2002/705/EC: Commission Decision of 22 March 2001 approving the single programming document for Community structural assistance under Objective 2 in Gibraltar in the United Kingdom (notified under document number C(2001) 558)
Date: 2001-03-22
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Gibraltar, Structural Funds, United Kingdom, development aid, distribution of aid, financing plan, regional development

L 241/64

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

9.9.2002

COMMISSION DECISION

of 22 March 2001

approving the single programming document

for Community structural assistance under

Objective 2 in Gibraltar in the United Kingdom

(notified under document number C(2001) 558)

(Only the English text is authentic)

(2002/705/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

(5)

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999 of
21 June 1999 laying down general provisions on the
Structural Funds (1), and in particular Article 15(5) thereof,

After consultation of the Committee on the Development and
Conversion of Regions,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

Article 13 et seq. of Title II of Regulation (EC) No
1260/1999 lay down the procedure for preparing and
implementing single programming documents.

Article 15(1) and (2) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999
provides
that, after consultation with the partners
referred to in Article 8 of the Regulation, the Member
State may submit to the Commission a development
plan which is treated as a draft single programming
document, and which contains the information referred
to in Article 16 of the Regulation.

Under Article 15(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999,
on the basis of the regional development plan submitted
by the Member State and within the partnership
the
established in accordance with Article 8 of
Regulation, the Commission shall take a decision on the
single programming document, in agreement with the
Member State concerned and in accordance with the
procedures laid down in Articles 48 to 51.

for Gibraltar

The United Kingdom Government submitted to the
Commission on 25 April 2000 acceptable draft single
programming document
fulfilling the
conditions for Objective 2 pursuant to Article 4(1) of
Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999. The draft contains the
information listed in Article 16 of the Regulation, and
in particular a description of the priorities selected and
an indication of
the financial contribution from the
the
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF),
European Investment Bank (EIB) and the other financial
instruments proposed for implementing the plan.

(1) OJ L 161, 26.6.1999, p. 1.

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

(10)

Under Article 52(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999,
as an acceptable plan was submitted between 1 January
and 30 April 2000, the date from which expenditure
under the plan is eligible shall be 1 January 2000.
Under Article 30 of the Regulation, it is necessary to lay
down the final date for the eligibility of expenditure.

The single programming document has been drawn up
in agreement with the Member State concerned and
within the partnership.

The Commission has
programming document
principle of additionality.

satisfied itself

that
the single
in accordance with the

is

Under Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999, the
Commission and the Member State are required to
ensure,
in a manner consistent with the principle of
partnership, coordination between assistance from the
Funds and from the EIB and other existing financial
instruments.

document

The EIB has been involved in drawing up the single
in accordance with the
programming
provisions of Article 15(5) of Regulation (EC) No
1260/1999 and has
to
contribute to its implementation in conformity with its
statutory provisions.

itself prepared

declared

in

are

financial

expressed

euro. The
consistent with the

The
contribution from the Community
available over the entire period and its year-by-year
annual
breakdown
breakdown must be
relevant
financial perspective. Under Article 7(7) of Regulation
(EC) No 1260/1999, the Community contribution has
already been indexed at a rate of 2 % per year. Under
Article 7(7) and Article 44(2) of the Regulation, the
Community contribution may be reviewed at mid-term,
and not later than 31 March 2004, to take account of
the effective level of inflation and the allocation of the
performance reserve.

9.9.2002

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Official Journal of the European Communities

L 241/65

(11)

Provision must be made for adapting the financial
allocations of the priorities of this single programming
document within certain limits to actual requirements
reflected by the pattern of
implementation on the
ground, in agreement with the Member State concerned,

(d) the provisions for implementing the single programming
document including designation of the managing authority,
a description of the arrangements for managing the single
programming document and the use to be made of global
grants, a description of the systems for monitoring and
evaluation, including the role of the Monitoring Committee
and the arrangements for the participation of the partners
in that Committee,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

(e)

the ex ante verification of compliance with additionality
and information on the transparency of financial flows;

The single programming document for Community structural
assistance under Objective 2 in Gibraltar
in the United
Kingdom for the period 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2006
is hereby approved.

