ANNEX

STATEMENTS

Joint statement of the European Parliament and the Council on reinforcements (top-ups) for the remaining period of the MFF

In the context of the MFF mid-term review/revision, the European Parliament and the Council have agreed on the top-ups as proposed by the Commission for the amounts indicated in the table below, to be implemented in the years 2017 to 2020 (1) in the framework of the annual budgetary procedure, without prejudice to the prerogatives of the budgetary authority:

Commitment appropriations, mil. EUR Heading 1a Horizon 2020 200 CEF Transport 300 Erasmus+ 100 COSME 100 Wifi4EU (*1) 25 EFSI (*1) 150 Total Heading 1a 875 Heading 1b (YEI) 1200 (*2) Heading 3 2549 Heading 4 (*1) 1385 Total H1a, 1b, 3, 4 6009

Redeployments of an overall amount of EUR 945 million will be identified in the annual budget procedure, out of which EUR 875 million in H1a and EUR 70 million in H4.

Joint statement of the European Parliament and the Council on avoiding accumulation of an excessive amount of unpaid bills

The European Parliament and the Council call on the Commission to continue closely scrutinising the implementation of the 2014-2020 programmes in order to ensure an orderly progression of payment appropriations consistent with the authorised commitment appropriations. To that end, they invite the Commission to present in a timely manner, throughout the remaining period of the current MFF, updated figures concerning the state of affairs and estimates regarding payment appropriations. The European Parliament and the Council will take any necessary decisions in due time for duly justified needs to prevent the accumulation of an excessive amount of unpaid bills and to ensure that payment claims are duly reimbursed.

Joint statement of the European Parliament and the Council on payments for Special Instruments

The European Parliament and the Council agreed to adapt the proposal for amending Decision (EU) 2015/435 so as not to prejudice in any way the nature of payments for other special instruments in a general way.

Joint statement of the European Parliament and the Council concerning an independent evaluation of the results of the target of progressive reduction of staff by 5 % between 2013 and 2017

The European Parliament and the Council propose that an independent evaluation of the results of the target of progressive reduction of staff by 5 % between 2013 and 2017 is undertaken, covering all institutions, bodies and agencies as agreed in the IIA of 2013 on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management. Based on the conclusion of the evaluation, the European Parliament and the Council invite the Commission to present an appropriate follow-up proposal.

Statement of the European Parliament on the joint statements linked to the MFF mid-term revision

The European Parliament recalls that the four joint statements that accompany the revised MFF Regulation are of political nature without any legal implications.

With regard to the joint statement on reinforcements (‘top-ups’) and redeployments for Union programmes, it is recalled that the Treaties provide for the budgetary authority to determine the level and content of the Union budget through the annual budgetary procedure. The European Parliament stresses that, as an equal arm of the budgetary authority, it will exercise fully its prerogatives, which will not be compromised by any political declaration. The need to respect the prerogatives of the budgetary authority is also clearly reflected in the text of the joint statement.

The European Parliament understands, therefore, that the amounts indicated in this joint statement represent reference amounts to be examined in the context of the annual budgetary procedure, taking due account of the concrete circumstances of each annual budget. Concerning, in particular, the proposed redeployments in Headings 1a and 4, the European Parliament intends to examine any Commission proposals on a case-by-case basis, in order to ensure that no reduction is sustained on key Union programmes, notably if they are conducive to growth and jobs or respond to current pressing needs and present a high implementation rate.

It is evident that any amounts indicated in the joint statement that relate to legislative proposals that are not yet adopted, do not prejudge in any way the outcome of those legislative negotiations.

Statement of the Council on payments for Special Instruments

The Council proposes to maintain the status quo and not establish, in the context of this review/revision, a general and over-arching rule as regards the treatment of payments for other special instruments. The opinion of the Council Legal Service stated that it will remain open for the Budgetary Authority to decide on a case-by-case basis, in respect of a specific mobilisation in question, whether or not some or all of the corresponding payments are to be counted above the MFF ceilings.

Statement of the Commission on reinforcing the Youth Employment Initiative and additional measures to help tackling the migration crisis and security issues

Should the downwards trend in youth unemployment observed since 2013 reverse again, consideration should be given to increase the funding for the Youth Employment Initiative beyond the amount of EUR 1,2 billion agreed in the framework of the mid-term review/revision of the multiannual financial framework (MFF) 2014-2020 by using margins available under the Global Margin for Commitments in accordance with Article 14 of the MFF Regulation. For that purpose, the Commission will report regularly on the observed statistical trends and submit a Draft Amending Budget if appropriate.

Without prejudice to the above, additional margins available should be considered, as a matter of priority, for investing in young people across Europe and for measures helping to address the internal and external dimension of the migration crisis and security issues should new needs arise which are not covered by the existing or agreed funding. The Commission will make proposals to that end if appropriate while keeping in mind the need to maintain sufficient margins for unexpected events and the smooth implementation of already agreed programmes.

(1) A part of the overall top-ups have already been agreed in the context of the 2017 budgetary procedure. The 2017 budget thus includes EUR 200 million in Heading 1a and EUR 725 million in Heading 4. Moreover, the European Parliament and the Council agreed to provide EUR 500 million in Heading 1b for the Youth Employment Initiative in 2017 to be financed by the Global margin for commitments and which will be implemented via an amending budget in 2017. Finally, the European Parliament and the Council also invited the Commission to request the necessary appropriations in an amending budget in 2017 in order to provide the financing of the EFSD from the EU budget as soon as the legal base is adopted.

(*1) This does not prejudge the outcome of ongoing discussions on draft legislative proposals within H1a and H4.

(*2) Spread over four years (2017-2020).