EN Official Journal of the European Union CE 78/732

(2004/C 78 E/0781)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2154/03

by Herbert Bösch (PSE) to the Commission

(24 June 2003)

Subject: Delays in the disbursement of funding for SMU projects

One of the aims of the Fifth and Sixth Framework Programmes for Research is to encourage innovation. Against this background, the Commission asked interested parties to submit by 15 March 2002 proposals for innovative projects under the reference number INN/01/02. Following the assessment process, in June 2002 31 projects were approved. However, by late December 2002 only four contracts had been concluded.

Can the Commission state why, more than one year following the award of funding, contracts have not been drawn up for 27 of the 31 projects and when it intends to conclude those contracts?

Does the Commission share my view that delays of this kind pose a serious threat to individual projects? If so, what measures is the Commission taking in order to minimise the problems which these delays may cause?

In respect of how many projects under the Fifth and Sixth Framework Programmes for Research have contracts not yet been signed, even though the assessment of those projects was completed one year, or even longer, ago?

As of late May 2003 the backlog of payments under the budget title covering research and technological development totals some EUR 7 billion. Can the Commission state how quickly it intends to reduce that backlog, what measures it is taking in order to achieve that aim and whether there is a danger that some of the appropriations will be cancelled? In that connection, are delays also occurring in the disbursement of funding for projects already under way and in respect of which invoices are regularly submitted? If so, in how many cases (absolute and relative proportion of all current projects) and for what reasons?

Answer given by Mr Busquin on behalf of the Commission

(31 July 2003)

The proposals for innovative projects under the reference INN/01/02 were submitted in response to a call for proposals opened on 15 December 2001 and closed on 15 March 2002. According to the relevant procedures, the consortia of 31 selected proposals were invited to submit the detailed information required to complete the project negotiations. This would then enable the relevant dossier to be established, a positive opinion to be obtained from the Programme Committee and funding to be approved by the Commission. The approval of the Commission was given on 11 October 2002 (1) and on 22 November 2002 (2). Four contracts were launched before 31 December 2002. The delay that has occurred in preparing the 27 remaining contracts for signature has been exceptional in nature.

It is regrettable that the contracts were not launched as initially planned. In order to be able to implement projects correctly despite the delay, contractors have been given the possibility to adapt the road map of each of the identified activities.

Given that the information about the contracts which have not been signed is dealt with on a decentralised basis, it is not possible to give a statement by the required deadline. The Commission will provide further information without fail and as soon as possible.

The amount of EUR 7 billion corresponds roughly to the amount of outstanding commitments (OCs) for the research programmes. In accordance with the budget programming, it is planned to pay these at a steady rate, for example, up to EUR 2 200 million for the Directorate-General for Research (DG RTD) for 2003.

It should be emphasised that this amount is quite small in relation to the annual budget for research policy and that DG RTD has taken steps to ensure that this issue is being properly dealt with.

DG RTD makes a detailed analysis of its requirements for payment appropriations for each financial year, and then implements most of the budget (for example, 96 % in 2002). The risk of payment appropriations being cancelled is therefore low. Moreover, DG RTD has set up instruments for monthly reporting on OCs and is endeavouring to cancel the commitments for which payment appropriations are no longer required as soon as possible.

(1) Decision number C(2002) 3710.

(2) Decision number C(2002) 4524.