EN Official Journal of the European Union C 360/1

FINANCIAL ACTIVITY REPORT 2015

Section II — European Council and Council

(2016/C 360/01)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION 2

2. OBJECTIVES AND BUDGET FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 2015 2

2.1. Main financial objectives 2

2.2. Establishment of the budget for the European Council and Council in 2015 2

2.2.1. General approach 2

2.2.2. Budget 2015 3

2.2.3. Budget 2015 and the financial perspectives of Heading 5 of the EU budget 3

3. GLOBAL OVERVIEW OF BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION IN 2015 5

3.1. Activities and objectives of the European Council and Council in 2015 5

3.1.1. Meetings 5

3.1.2. Legislative activities 5

3.1.3. Administrative modernisation 6

3.1.4. Achievement of objectives in 2015 6

3.2. Revenue 7

3.3. Expenditure in 2015 8

3.3.1. Modification of the budget in 2015 8

3.3.2. Overview of implementation of the budget in 2006-2015 10

3.3.3. Implementation of the appropriations by category in 2015 11

3.4. Appropriations carried over 12

3.4.1. Implementation of the carry-over appropriations from 2014 to 2015 12

3.4.2. Appropriations carried over from 2015 to 2016 13

3.5. Assigned revenue 15

3.5.1. Assigned revenue accrued before 2015 15

3.5.2. Assigned revenue accrued in 2015 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 2015.

The report is based on the provisional accounts for 2015, 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 2015. A global overview on the implementation of the budget appropriations available in 2015 is given in Chapter 3.

The implementation of the budget 2015 by budget line is presented in Annex.

2. OBJECTIVES AND BUDGET FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 2015

2.1. Main financial objectives

The main financial objectives of the General Secretariat of the Council for 2015 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 mid-2016.

2.2. Establishment of the budget for the European Council and Council in 2015

2.2.1. General approach

The establishment of the budget 2015 for the European Council and Council (EC/C hereafter) was based on the general objective not to exceed, in nominal terms, the overall level of the 2014 budget for all non-staff-related expenditure.

Increases related to statutory or contractual obligations, or in domains which have been considered as essential for the proper functioning of the GSC, have been compensated by prioritising and reprogramming certain projects taking into account the budget implementation of the recent years.

As for the establishment plan, the GSC continued to streamline the organisation by implementing the 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 five years (third year),

— transferring six AST posts to the European Commission’s Paymaster Office (PMO),

— transferring one AST post to the EEAS,

— transforming 10 AST posts into 10 long-term contractual agents (less expensive),

— transforming six AST 5 posts into six AD 5 posts (continuation of the administrative modernisation),

— transforming 40 AST posts into 40 SC1 posts (less expensive),

— increasing the number of posts in the establishment plan by 19 (additional staff for the Europa Building).

2.2.2. Budget 2015

The budget authority established the overall EC/C budget 2015 at EUR 541,8 million. This corresponds to an increase of EUR 7,6 million (+1,4 %) compared to 2014.

The number of posts in the establishment plan for 2015 for the EC/C was 3 072.

Table 1 gives an overview on the budget 2015 by different categories. Given the estimated inflation of 1,5 % for 2015, the EC/C budget was in fact reduced in real terms by 0,1 %.

Table 1

EC/C budget 2015 compared to 2014 (by category)

(EUR) Category Budget 2014 Budget 2015 Change 2015/2014 with EB (2) 1 2 3=2/1 Establishment plan 292 989 059 297 827 000 1,7 % Other staff expenditure 23 218 480 23 941 000 3,1 % Buildings (excluding acquisitions) 40 537 800 51 207 500 26,3 % Computer systems 37 382 430 38 488 000 3,0 % Furniture 806 850 2 664 000 230,2 % Technical equipment 2 586 390 3 401 000 31,5 % Transport 2 146 217 1 868 000 -13,0 % Delegations' travel expenses 20 302 000 17 802 000 -12,3 % Interpreting costs 86 991 444 83 900 000 -3,6 % Meetings and conferences 8 720 570 7 638 000 -12,4 % Information 8 890 660 8 847 000 -0,5 % Miscellaneous 1 930 400 2 208 000 14,4 % Reserve 2 700 000 1 000 000 -63,0 % Total (excl. acquisition) 529 202 300 540 791 500 2,2 % Acquisition of immovable property 5 000 000 1 000 000 -80,0 % Grand total 534 202 300 541 791 500 1,4 %

2.2.3. Budget 2015 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 2008-2015. The EC/C share in the Heading 5 of the multiannual financial perspectives has declined from 8,0 % in 2008 to 6,3 % in 2015.

