on the mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument to finance immediate budgetary measures to address the on-going challenges of migration, refugee inflows and security threats as well as the extension of the Structural Reform Support Programme

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

The Council Regulation (EU, EURATOM) No 1311/2013 of 2 December 2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014-2020 allows for the mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument to allow the financing of clearly identified expenditure which could not be financed within the limits of the ceilings available for one or more headings of the multiannual financial framework.

In accordance with Article 11 of Council Regulation No 1311/2013 and point 12 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 2 December 2013 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management, after having examined all possibilities for re-allocating appropriations and exhausted any unallocated margin under the expenditure headings Economic, Social and Territorial Cohesion (heading 1b) and Security and Citizenship (heading 3), the Commission proposes to mobilise the Flexibility Instrument in 2019. The annual amount available is EUR 600 million (2011 prices) corresponding to EUR 703 million in current prices. Moreover, EUR 520 million is available in the 2018 portion.

This mobilisation concerns an amount of EUR 927,5 million beyond the ceiling of heading 3 of the multiannual financial framework, and is intended to finance support for measures for managing the migration, refugee and security crisis. In addition EUR 38,1 million is proposed to be mobilised above the ceiling of heading 1b to provide financing of the extention of the Structural Reforms Support Programme.

The indicative payment appropriations corresponding to the proposed mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument have been calculated on the basis of the rules applicable to pre-financing, clearance of pre-financing and final payments for the various types of measures to be financed, and are presented in the table below:

(in million EUR, at current prices)

Year Payment appropriations related to the mobilisation of the flexibility instrument in 2019 2019 486,6 2020 194,7 2021 116,1 2022 116,9 2023 51,3 Total 965,6

Proposal for a

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

on the mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument to finance immediate budgetary measures to address the on-going challenges of migration, refugee inflows and security threats as well as the extension of the Structural Reform Support Programme

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 2 December 2013 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management, and in particular point 12 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

Whereas,

(1)The Flexibility instrument is intended to allow the financing of clearly identified expenditure which could not be financed within the limits of the ceilings available for one or more other headings.

(2)The ceiling on the annual amount available for the Flexibility Instrument is EUR 600 000 000 (2011 prices), as laid down in Article 11 of Council Regulation (EU, EURATOM) No 1311/2013.

(3)In order to address the ongoing challenges of migration, refugee inflows and security threats as well as the extension of the Structural Reform Support Programme, it is necessary to mobilise significant additional amounts to finance such measures as a matter of urgency.

(4)Having examined all possibilities for reallocating appropriations under the expenditure ceilings for heading 3 (Security and citizenship) and for heading 1b (Economic, social and territorial cohesion), it is necessary to mobilise the Flexibility Instrument to supplement the financing available in the general budget of the Union for the financial year 2019 beyond the ceiling of heading 3 by the amount of EUR 927 518 138 to finance measures in the field of migration, refugees and security and beyond the ceiling of heading 1b by the amount of EUR 38 069 903 to provide the additional funding for the extension of the Structural Reform Support programme.