WRITTEN QUESTION P-3118/01

by Emilia Müller (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(5 November 2001)

Subject: Leader+

On 14 April 2000 the Commission approved guidelines addressed to the Member States for the new Community initiative Leader+ (2000-2006). The Member States were called on to submit their proposals for programmes within six months of the publication of the notice.

In mid-November 2000 the Free State of Bavaria consequently submitted its draft to the Agriculture Directorate-General of the European Commission, via the Federal Ministry for Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture. The Commission had originally promised that the approval procedure would be completed within five months.

Whereas in other European regions the first funds have now already been released, the Bavarian draft (as well as presumably the other German drafts) has still not been approved. As approval from the Commission must be followed by the Bavarian selection procedure there will be a substantial delay in carrying out the individual projects. This is leading to an enormous amount of uncertainty in the financing and development of the planned projects.

When can a decision be expected on the submitted draft?

Why has this decision been delayed for so long when the procedure has been long completed in other European regions?

What will happen to the 2001 funds if the approval procedure is not completed by the end of the current year?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(27 November 2001)

The Commission in close cooperation with the Bavarian authorities intends to finalise the negotiations on the Bavarian programme as soon as possible in order to enable a Commission approval by the end of the year 2001. The Bavarian authorities received all information to adapt their programme to the requirements of the Commission notice to the Member States of 14 April 2000 laying down guidelines for the Community initiative for rural development (Leader+).

Shortly after the approval of the rural development programmes in autumn 2000 the German authorities introduced requests for amendments of most of the German rural development plans. The Commission followed the request of the German authorities to give priority to the assessment and approval of the modifications of the German rural development plans.

In addition there are still open questions to be clarified with the Bavarian authorities on the content of the Bavarian Leader+ Programme.

For those programmes where all formal consultations and negotiations have not been successfully concluded by the end of the year any Community credits European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF)-Guidance Section concerning the Year 2001 will be lost. The re-budgetisation exercise undertaken earlier this year, which permitted Year 2000 credits for those Structural Fund programmes which had not been approved by end of 2000 to be spread out over the 2002-2006 period, was exceptional and was explicitly foreseen under point 17 of the inter-institutional agreement of 6 May 1999. No similar provision is foreseen for 2001.

In order to ensure that the outstanding Bavarian Leader+ programme is at a sufficiently advanced stage to avoid any risk of loss of credits, it is essential that negotiations are concluded in the near future and that a revised final version which reflects fully the results of the various consultation procedures within the Commission services and any bilateral negotiations between the Commission and the Bavarian authorities is received by the Commission.