Table 2

Evolution of the Section II of the EU budget (European Council and Council) under Heading 5 of the financial perspectives in 2008-2015

2008 2009 (3) 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 (Amounts at current prices) M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change M€ change Heading 5 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 % 8 661 3,0 % EC/C 595 0,2 % 603 1,3 % 634 5,1 % 563 -11,2 % 534 -5,2 % 536 0,3 % 534 -0,2 % 542 1,4 % EC/C share in Heading 5 8,0 % 7,9 % 8,0 % 6,9 % 6,2 % 5,8 % 6,4 % 6,3 %

The EUR 53 million reduction achieved in 2008-2015 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 2014 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 2015

3.1. Activities and objectives of the European Council and Council in 2015

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.

3.1.1. Meetings

Table 3 gives an overview of the development of the number of meetings organised by the GSC for the European Council and Council between 2006 and 2015.

In 2015, in addition to the 3 702‘institutional’ meetings, the GSC organised a further 2 271 meetings (e.g. seminars, information sessions and briefings, and meetings with third countries).

Table 3

Development of the number of meetings in 2006-2015

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Summits 3 3 5 7 7 9 7 6 9 12 Councils 76 68 81 74 86 85 77 74 81 81 Coreper 120 106 144 140 122 135 140 140 135 138 Working groups 4 037 4 183 4 480 4 272 4 127 4 373 4 480 4 164 4 016 3 471 Total 4 236 4 360 4 710 4 493 4 342 4 602 4 704 4 384 4 241 3 702 Other meetings 2 713 1 735 2 051 2 021 1 996 2 075 2 189 2 027 2 189 2 271 Grand total 6 949 6 095 6 761 6 514 6 338 6 677 6 893 6 411 6 430 5 973

The year 2015 has been marked by various crises and more particularly by the terrorist attacks in France, Denmark and Tunisia, by further deepening of the Greek financial crisis, by the outburst of the migration and refugee crisis and finally by the planned British referendum. These elements of the political landscape are reflected in the increased number of summits in 2015 compared to previous years.

On the other hand the total number of meetings organised by the GSC went down by 7 % (457) compared to 2014. It is explained mainly by lower legislative activity due to the simplification programme initiated by the European Commission.

Moreover, in June 2015 the GSC hosted a second Multilateral Summit: EU-CELAC. It brought together European, Latin American and Caribbean leaders to strengthen relations between the regions. All in all, 61 countries and the EU institutions were present at the summit to discuss cooperation in areas related to security, climate change, the fight against drugs, education, social cohesion, sustainable development, innovation and technology.

The organisation of the event requiring significant security and logistic resources as well as an important diplomatic effort has been estimated at a supplementary expenditure of EUR 1,8 million.

3.1.2. Legislative activities

Another quantitative indicator of activities is the number of legal acts published in the Official Journal (OJ) (Table 4). In 2015, 1 412 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 2006-2015

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Legal acts published in OJ 1 317 1 000 1 274 829 825 986 958 1 132 1 437 1 412

The simplification programme of the European Commission in the area of legislation is not yet reflected by a substantial decrease in the number of legal acts. In fact, this effect will be observed with a delay due to the length of the legislative procedures.

3.1.3. Administrative modernisation

In 2015, the GSC continued to improve the quality and efficiency of its organisation by further rotation of managers and by reinforcing its internal mobility policy. The external assessment centres for management selections became, after a pilot phase, a standard step in manager recruitment procedures.

Last but not least, 2015 was the year of new achievements in the area of GSC’s environmental policies. The GSC was recommended to register its environmental management programme under the eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS) as defined in Regulation (EC) No 1221/2009 (4). This positive outcome bolsters the credibility of the environmental initiatives that have been in place at the GSC for a number of years.

