No C 337/8 Official Journal of the European Communities 16. 12. 87 
OPINION No 5/87 
of the Court of Auditors of the European Communities on a proposal for a Council Regulation 
(Euratom, ECSC, EEC) amending the Financial Regulation of 21 December 1977 applicable to 
the general budget of the European Communities 
(87/C 337/07) 
THE COURT OF AUDITORS OF THE EUROPEAN 
COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community, and in particular Article 209 
thereof, 
Having regard to the Financial Regulation of 21 
December 1977 applicable to the general budget of the 
European Communities ('), 
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 
dated 29 June 1987 (2), 
Having regard to the request for consultation of the 
Court of Auditors on the proposal, formulated by the 
Council on 21 September 1987, 
"Whereas, according to the explanatory memorandum, 
the object of the proposal is to provide a legislative basis, 
for reasons of budgetary transparency and objectivity, 
for the following: 
(a) the creation in the budget of a new Section VI 
"Appropriations concerning several institutions" 
incorporating, at present, the appropriations relating 
to: 
(i) pensions and allowances, 
(ii) the Joint Interpreting Service, 
(iii) Expenditure on publications, including the 
Official Journal, 
(iv) the Office for Official Publications of the 
European Communities, 
(v) the European Schools; 
(b) a budgetary structure to accommodate the global 
expenditure concerning all staff and administrative 
expenditure relating to the Commission's work 
outside the Community; according to the 1988 pre­
liminary draft budget (3), this amendment is to be 
viewed in the context of the future adoption by the 
Council of a proposed regulation dated 17 February 
1986 establishing a single management structure for 
the expenditure in question; 
(') OJNoL356, 31. 12. 1977. 
O OJ No C 186, 16. 7. 1987, page 7. 
(3) Doc COM(87) 150, volume 0/2, Annex II, I Introduction, 
paragraphs 1 and 2. Whereas this proposal is part of the eight proposals (4) — 
some sections of which overlap — which the 
Commission has laid before the Council since the 
submission of its first proposal for amendment of the 
Financial Regulation of 21 December 1977 on 12 June 
1978; 
Whereas by aiming to achieve an extremely partial 
modification of the Financial Regulation expeditiously, 
i.e. from the point at which the 1988 budget is drawn up, 
notwithstanding the other proposals on which the 
Council still has to take a decision, the proposal 
contravenes the minimum requirements of consistency 
and coherence which are to be expected of Community 
legislation; 
Whereas, following the entry into force of the Single 
European Act, the European Council pointed out, in the 
context of budgetary discipline, that "budget 
management rules must be strengthened, in particular 
through a reform of the Financial Regulation" (s); 
Whereas, in the explanatory memorandum attached to 
the proposal of 29 July 1987 (6), the Commission itself 
stated that in this respect an ad hoc approach —- confined 
to revising certain sectoral provisions only — would not 
meet the requirements of the overall situation, which was 
critical, and whereas, therefore, the present proposal is in 
conflict with the principles of consistency, which the 
Commission has defined elsewhere; 
Whereas, concerning the substance of the proposal: 
(a) as regards the creation of a Section VI "Appro­
priations concerning several institutions", the Court 
notes that: 
(4) OJ No C 160, 6. 7. 1978, proposal dated 12. 6. 1978; 
OJ No C 119, 21. 5. 1981, proposal dated 12. 12. 1980; 
OJ No C 158, 27. 6. 1981, proposal dated 15. 6. 1981; 
OJ No C 97, 9. 4. 1984, amendment dated 15. 3. 1984; 
OJ No C 186, 16. 7. 1987, proposal dated 29. 6. 1987; 
OJ No C 278, 16. 10. 1987, proposal dated 29. 7. 1987; 
Doc. COM(87) 458 final, proposal dated 30. 9. 1987; 
' Doc. COM(87) 511 final, proposal dated 19. 10. 1987. 
(5) Conclusions of the European Council of 29./30. 6. 1987, 
paragraph 8, Bulletin of the European Communities No 6, 
1987, page 10. 
(6) COM(87) 400 final. 
16.12.87 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 337/9 
(i) the management of the appropriations of some 
of the headings which have been regrouped in 
this way is not clearly defined as regards the 
responsibilities of the authorizing officer, 
accounting officers and financial controller of 
the various institutions and the present proposal 
therefore is still unacceptably imprecise; 
(ii) some appropriations concerning several 
institutions have been regrouped, whilst others 
remain in different sections of the budget, for 
example, social services expenditure; 
(b) as regards the creation of a new budget structure for 
all staff "outside the Community", the proposal 
should in this instance have envisaged an identical 
system for the administration and management of 
staff employed in the other Member States of the 
Community but outside the seats of the institutions 
(press offices and information offices); the situation 
of these staff is in fact in many respects similar to 
that of staff "outside the Community"; 
HAS ADOPTED THIS OPINION: 
For the reasons set out above, which demonstrate the 
incomplete and imprecise nature of the present proposal, the Court considers that it would be preferable for it to 
be withdrawn. 
On a more general level, the Court must reiterate (') that 
it would like to see the revision of the Financial Regu­
lation successfully concluded, for reasons arising from its 
concern for due codification and legislative reform; with 
this in mind, it would like the Commission to withdraw 
the ad hoc proposals for amendment of the Financial 
Regulation which have been outstanding since 1984 in 
favour of a single comprehensive text, in accordance 
with the wishes expressed by the European Council at its 
meetings of 29 and 30 June 1987; furthermore, the 
Court would like the Council, for its part, to provide the 
necessary resources and timetable for the said revision 
within the requisite time limits and under the appropriate 
conditions. 
This opinion was adopted by the Court of Auditors at a 
meeting held on 29 October 1987. 
For the Court of Auditors 
Marcel MART 
President 
(l) Annual Report 1981, OJ No C 344, 31. 12. 1982, page 11; 
Annual Report 1984, OJ No C 326, 16. 12. 1985, page 12; 
Annual Report 1985, OJ No C 321, 15. 12. 1986, page 19.