European Parliament resolution on the estimates of revenue and expenditure of Parliament for the financial year 2005 (2004/2007(BUD))
Date: 2004-04-22
Institutions: Committee on Budgets, European Parliament
Subjects: Community budget, European Parliament, budget estimate, financial year

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Thursday 22 April 2004

33.
Points out, in a context in which the significance of the EU as a global partner must be streng-
thened, that steps in the direction of establishing a common European diplomacy and towards the creation
of a European external action service would directly contribute to the achievement of this goal;

Intends to analyse future needs and current implementation of the common foreign and security
34.
policy, taking into account the major financial increase granted under this section for 2004; will assess the
outcome of the new joint meetings established between the Parliament and Council following the budget
conciliation meeting of November 2003 and draw the budgetary consequences;

35.
Regrets once again that the Commission has not put forward the parliamentary dimension of the
World Trade Organization (WTO) as one of its priorities in relation to external responsibility and recalls
that the Parliamentary Assembly of the WTO must be developed and made permanent; urges the Com-
mission to submit a concrete proposal to Parliament by 31 July 2004 at the latest;

Personnel and administration

Notes that the Commission plans to request 700 new enlargement-related posts for 2005; encour-
36.
ages the efforts by the Commission to use redeployment within and between departments to mobilise
additional resources; notes that, as a result of redeployment, an additional 570 posts are estimated to
become available in 2005 to implement priority initiatives;

37. Will evaluate the Commission’s request on the basis of different criteria such as availability of
candidates for recruitment, absorption capacity of the institutions, the geographical balance of posts, the
quantitative and qualitative implementation of the European Parliament’s political priorities, the process of
outsourcing and, also, within the general context of heading 5;

Asks the Commission to provide, with the PDB, a mid-term programming of decentralised agencies,
38.
executive agencies, regulatory agencies, external offices with the related impact on the headings of the
financial perspective concerned, in particular headings 3 and 5 with the consequences and the use of
freed resources for the Commission; recalls the Commission’s undertaking to ensure that policy on
agencies complies with a rigorous budgetary approach and remains subject to democratic supervision by
the political and budgetary authorities;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the Court of

39.
Auditors.

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P5_TA(2004)0370

Parliament’s preliminary estimates for 2005

European Parliament resolution on the estimates of revenue and expenditure of Parliament for the
financial year 2005 (2004/2007(BUD))

The European Parliament,

(cid:1) having regard to Article 272 of the EC Treaty,

(cid:1) having regard to the Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Finan-

cial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (1),

(cid:1) having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 between the European Parliament,
the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and improvement of the budgetary pro-
cedure (2),

(1) OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.
(2) OJ C 172, 18.6.1999, p. 1. Agreement as amended by Decision 2003/429/EC (OJ L 147, 14.6.2003, p. 25).

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(cid:1) having regard to its resolution of 26 February 2004 on the guidelines for Sections II, IV, V, VI, VII,
VIII(A) and VIII(B) and on the European Parliament’s preliminary draft estimates (Section I) for the
2005 budget procedure (1),

(cid:1) having regard to the report of the Secretary General to the Bureau concerning the preliminary draft

estimates of Parliament for the financial year 2005,

(cid:1) having regard to the preliminary draft estimates established by the Bureau on 29 March 2004, pur-

suant to Rules 22(6) and 183 of the Rules of Procedure,

(cid:1) having regard to Rule 183 of the Rules of Procedure,

(cid:1) having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A5-0236/2004),

A. whereas the ceiling in heading 5 (Administrative expenditure) has, as a result of the technical adjust-
ment, been fixed at EUR 6 185 million for the 2005 budget (2); whereas this technical adjustment
represents a EUR 94 million reduction in the ceiling of the financial perspectives of heading 5 for
2005 at 2005 prices,

B. whereas a simple extrapolation of the techical adjustment, the evolution of staff salaries and the
updated estimates of the effects of the reform of the institutions combined with the financial program-
ming as established by the third report of the Secretaries General in July 2003 would have resulted in
a negative margin of some EUR 145 million for 2005,

C. whereas the recent update to the third report by the Secretaries General on the development in head-
ing 5 foresees a negative margin of EUR 45 million in the revised administrative expenditure plans for
2005 instead of a positive margin of EUR 28,5 million as was estimated in July 2003,

D. whereas 2005 is the first full year of the enlarged Union and of the 6th legislature of the European

Parliament,

E. whereas the 2005 estimates are based on the following key parameters: full 12 months of enlarge-
ment-related expenditure with 9 new languages; 44 working weeks, of which 3 constituency weeks,
12 ordinary part-sessions and 6 additional part-sessions; a 2,7 % salary adjustment, and a 7 % standard
abatement for posts; whereas the parameters will be re-examined during the first reading of the 2005
budget in the autumn,

Political priorities

1.
Stresses the importance of satisfying the needs relating to enlargement despite the financial con-
straints in heading 5 in 2005 and to continue to improve services rendered to Members through the
implementation of the ‘Raising the Game’ initiative;

2.
Reiterates the importance of continuing to apply sound financial management and budgetary rigour
and provide value for money for the European taxpayer; underlines that the estimates for the 2005 budget,
taking into account the budgetary constraints and uncertainties, have to be based on sound assumptions
and real needs;

Underlines the need to continue the reform of its Administration by rationalising and modernising

3.
working methods, making better use of new technologies and concentrating on core activities;

General framework

4.
Is aware that several assumptions have been made by its Administration on account of the uncer-
tainties relating to the preliminary draft estimates for 2005; points out that the parameters and the under-
lying assumptions have to be re-examined during the first reading of the 2005 budget in light of the
political priorities;

(1) P5_TA(2004)0118.
(2) Calculated net of staff contributions to the pensions scheme (EUR 175 million at 2005 prices).