3.1.4. Achievement of objectives in 2015

Achievement of the objectives established for the budget year 2015 may be summarised as follows:

— Establishment plan In 2015, the GSC recruited 175 officials (144 permanent officials and 31 temporary agents). During the year 193 officials (130 permanent officials and 63 temporary agents) left, resulting in a net decrease of 18 occupied posts in the EC/C establishment plan. The establishment plan was reduced by 31 as part of the reduction of the staffing level by 5 % over a period of five years.

— Financial management In 2015, the GSC continued to further improve its financial management and performance. Several new tools and reports have been put in place in order to facilitate data processing and increase visibility and communication between the GSC’s financial services. One of the most important achievements in 2015 was the improvement of corporate financial governance. It was achieved mainly by the following: — launching new multiannual activity and budget planning (‘MABP’), — creating a new set-up of the Project Evaluation Committee (‘CEP’) which in 2015 evaluated 26 projects representing a value of EUR 102 million, — strengthening of legality of the procurement process by involvement of the Legal Service, — reviewing the Internal Rules on Finance and Procurement. In the context of improving the cash flow position of European businesses, the average payment delay of invoices in the GSC was 19 days in 2015, the maximum time limit being 30 calendar days (Directive 2011/7/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (5)).

— 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) has further continued in 2015. Most of the works have been completed by the end of the year and first preparatory steps for the provisional reception of the building have already started. The provisional reception of the building has been scheduled for 31 May 2016.

3.2. Revenue

Table 5 gives an overview on the global outcome of revenue operations in 2015. The expression ‘Established rights 2014’ refers to the recovery orders which were made in 2014 but for which the recovery of the amounts took place only in 2015. The expression ‘Established rights 2015’ in turn corresponds to recoveries launched in 2015.

Table 5

Overview of revenue operations in 2015 budget

(EUR) Chapter Established rights 2014 Recovered revenues from 2014 Established rights 2015 Recovered revenues from 2015 Total established rights 2014+2015 Total recovered 2014+2015 To be recovered in 2016 1 2 3 4 5=1+3 6=2+4 7=5-6 4 0 Deductions from staff remuneration 0 0 27 245 978 27 245 978 27 245 978 27 245 978 0 4 1 Contributions to the pension scheme 1 259 912 997 627 25 533 492 25 402 002 26 793 405 26 399 629 393 776 5 0 Proceeds from the sale of movable and immovable property 0 0 100 058 75 058 100 058 75 058 25 000 5 1 Proceeds from letting and hiring 32 472 32 472 567 671 535 178 600 144 567 651 32 493 5 2 Revenue from investments or loans granted, bank and other interest 0 0 1 378 1 378 1 378 1 378 0 5 5 Revenue from the proceeds of services supplied and work carried out 17 630 12 075 147 946 143 335 165 575 155 410 10 165 5 5 Revenue from the proceeds of services supplied and work (EEAS) 117 144 117 144 182 000 32 000 299 144 149 144 150 000 5 7 Other contributions and refunds in connection with administration 2 416 891 1 982 556 17 791 281 15 808 360 20 208 172 17 790 916 2 417 257 5 8 Miscellaneous compensation 4 774 4 774 173 988 173 988 178 763 178 763 0 5 8 Miscellaneous compensation (EEAS) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 9 Other revenues from administrative operations 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 3 Contributions under specific agreements 0 0 1 177 892 1 177 892 1 177 892 1 177 892 0 7 0 Interest on late payments 0 0 2 2 2 2 0 9 0 Miscellaneous revenue 0 0 9 9 9 9 0 Total 3 848 823 3 146 648 72 921 696 70 595 180 76 770 519 73 741 828 3 028 691

The total volume of revenue operations in terms of established rights, i.e. issued recovery orders, was EUR 76,8 million in 2015. From this amount EUR 73,7 million was recovered during the financial year whereas EUR 3 million will be collected in 2016.

The majority of the total recovered revenues (73 % or EUR 53,6 million out of EUR 73,7 million) in 2015 relates to community taxes, levies and dues collected from the GSC’s personnel. From this amount EUR 27,2 million covers deductions from staff remuneration whereas EUR 26,4 million corresponds to contributions and transfers of pension rights to the pension scheme.

