Establishment plan 2 90 340 2 90 340 100,0 % — Other staff expenditure 2 1 95 363 1 7 30 106 78,8 % 4 65 257 Buildings 1 4 2 05 355 1 2 2 70 299 86,4 % 1 9 35 055 Computer systems 1 6 4 30 523 1 5 4 15 158 93,8 % 1 0 15 365 Furniture 2 95 064 2 90 818 98,6 % 4 246 Technical equipment 1 9 81 297 1 7 99 099 90,8 % 1 82 198 Transport 2 70 549 1 73 935 64,3 % 96 614 Delegations' travel expenses — — — Interpreting costs 6 2 73 864 4 7 65 024 76,0 % 1 5 08 840 Meetings and conferences 2 5 70 117 6 74 627 26,2 % 1 8 95 490 Information 2 5 14 281 1 4 68 752 58,4 % 1 0 45 529 Miscellaneous 7 52 401 4 12 592 54,8 % 3 39 809 Reserve — — Total 4 7 7 79 153 3 9 2 90 751 82,2 % 8 4 88 402

The implementation rate of the appropriations carried over from 2013 was 82,2 %.

The main reasons for the modest implementation rate are:

— Partial or complete lack of delivery of works/goods/services ordered by the GSC during the previous year.

— Invoices not received for works/goods/services delivered. It should be noted that this inevitably constitutes a budgetary burden for the next budget year as for these transactions new commitments will have to be introduced in 2015.

3.4.2 Appropriations carried over from 2014 to 2015

The appropriations carried over from 2014 to 2015 totalled EUR 53 million (table 10).

Table 10

Appropriations carried over from 2014 to 2015 (by category)

(EUR) Category Budget 2014 (initial) Budget 2014 (final (9)) Commitments (10) Appropriations carried over to 2015 (10) Carry over rate 1 2 3 4 5=4/3 Establishment plan 29 2 9 89 059 28 7 5 39 059 28 2 2 14 956 3 49 629 0,1 % Other staff expenditure 2 3 2 18 480 2 3 2 18 480 2 0 0 15 064 2 2 95 744 11,5 % Buildings 4 0 5 37 800 4 0 5 37 800 3 9 0 97 282 1 1 9 12 328 30,5 % Computer systems 3 7 3 82 430 3 7 3 82 430 3 7 3 45 304 1 8 1 26 434 48,5 % Furniture 8 06 850 8 06 850 7 07 802 5 88 624 83,2 % Technical equipment 2 5 86 390 2 5 86 390 2 3 34 978 1 0 62 094 45,5 % Transport 2 1 46 217 2 1 46 217 1 4 79 282 2 24 349 15,2 % Delegations' travel expenses 2 0 3 02 000 2 7 6 22 746 1 4 0 74 731 0,0 % Interpreting costs 8 6 9 91 444 7 9 5 99 698 6 4 9 53 834 5 5 64 784 8,6 % Meetings and conferences 8 7 20 570 8 7 91 570 6 0 66 822 1 1 96 079 19,7 % Information 8 8 90 660 8 8 90 660 7 5 21 462 1 0 11 946 13,5 % Miscellaneous 1 9 30 400 2 3 80 400 1 9 63 451 6 38 694 32,5 % Reserve 2 7 00 000 2 7 00 000 — — — Total (excl. acquisition) 52 9 2 02 300 52 4 2 02 300 47 7 7 74 968 4 2 9 70 704 9,0 % Acquisition of immovable property 5 0 00 000 1 0 0 00 000 1 0 0 00 000 1 0 0 00 000 100,0 % Grand total 53 4 2 02 300 53 4 2 02 300 48 7 7 74 968 5 2 9 70 704 10,9 %

The carried over amounts from 2014 to 2015 mainly come from the following categories:

— Computer systems by EUR 18,1 million, of which EUR 10,6 million relates to outside assistance, EUR 4,9 million to equipment and software, EUR 1,6 million to IT service and maintenance and EUR 1 million to telecommunications.

— Buildings by EUR 11,9 million where different fitting-out works cover EUR 4,1 million, retroactive rent payment EUR 3,2 million, cleaning and maintenance EUR 2,1 million, security and surveillance EUR 1,1 million, electricity, water, gas and heating together another EUR 1 million and EUR 0,4 million of other expenditure related to buildings, e.g. building studies and audits.

— Acquisition of immovable property by EUR 10 million to cover the advance payment for Europa Building.

— Interpreting costs by EUR 5,6 million to cover the cost of interpretation provided in November-December 2014, but for which the final invoice arrives in 2015.

— Other staff expenditure by EUR 2,3 million especially in relation with outside assistance, training, medical service, crèches and missions.

— Meetings and conferences by EUR 1,2 million mostly relating to invoices not yet received for organising the European Council and Council meetings in 2014.

— Technical equipment by EUR 1,1 million.

