Decision giving discharge to the Commission in respect of the financial management of the seventh European Development Fund for the financial year 1997
Date: 1999-05-04
Institutions: Committee on Budgetary Control, European Parliament
Subjects: Community budget, European Regional Development Fund, Middle East, Structural Funds

C 279/134

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

1.10.1999

Tuesday 4 May 1999

3.
Instructs its president to forward this decision and the resolution containing its observations to the
Commission,  the  Council,  the  Court  of  Auditors  and  European  Investment  Bank  and  to  have  them
published in the Official Journal (L series).

Decision giving discharge to the Commission in respect of the financial management of the seventh
European Development Fund for the financial year 1997

II.

The European Parliament,

−  having regard to the EC Treaty,

−  having regard to the fourth ACP-EEC Convention (1),

−  having regard to the balance sheets and accounts of the sixth and seventh European Development

Funds for the financial year 1997 (COM(98)0442),

−  having regard to the report of the Court of Auditors concerning the financial year 1997 including the
report on the activities of the sixth and seventh European Development Funds and the replies of the
institutions (C4-0676/98) (2),

−  having regard to the recommendation of the Council of 25 February 1999 (6322/99 − C4-0186/98),

−  having regard to the declaration of the Council on the statement of assurance of the Court of Auditors
relating  to  the  activities  of  the  sixth  and  seventh  European  Development  Funds  (6557/99  −
C4-0187/99),

−  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinion of the Committee

on Development and Cooperation (A4-0198/99),

Grants discharge to the Commission in respect of the financial management of the seventh European

1.
Development Fund for the financial year 1997 on the basis of the following amounts:

Balance sheet of 7th EDF at 31 December 1997
(ECU ’000)

ASSETS

Situation
as at 31.12.1997

LONG-TERM
Initial allocation
Contributions received

CURRENT
Debtors
Cash at bank

10 940 000
(4 999 888)

0
0

Total assets

5 940 112

LIABILITIES

Situation
as at 31.12.1997

FUND CAPITAL
Initial allocation
Other resources

EXPENDITURE
Expenditure already booked

CREDITORS
Treasury advance from 6th EDF

10 940 000
885 288

(6 574 988)

689 812

5 940 112

Total liabilities

(1)  OJ L 229, 17.8.1991.
(2)  OJ C 349, 17.11.1998.

1.10.1999

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 279/135

Tuesday 4 May 1999

Use of resources − 7th EDF at 31 December 1997
Breakdown of funds

Initial
appropriation

Resources
or deductions
at 31.12.1996

Resources
or deductions
during 1997

New
situation

Total ACP

Total OCT

10 800 000 000,00

809 806 742,19

9 610 289,25

11 619 417 031,44

140 000 000,00

14 800 964,10

0 00

154 800 964,10

Sundry revenue

0 00

51 681 247,75

–610 747,96

51 070 499,79

TOTAL

10 940 000 000,00

876 288 954,04

8 999 541,29

11 825 288 495,33

2.

Records its observations in the resolution which forms part of this decision;

3.
Instructs its president to forward this decision and the resolution containing its observations to the
Commission,  the  Council,  the  Court  of  Auditors  and  European  Investment  Bank  and  to  have  them
published in the Official Journal (L series).

Resolution containing the observations which form part of the decisions granting discharge to the
Commission in respect of the financial management of the sixth and seventh European Development
Funds for the financial year 1997

III.

The European Parliament,

−  having regard to Articles 189 and 276 of the EC Treaty,

−  having regard to Articles 73 and 77 of the financial Regulations applicable respectively to the sixth
and seventh EDFs, under which the Commission is required to take all appropriate steps to act on the
observations appearing in discharge decisions,

−  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinion of the Committee

on Development and Cooperation (A4-0198/99),

1. Welcomes the positive Statement of Assurance provided by the Court of Auditors; asks the Court
and the Commission however jointly to address the problems giving rise to a number of ‘non-opinions’ in
the Statement of Assurance.

(e)  A4-0132/99

I.

Decision  giving  discharge  to  the  Commission  in  respect  of  the  management  of  the  ECSC  for  the
financial year 1997

The European Parliament,

−  having regard to the amounts shown below, contained in the accounts of the ECSC as at 31 December
1997 (1),  the  report  of  the  Court  of  Auditors  for  1997  concerning  the  ECSC,  together  with  the
Commission’s  replies  (C4-0055/99) (2),  confirming  that  the  accounts  present  a  true  picture  of  the
assets and financial situation of the European Coal and Steel Community at 31 December 1997, and
the results of ECSC operations for the financial year ending on the same date,

(1)  OJ C 255, 13.8.1998, p. 3.
(2)  OJ C 352, 18.11.1998, p. 1.