The remainder, or 27 % (EUR 20,1 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 2013 and 2014 (EUR 1,3 million and EUR 8,4 million respectively, Chapter 5 7),

— recovery of payments by Member States for supplementary on-request interpretation into certain languages (EUR 5,6 million, Chapter 5 7),

— 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 1,1 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 0,6 million, Chapter 5 1),

— payments by the Court of Justice and the Court of Auditors as their contributions to the common financial system with the Council (EUR 0,5 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 0,15 million, Chapter 5 5).

3.3. Expenditure in 2015

3.3.1. Modification of the budget in 2015

During the financial year 2015, the appropriations were reallocated by different transfers. Table 6 shows the decisions which modified the budget appropriations in 2009-2015.

Table 6

Number of budget modifications by type in 2009-2015

Modification Year Type Legal basis 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Amending budget FR Article 41 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Transfer B FR Article 25 46 47 23 23 22 32 27 Transfer C FR Article 25 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Transfer D FR Article 27 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 49 49 25 25 24 34 29

The C-transfers, which involve informing the budget authority (in accordance with Article 25 of the Financial Regulation), were made to reinforce the following in 2015:

— C1 — transfer of EUR 4 800 000 on 23 July 2015 in order to: — finance the acquisition of the Terrain d’Etterbeek,

— C2 — transfer of EUR 20 000 000 on 11 December 2015 in order to: — cover the advance payment for the occupancy of the Kirchberg conference centre in Luxembourg (EUR 10 000 000), — cover the advance payment for the acquisition of the Europa Building (EUR 10 000 000).

In 2015, the EC/C budget was internally modified by 27 B-transfers based on Article 25 (4) of the FR.

Table 7 gives an overview of the budget lines which were significantly (6) modified in 2015 by different transfers.

Table 7

Budget lines which were subject to significant transfers in 2015

(EUR) Item Heading Initial Budget 2015 Transfers Final appropriations Difference 1 1 0 0 Basic salaries 222 569 000 -5 695 000 216 874 000 - 3 % 1 1 0 2 Entitlements under the Staff Regulations 56 860 000 - 900 000 55 960 000 - 2 % 2 0 0 0 Rent 2 806 000 19 038 000 21 844 000 678 % 2 0 0 2 Acquisition of immovable property 1 000 000 8 750 000 9 750 000 875 % 2 0 0 3 Fitting-out of premises 8 236 000 -1 624 000 6 612 000 - 20 % 2 0 0 4 Work to make premises secure 1 740 000 -1 198 000 542 000 - 69 % 2 0 1 0 Cleaning and maintenance 17 647 500 -2 900 000 14 747 500 - 16 % 2 0 1 1 Water, gas, electricity and heating 5 316 000 -1 900 000 3 416 000 - 36 % 2 1 0 1 Outside assistance for computer systems 20 010 000 581 358 20 591 358 3 % 2 1 0 2 Servicing, maintenance of equipment/SW 6 005 000 - 820 301 5 184 699 - 14 % 2 1 0 3 Telecommunications 3 225 000 -1 422 739 1 802 261 - 44 % 2 1 3 2 Rental and repair of the vehicle fleet 1 528 000 - 565 000 963 000 - 37 % 2 2 0 0 Travel expenses of delegations 17 802 000 9 351 084 27 153 084 53 % 2 2 0 2 Interpreting costs 83 900 000 -19 376 084 64 523 916 - 23 % 2 2 0 3 Entertainment and representation expense 3 265 000 -2 150 000 1 115 000 - 66 % 2 2 1 1 Official Journal 4 816 000 - 575 000 4 241 000 - 12 % 2 2 1 3 Information and public events 2 190 000 550 000 2 740 000 25 %

3.3.2. Overview of implementation of the budget in 2006-2015

The overall implementation rate of the EC/C budget has been on average 93 % 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 2006 and 2015 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 2006-2015

(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 2015, EUR 4 million was committed for the acquisition of the Europa Building. The amount has been carried over to 2016 for the actual payment.

3.3.3. Implementation of the appropriations by category in 2015

The analysis of expenditure in 2015 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 2015 and therefore cancelled.

