WRITTEN QUESTION E-1685/98

by Kirsi Piha (PPE) to the Commission

(29 May 1998)

Subject: Monitoring of the EMU information fund

A considerable amount of money from the EU budget has been earmarked for campaigns to inform citizens about EMU.

How does the Commission intend to monitor the proper utilization of these appropriations? How have these funds been allocated, firstly to the EU institutions' campaigns, and secondly to campaigns by citizens' organizations?

Answer given by Mr Oreja on behalf of the Commission

(18 September 1998)

From the budget for the Information Programme for European Citizens (Prince), ECU 30 million has been earmarked for the priority information campaign "The euro, a currency for Europe" in 1997 and in 1998. The Commission, in its Communication on the information strategy for the euro,(1) estimated that the overall cost of this campaign for the period between 1999 and 2001 would be ECU 100 million.

The campaign is based on partnership, decentralisation and subsidiarity, which is why, apart from a number of information products produced (e.g. Internet site on the Europa server, brochures) or communication activities carried out by the institutions, priority is given to partnerships with the Member States set up through agreements to cofinance euro communication plans (two thirds of the appropriations, or around ECU 20 million). Sums are allocated to Member States on the basis of their communication plans. For 1998, partnerships are in place with eleven Member States. To supplement them, partnerships have also been agreed for a total of around ECU 5 million, mainly with citizens' organisations, to finance cross-border campaigns.

The proper utilisation of these funds is monitored by means of the mechanisms normally used to monitor financial contributions paid out of the Community budget. Such mechanisms include the audit activities assigned to the Financial Controller by the Financial Regulation and the external audit activities carried out by the Court of Auditors.

Nevertheless, as part of the management of the programme, an internal audit mechanism is in place, comprising three types of audit: (1) systematic audit of the file when payment of the balance of the contribution is requested after the campaign has been carried out; the audit is based on documents provided by the party concerned, namely an activity report, a report on the financial implementation of the projects, an analysis of any discrepancies between the actual and estimated budget and the list of all accounting documents connected with the projects; (2) audit of documents from sample files and from all files which require particular attention or involve a certain element of risk; (3) on-the-spot audit of sample cases or cases in which the two preceding stages suggest the need for it.

For campaigns undertaken in cooperation with the Member States, there are also all the audit procedures inherent in each Member State¢s own national rules on the management of public funds. Furthermore, in those Member States with which agreements have been concluded, a coordination unit made up of representatives of the Member State, the Commission and the Parliament meets regularly to coordinate and monitor the euro information campaigns.

Parliament is involved in drawing up the broad guidelines for the programme in an informal advisory group.

(1) COM(98) 39 final.