WRITTEN QUESTION E-0902/02 by Esko Seppänen (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. Reducing surplus appropriations.
Date: 2002-04-04
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European Commission, Structural Funds, budget policy, commitment of expenditure, implementation of the budget, management accounting, operation of the Institutions

12.12.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 309 E/57

(2002/C 309 E/064)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-0894/02

by Freddy Blak (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(22 March 2002)

Subject: Unfair terms of competition in football

Corruption is all too often a feature of how sports events are organised and venues selected. Unfortunately,
irregularities occur even in connection with the Olympic Games but such problems are also found within
football. One method of ensuring fair conditions in the world of sport is to make decision-making
transparent and to draw up clear rules.

In Denmark, an unfair situation has arisen in the competition between the top-flight football clubs owing
to the fact that F.C. Lyngby went bankrupt in the middle of the current season. Following the bankruptcy,
the club played with an amateur team in the same division. Everyone (cid:1) including the Danish Football
Association (DBU), which is responsible for the tournament (cid:1) is agreed that Lyngby should have been
eliminated as a result of the bankruptcy but the DBU had ‘forgotten’ to adjust the rules. Consequently,
Lyngby has played some clubs twice but other clubs only once with a professional team, which has not
put all clubs in the same competitive position (cid:1) an absurd situation which is not in the interests of
anyone involved in sport or of any football club. Unfortunately, the entire situation is dependent on an
antiquated organisation like the DBU having its rules in order. The woeful outcome is that, unless the
Commission intervenes, the richest club in Denmark, F.C. Copenhagen (cid:1) all else being equal (cid:1) will reap
the benefit.

Will the Commission therefore confirm that it will intervene to ensure that free competition takes place, to
the great satisfaction of sponsors, investors and, of course, sportsmen and fans? Will the Commission also
say how it will secure transparency in the decision-making of major sporting organisations?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(30 April 2002)

The Commission would remind the Honourable Member that both it in its report on sport to the Helsinki
Council (1) and the Council in its declaration annexed to the conclusions of the Nice European Council
(7-9 December 2000) (2) have stressed their support for the independence of sports organisations and their
right to organise themselves through appropriate associative structures. It is therefore the task of the sports
organisations to organise and promote their particular sports, particularly as regards the specific rules
applicable and the make-up of national teams. Naturally this task must be carried out in compliance with
national and Community legislation.

The matter raised by the Honourable Member, namely can a club play its team as professional and
subsequently as amateur during the same season, is clearly governed by the rules specific to the sport and
the need for federations to organise their sport independently. It is consequently not for the Commission
to examine the validity of the decision taken by the Danish Football Association (DBU).

(1) Report from the Commission to the European Council with a view to safeguarding current sports structures and
maintaining the social function of sport within the Community framework (cid:1) The Helsinki Report on Sport
(COM(1999) 644 final).

(2) Declaration on the specific characteristics of sport and its social function in Europe, of which account should be

taken in implementing common policies.

(2002/C 309 E/065)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0902/02

by Esko Seppänen (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(4 April 2002)

Subject: Reducing surplus appropriations

Preliminary information concerning the implementation of the EU budget for 2001 indicates that unused
appropriations (RAL (cid:1) ‘montants restant à liquider’) have again increased significantly. What is the latest
information on the subject, and how will the Commission act more effectively to reduce them radically,

C 309 E/58

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

12.12.2002

rather than merely waiting for the rule to come into operation whereby they lapse after a certain period?
Can the Commission estimate how the situation with regard to RAL will develop between 2002 and 2006?

Answer given by Mrs Schreyer on behalf of the Commission

(15 May 2002)

The total amount of outstanding commitments (RAL for differentiated appropriations) has indeed increased
substantially during 2001 (cid:1) from EUR 65,6 billion in the beginning of the year to EUR 86,8 billion at the
end of the year, i.e., by EUR 21,2 billion (preliminary figures).

The main reason for this increase is the new system with ‘automatic’ commitments for the Structural Funds
since 2000. At the beginning of each year, the entire amount of the annual programme allocations for the
Structural Funds is directly entered into the accounts as commitments. These commitments are then
consumed by advance payments and reimbursements of costs occurred by the Member States in
the volume of
implementing the Structural Funds’ programmes. Both in 2000 and in 2001,
reimbursements was quite modest, as Member States have so far presented only a limited number of
such claims. Accordingly, the RAL for the Structural Funds increased in 2001 from EUR 32,9 billion to
EUR 50,2 billion, i.e., with EUR 17,3 billion. This explains more than 80 % of the total increase in the RAL.

The other reasons for an increase in the RAL relate mainly to the Cohesion Fund (+ EUR 1,1 billion),
Internal Policies (+ EUR 1,0 billion) and the Pre-accession Aid (+ EUR 1,8 billion). The latter is mainly due
to the start up phase of the new ISPA and Special Accession Programme for Agriculture and Rural
Development (Sapard) programmes. For external actions, the volume of RAL did not increase during 2001,
and that for the first time.

In accordance with the Joint Declaration of November 2001, as part of the 2002 budget procedure, the
Commission will particularly focus on managing the RAL that is more than five years old and/or without
payments in the last two years. A part of this potentially abnormal RAL is unjustified, and should be
de-committed, thus reducing the overall outstanding RAL. The Commission will establish an action plan in
order to examine some 16 000 commitments, which add up to EUR 11,7 billion. The Commission will
provide the first report to the Budget Authority in June 2002, to be followed up by regular progress
reports, on a number of selected budget lines, as specified by the Budget Authority.

implementation of

For the period until 2006, the evolution of the RAL will depend decisively on the pace of the Member
States’
for this.
It
Nevertheless, the Commission is improving the annual forecasting in co-operation with the Member States,
aiming at more realistic budgeting. The Structural Funds’ new regulations with a system of ‘automatic’
de-commitments in cases where Member States have not made use of their programme allocations within
a time-limit will also stabilise the RAL for the Structural Funds.

is still premature to provide a forecast

the Structural Funds.

(2002/C 309 E/066)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0916/02

by Emmanouil Bakopoulos (GUE/NGL) to the Council

(5 April 2002)

Subject: Reform of the Council

At the Barcelona summit the leaders of the 15 Member States decided, on the basis of proposals made by
the Secretary-General of the Council, Mr Solana, that a team of special representatives of the leaders of the
Member States would draw up a document on the forthcoming reforms of the Council.

Will the Council state the purpose of this document which will be drawn up by the team of special
representatives of the Member States and say what relation there is between this document and the
European Assembly?