Table 8

Overview of the implementation of the 2015 budget (by category)

(EUR) Category Budget 2015 (initial) Budget 2015 (final (7)) Commitments (8) Outturn rate Cancelled appropriations 1 2 3 4=3/2 5=2-3 Establishment plan 297 827 000 291 427 000 283 827 466 97,4 % 7 599 534 Other staff expenditure 23 941 000 23 941 000 21 552 971 90,0 % 2 388 029 Buildings (excluding acquisitions) 51 207 500 62 457 500 61 258 420 98,1 % 1 199 080 Computer systems 38 488 000 37 088 000 36 987 014 99,7 % 100 986 Furniture 2 664 000 2 664 000 2 284 645 85,8 % 379 355 Technical equipment 3 401 000 3 401 000 2 568 135 75,5 % 832 865 Transport 1 868 000 1 468 000 1 433 023 97,6 % 34 977 Delegations' travel expenses 17 802 000 27 153 084 17 517 650 64,5 % 9 635 434 Interpreting costs 83 900 000 64 523 916 51 914 971 80,5 % 12 608 945 Meetings and conferences 7 638 000 5 863 000 4 443 547 75,8 % 1 419 453 Information 8 847 000 8 847 000 6 921 782 78,2 % 1 925 218 Miscellaneous 2 208 000 2 208 000 1 362 183 61,7 % 845 817 Reserve 1 000 000 1 000 000 — 0,0 % 1 000 000 Total (excl. acquisition) 540 791 500 532 041 500 492 071 805 92,5 % 39 969 695 Acquisition of immovable property 1 000 000 9 750 000 9 750 000 100,0 % 0 Grand total 541 791 500 541 791 500 501 821 805 92,6 % 39 969 695

The global implementation rate of the 2015 budget is 92,6 %. 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 7,6 million. This under-spending relates principally to the lower net occupancy in the establishment plan in 2015 compared to what was budgeted and to the lower need for different statutory entitlements.

— In the category of other staff expenditure, 45 % of the under-spending (EUR 1,1 million out of EUR 2,4 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 0,6 million. In the area of the President of the European Council, a saving of EUR 0,4 million comes from under-spending of the travel budget and allowances. The remainder of EUR 0,3 million is mostly related to minor savings in the areas of childcare facilities as well as medical and social services.

— The global implementation of the building-related expenditure (without the Europa-Building) resulted in a saving of EUR 1,2 million. From this amount EUR 0,6 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 under-spending of EUR 0,1 million is mainly due to lower need for outside assistance.

— The underspending of EUR 0,4 million in furniture relates mainly to the re-estimation of costs related to furniture for the Europa Building.

— EUR 0,8 million saving in technical equipment is mainly due to a lower need for technical installations like multimedia and audio equipment in the conference rooms.

— As far as the transport area is concerned, the budget implementation was almost 100 %.

— The implementation of the delegations’ travel expenses resulted in a saving of EUR 9,6 million. The amount available for delegations’ travel expenses after transfers amounted to EUR 27,2 million. The initial budget was EUR 17,8 million to which EUR 10,7 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. Since the Member States had to reimburse unused amounts from previous years, only EUR 17,5 million was committed for subsequent payments in the 2015 budget.

— The underspending in appropriations for interpretation amounts to EUR 12,6 million. It should be noted that this underspending is the final result after the transfer of EUR 10,7 million from interpretation envelopes to delegations’ travel envelopes (9) and of EUR 10 million to finance the advance for the Europa Building. 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 1,1 million out of the total underspending of EUR 1,4 million in organising meetings and conferences reflects a lower contract price for catering in 2015 and fewer meetings in 2015 than was foreseen in the budget. Further saving of EUR 0,2 million is due to economies related to the organisation of the EU-CELAC Multilateral Summit. Finally, lower needs for specific travel expenses have allowed for an additional saving of EUR 0,1 million.

— The implementation rate of the appropriations in the category information was 78 % which results in a saving of EUR 1,9 million. From this amount EUR 1,8 million corresponds to the lower number of co-decision and other legal acts published in the Official Journal in 2015. The remaining EUR 0,1 million comes mainly from a smaller need for publications, information expenditure and online activities.

— In the category miscellaneous, the underspending of EUR 0,8 million is explained mainly by lower expenditure in the area of legal expenses (EUR 0,5 million) due to the lower than expected number of antidumping cases notified to the Council and smaller needs for office supplies, paper, studies, removals, work clothes and insurance (EUR 0,3 million).