(f)

information on the resources
monitoring and evaluating the assistance.

required for preparing,

Article 2

1.
In accordance with Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No
1260/1999, the single programming document includes the
following elements:

(a)

the strategy and priorities for the joint action of
the
Community Structural Funds and the Member State; their
specific quantified targets; the ex ante evaluation of the
expected impact, including on the environmental situation,
and the consistency of the priorities with the economic,
social and regional policies and the employment strategy
of the United Kingdom.

The priorities are as follows:

(cid:151) tourism, heritage and urban regeneration,

(cid:151) SMEs and e-commerce,

(cid:151) transport (port infrastructure),

(cid:151) environment;

(b) a summary description of

the measures planned to
implement the priorities, including the information needed
to check compliance with the state aid rules under Article
87 of the Treaty;

(c)

the indicative financing plan specifying for each priority
and each year the financial allocation envisaged for the
contribution from the ERDF,
the EIB and the other
instruments and the total amounts of eligible
financial
public or equivalent expenditure and estimated private
funding in the Member State. The total contribution from
the
single
Fund planned
for
programming document
is consistent with the relevant
financial perspectives;

each year

the

for

2.
The indicative financing plan puts the total cost of the
priorities selected for the joint action by the Community and
the Member State at EUR 19 515 000 for the whole period
and the financial contribution from ERDF at EUR 8 380 000.

The resulting requirement
resources of EUR
10 235 000 from the public sector and EUR 900 000 from the
private sector can be partly met by Community loans from the
EIB and other lending instruments.

for national

Article 3

The total assistance from the Structural Funds granted
1.
under the single programming document amounts to EUR
8 380 000. The procedure for granting the financial assistance,
including the financial contribution from the Funds for the
various priorities
single programming
is set out in the financing plan annexed to this
document,
Decision.

included

in the

2.
The indicative initial estimated breakdown of the total
Community assistance available between the Structural Funds
is as follows:

ERDF

EUR 8 380 000.

3.
During implementation of the financing plan, the total
cost or Community financing of a given priority can be
adjusted in agreement with the Member State by up to 25 % of
the total Community contribution to the single programming
document throughout the programme period.

L 241/66

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Official Journal of the European Communities

9.9.2002

Article 4

This Decision is without prejudice to the Commission’s
position on aid schemes falling within Article 87(1) of the
Treaty that are included in this assistance and which have not
the
yet been approved by the Commission. Submission of
application for assistance, the Programming Complement or a
request for payment by the Member State does not replace the
notification required by Article 88(3) of the Treaty.

Community financing of State aid falling within Article 87(1)
of the Treaty, granted under aid schemes or in individual cases,
requires prior approval by the Commission under Article 88 of
the Treaty, except where the aid falls within the de minimis rule
or is exempted under an exemption regulation adopted by the
Commission under Council Regulation (EC) No 994/98 of 7
May 1998 on the application of Articles 87 and 88 to certain
In the absence of such
categories of horizontal aid
exemption or approval, aid is illegal and subject
to the
consequences set out in the procedural regulation for State aid,
and its cofinancing would be treated as an irregularity within
the meaning of Articles 38 and 39 of Regulation (EC) No
1260/1999.

(2).

the Commission will not accept requests for
Consequently,
interim and final payments under Article 32 of the Regulation
for measures being cofinanced with new or altered aid, as

defined in the procedural regulation for State aid, granted
under aid schemes or in individual cases, until such aid has
been notified to and formally approved by the Commission.

Article 5

The date from which expenditure shall be eligible is 1 January
2000. The closing date for the eligibility of expenditure shall
be 31 December 2008. This date is extended to 30 April 2009
for expenditure incurred by bodies granting assistance under
Article 9(l) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999.

Article 6

This Decision is addressed to the United Kingdom of Great
Britain Northern Ireland.

Done at Brussels, 22 March 2001.

For the Commission

Michel BARNIER

Member of the Commission

(2) OJ L 142, 14.5.1998, p. 1.