— EUR 1 million related to information expenditure of which EUR 0,7 million concern information and public events as well as Council publications, EUR 0,2 million documentation and library expenditure and EUR 0,1 million the Official Journal.

3.5 Assigned revenue

3.5.1 Assigned revenue accrued before 2014

The total amount of assigned revenue accrued before 2014 was EUR 27,4 million.

Assigned revenue related to the GSC’s activities totalled EUR 26,6 million, from which EUR 26,4 million was paid. The remainder EUR 0,2 million was cancelled in conformity with Article 14 of the FR.

Another part, EUR 0,85 million, of the assigned revenue accrued before 2014 relates to amounts transferred by the EEAS in 2013 to the Council to cover the expenses of the services defined in different Service Level Agreements (SLA) between the two institutions and rendered by the GSC. All that amount of EUR 0,85 million was paid in 2014.

Table 11

Implementation of assigned revenue accrued before 2014 (by category)

(EUR) Category Assigned revenues before 2014 Payments 2014 Outturn rate Cancelled assigned revenues 1 2 3=2/1 4=1-2 Establishment plan 1 9 72 503 1 9 72 503 100,0 % — Other staff expenditure 1 5 78 428 1 5 35 737 97,3 % 42 691 Buildings 5 76 315 5 39 524 93,6 % 36 791 Computer systems 7 55 230 7 03 533 93,2 % 51 697 Furniture 1 — 0,0 % 1 Technical equipment 33 151 25 583 77,2 % 7 568 Transport 290 290 100,0 % — Delegations' travel expenses 1 3 2 60 765 1 3 2 60 765 100,0 % — Interpreting costs 8 2 71 566 8 2 71 566 100,0 % — Meetings and conferences 82 682 77 354 93,6 % 5 328 Information 6 172 6 062 98,2 % 110 Miscellaneous 43 661 13 885 31,8 % 29 776 Total EC/C 2 6 5 80 765 2 6 4 06 802 99,3 % 1 73 963 SLAs with EEAS 8 50 105 8 50 105 100,0 % 0 Grand total 2 7 4 30 870 2 7 2 56 907 99,4 % 1 73 963

3.5.2 Assigned revenue accrued in 2014

The total assigned revenue accrued in 2014 totalled to EUR 25,6 million (table 12). From this, EUR 1,3 million corresponds to amounts transferred by the EEAS to the Council.

The assigned revenue 2014 relating to the activities of the GSC amounted to EUR 24,2 million. During the financial year EUR 0,8 million was used while EUR 23,5 million was carried over to 2015 in accordance with Article 14 of the FR.

Table 12

Implementation of assigned revenue accrued in 2014 (by category)

(EUR) Category Assigned revenues 2014 Commitments 2014 Available assigned revenue 1 2 3=1-2 Establishment plan 1 1 94 467 — 1 1 94 467 Other staff expenditure 1 4 87 849 1 78 829 1 3 09 021 Buildings 3 20 109 22 188 2 97 921 Computer systems 6 00 990 69 351 5 31 639 Furniture — — 0 Technical equipment 1 04 599 94 444 10 155 Transport 5 300 — 5 300 Delegations' travel expenses 1 0 2 59 457 — 1 0 2 59 457 Interpreting costs 9 1 45 845 — 9 1 45 845 Meetings and conferences 88 220 52 774 35 446 Information 4 01 984 10 283 3 91 701 Miscellaneous 6 30 783 3 38 259 2 92 524 Total EC/C 2 4 2 39 603 7 66 128 2 3 4 73 475 SLAs with EEAS 1 3 29 080 7 36 337 5 92 743 Grand total 2 5 5 68 683 1 5 02 466 2 4 0 66 217

Around 40 % of the assigned revenue is related to the delegations’ travel expenses (EUR 10,3 million). The amount of EUR 9,1 million in interpretation comes from the top-up payments on certain languages to cover the supplementary interpretation in those languages. The remainder is mainly related to reimbursement of amounts connected with various administrative operations of the Council.

(1) Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union and repealing Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 (OJ L 298, 26.10.2012, p. 1).

(2) Europa Building.

(3) The final budget after the reduction of EUR 40 million for the European Economic Recovery Plan in December 2009 was EUR 563 million.

(4) Directive 2011/7/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 on combating late payment in commercial transactions (OJ L 48, 23.2.2011, p. 1).

(5) Net amount > EUR 2 50 000.

(6) Includes internal reallocation of appropriations.

(7) Includes carry over on decision EUR 3 2 00 000.

(8) In conformity with Decision 111/07, the GSC transfers 66 % of the unused amounts of interpretation language envelopes to the delegates’ travel envelopes to be used during the same budget year. In 2014, this corresponded to an amount of EUR 8,7 million.

(9) Includes internal reallocation of appropriations.

(10) Includes carry over on decision EUR 3 2 00 000.