3.4. Appropriations carried over

3.4.1. Implementation of the carry-over appropriations from 2014 to 2015

As presented in Table 9, an amount of EUR 49,8 million was carried over from 2014 to 2015.

Table 9

Implementation of appropriations carried over from 2014 to 2015 (by category)

(EUR) Category Appropriations carried over from 2014 Payments 2015 Outturn rate Cancelled appropriations 1 2 3=2/1 4=1-2 Establishment plan 349 629 348 820 99,8 % 808 Other staff expenditure 2 295 744 1 808 728 78,8 % 487 016 Buildings 8 712 328 6 646 755 76,3 % 2 065 572 Computer systems 18 126 434 17 224 144 95,0 % 902 290 Furniture 588 624 585 559 99,5 % 3 064 Technical equipment 1 062 094 973 057 91,6 % 89 037 Transport 224 349 171 805 76,6 % 52 544 Delegations' travel expenses — — — Interpreting costs 5 564 784 5 200 228 93,4 % 364 556 Meetings and conferences 1 196 079 514 660 43,0 % 681 419 Information 1 011 946 838 501 82,9 % 173 445 Miscellaneous 10 638 694 10 529 779 99,0 % 108 915 Reserve — — Total 49 770 704 44 842 036 90,1 % 4 928 668

The implementation rate of the appropriations carried over from 2014 was 90,1 %.

The main reasons for this 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 2016.

3.4.2. Appropriations carried over from 2015 to 2016

The appropriations carried over from 2015 to 2016 totalled EUR 47,3 million.

Table 10

Appropriations carried over from 2015 to 2016 (by category)

(EUR) Category Budget 2015 (initial) Budget 2015 (final (10)) Commitments (11) Appropriations carried over to 2016 (11) Carry over rate 1 2 3 4 5=4/3 Establishment plan 297 827 000 291 427 000 283 827 466 400 792 0,1 % Other staff expenditure 23 941 000 23 941 000 21 552 971 2 419 483 11,2 % Buildings 51 207 500 62 457 500 61 258 420 10 156 193 16,6 % Computer systems 38 488 000 37 088 000 36 987 014 16 755 734 45,3 % Furniture 2 664 000 2 664 000 2 284 645 1 842 957 80,7 % Technical equipment 3 401 000 3 401 000 2 568 135 1 283 975 50,0 % Transport 1 868 000 1 468 000 1 433 023 377 616 26,4 % Delegations' travel expenses 17 802 000 27 153 084 17 517 650 359 415 2,1 % Interpreting costs 83 900 000 64 523 916 51 914 971 6 567 275 12,7 % Meetings and conferences 7 638 000 5 863 000 4 443 547 818 658 18,4 % Information 8 847 000 8 847 000 6 921 782 1 696 343 24,5 % Miscellaneous 2 208 000 2 208 000 1 362 183 676 774 49,7 % Reserve 1 000 000 1 000 000 — — — Total (excl. acquisition) 540 791 500 532 041 500 492 071 805 43 355 215 8,8 % Acquisition of immovable property 1 000 000 9 750 000 9 750 000 4 000 000 41,0 % Grand total 541 791 500 541 791 500 501 821 805 47 355 215 9,4 %

The carried-over amounts from 2015 to 2016 mainly come from the following categories:

— computer systems by EUR 16,7 million, of which EUR 9,4 million relates to outside assistance, EUR 6,1 million to equipment and software, EUR 0,7 million to telecommunications and EUR 0,5 million to IT service and maintenance,

— buildings by EUR 10,2 million, where different fitting-out works cover EUR 4,3 million, cleaning and maintenance EUR 3,1 million, security and prevention EUR 1,4 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,

— interpreting costs by EUR 6,6 million to cover the cost of interpretation provided in November-December 2015, but for which the final invoice arrives in 2016,

— acquisition of immovable property by EUR 4 million to cover the advance payment for the Europa Building,

— other staff expenditure by EUR 2,4 million especially in relation to outside assistance, training, medical service, crèches and missions,

— furniture by EUR 1,8 million in relation to Europa Building equipment,

— EUR 1,7 million related to information expenditure of which EUR 1,3 million concerns information and public events as well as Council publications and EUR 0,4 million documentation and library expenditure,

— technical equipment by EUR 1,3 million.

— meetings and conferences by EUR 0,8 million mostly relating to invoices not yet received for organising European Council and Council meetings in 2015.

3.5. Assigned revenue

3.5.1. Assigned revenue accrued before 2015

The total amount of assigned revenue accrued before 2015 was EUR 24,3 million.

Assigned revenue related to the GSC’s activities totalled EUR 23,7 million, from which EUR 23,3 million was paid. The remainder, EUR 0,4 million, was cancelled in conformity with Article 14 of the FR.

Another part, EUR 0,6 million, of the assigned revenue accrued before 2015 relates to amounts transferred by the EEAS in 2014 to the Council to cover the expenses of the services defined in different service level agreements (SLAs) between the two institutions and rendered by the GSC. Almost the total amount of EUR 0,6 million was paid in 2015 (442 EUR have been cancelled).

Table 11

Implementation of assigned revenue accrued before 2015 (by category)

(EUR) Category Assigned revenues before 2015 Payments 2015 Outturn rate Cancelled assigned revenues 1 2 3=2/1 4=1-2 Establishment plan 1 243 638 1 239 710 99,7 % 3 928 Other staff expenditure 1 392 504 1 380 894 99,2 % 11 611 Buildings 301 644 253 405 84,0 % 48 239 Computer systems 549 081 542 382 98,8 % 6 699 Furniture — — 0,0 % — Technical equipment 23 601 21 470 91,0 % 2 131 Transport 5 300 4 246 80,1 % 1 054 Delegations' travel expenses 10 259 457 10 019 846 97,7 % 239 611 Interpreting costs 9 145 845 9 145 845 100,0 % — Meetings and conferences 35 446 10 048 28,3 % 25 397 Information 391 821 391 821 100,0 % — Miscellaneous 329 023 317 634 96,5 % 11 389 Total EC/C 23 677 360 23 327 300 98,5 % 350 060 SLAs with EEAS 618 746 618 303 99,9 % 442 Grand total 24 296 106 23 945 603 98,6 % 350 503

3.5.2. Assigned revenue accrued in 2015

The total assigned revenue accrued in 2015 totalled to EUR 20 million. From this, EUR 92 000 corresponds to amounts transferred by the EEAS to the Council.

The assigned revenue 2015 relating to the activities of the GSC amounted to EUR 19,9 million. During the financial year EUR 0,5 million was used while EUR 19,4 million was carried over to 2016 in accordance with Article 14 of the FR.

Table 12

Implementation of assigned revenue accrued in 2015 (by category)

(EUR) Category Assigned revenues 2015 Commitments 2015 Available assigned revenue 1 2 3=1-2 Establishment plan 1 324 068 — 1 324 068 Other staff expenditure 1 393 085 127 844 1 265 242 Buildings 686 512 59 773 626 739 Computer systems 700 727 287 979 412 748 Furniture 1 488 — 1 488 Technical equipment 45 000 28 673 16 327 Transport 38 319 1 744 36 575 Delegations' travel expenses 9 707 699 — 9 707 699 Interpreting costs 5 565 872 — 5 565 872 Meetings and conferences 147 877 — 147 877 Information 150 002 — 150 002 Miscellaneous 180 265 — 180 265 Total EC/C 19 940 915 506 013 19 434 902 SLAs with EEAS 92 000 58 210 33 791 Grand total 20 032 915 564 222 19 468 692

Around 48 % of assigned revenue is related to the delegations’ travel expenses (EUR 9,7 million). The amount of EUR 5,6 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) Regulation (EC) No 1221/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2009 on the voluntary participation by organisations in a Community eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS), repealing Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 and Commission Decisions 2001/681/EC and 2006/193/EC (OJ L 342, 22.12.2009, p. 1).

(5) 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).

(6) Net amount > EUR 300 000.

(7) Includes internal reallocation of appropriations.

(8) Includes carry-over on decision EUR 1 821 000.

(9) 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 2015, this corresponded to an amount of EUR 10,7 million.

(10) Includes internal reallocation of appropriations.

(11) Includes carry-over on decision EUR 1 821 000.