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5.
Notes that the preliminary draft estimates have been set at 20 % of heading 5, representing an
increase of 3,3 % over 2004 budget; reserves its final decision on the global level of Section I until the
first reading in the autumn;

6.
Points out that out of the amount of EUR 1 272 million corresponding to 20 % of heading 5, an
amount of EUR 1 007,6 million is foreseen for standard operational expenditure and EUR 173,4 million
for enlargement-related needs;

Recalls that the capital injections and accelerated repayment of buildings have produced major sav-
7.
ings in the recent years; is of the opinion that a part of the appropriations available in the budget could be
used for an advance payment for the D4 and D5 buildings; considers, however, that the final advance
payment amount can only be decided in the autumn in the context of the overall situation of Section I
and of heading 5;

Expenditure related to Members and political groups

Notes that no appropriations, on the line or in the reserve, are foreseen for a Member’s Statute, but

8.
that chapter 102 (Reserve for the Member’s Statute) is maintained with a token entry (p.m.);

9.
Reiterates its support for the adoption of a Statute for Members’ assistants; considers that the provi-
sions provided by the new staff regulations regarding the option to define assistants as contract agents
should be examined;

10.

Is of the opinion that the level of the Secretariat allowance (Article 391) should be assessed;

Multilingualism and assistance to members

Calls on its Administration to analyse the budgetary implications of the new code of conduct for
11.
controlled multilingualism and invites the Secretary-General to submit a report on this subject by 1 Sept-
ember 2004;

12. Welcomes the savings to be created by new contract terms of freelance translations of verbatim
report of proceedings of plenary sittings; considers, however, that alternative means should be examined
instead of continuing to translate all verbatim reports of proceedings (CRE) into all languages, e.g. the
possibility of translation by request; invites the Bureau, as a follow-up to the 2004 budget procedure, to
submit a report on the measures undertaken concerning the translation of the verbatim report by 1 Sept-
ember 2004;

13.
Invites its Secretary-General to submit an updated report by 1 July 2004 on the workload of the in-
house interpreters, on the use of freelance interpreters and on the interinstitutional cooperation in this
field to ensure the optimal use of resources;

14.
Considers, in view of the final report by pilot committees, that there should be clear and objective
criteria on the possible future allocation of expertise budgets for parliamentary committees; has serious
doubts regarding the generalisation of the allocation with a standard amount to all committees;

Enlargement (cid:1) related staff requests

Points out that the main part of the additional needs in view of enlargement has been covered in
15.
the 2002-2004 budgets; reiterates its view that the remaining enlargement-related staff requests also have
to be based on real needs and realistic recruitment estimations; recalls that, in the light of recent experi-
ence, several factors and uncertainties affect the recruitment forecasts, such as the delays in recruitment
procedures and problems in finding certain categories of staff;

16.
Notes that the creation of 140 new enlargement-related posts in the general secretariat has been
proposed by the Bureau, with the inclusion of the corresponding budgetary appropriations in the first
reading in order to take into account the information forthcoming on recruitment possibilities; reserves
its final decision until the first reading of the 2005 budget;

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17.
Notes the proposal to create 8 new non-enlargement related and 38 new enlargement-related tem-
porary posts in the political groups; approves these posts and the corresponding budgetary appropriations;

Recalls that, in case of an agreement being reached on the reunification of Cyprus, the need for new

18.
posts must be evaluated;

Staff policy and other (non-enlargement) staff requests

19.
Considers that the new staff promotion and career planning policy should be set up in a way which
allows for the provision of budgetary programming while respecting the legitimate and equal rights of its
staff; is of the opinion that the Administration should create a promotion policy under the new staff
regulations; invites the Secretary-General to submit a report before 1 September 2004 on the mid-term
financial impact of the income structure under the new staff regulations;

Reiterates Parliament’s priorities to ensure that the principles of equal opportunities (in particular
20.
race, gender and disabilities) are implemented in the context of all promotion and recruitment procedures;

Notes that possible proposals on upgradings will be put forward in the first reading to take into

21.
account the new staff regulations;

22.

Calls on its Administration to continue to use all possibilities available for redeployment;

Notes that 24 new permanent posts and prolongation of 10 temporary posts, as well as the creation
23.
of a director’s post (A*14/15) within DG Personnel, are requested by the Bureau for non-enlargement
related needs in the General Secretariat; approves these posts, but enters in the reserve 7 AST posts fore-
seen for the operation of a round-the-clock ‘Crisis Centre’ and for the supervision of outside staff, pending
the update on recruitment to the currently unfilled posts in the Security Division;

Interinstitutional cooperation

24.
Reiterates its support for further interinstitutional cooperation in order to improve the use of
resources and create contractual savings; invites the Secretary General to submit a report on the inter-
institutional cooperation by 1 September 2004;

Information policy

Reiterates its support for the ‘Europarl’ Internet site; considers that the Legislative Observatory

25.
should be provided with sufficient means to continue its work;

Informatics

26.
Invites the Administration to improve the DIT services available to Members and staff; calls on
improved anti-spam measures and stricter rules on the sending of in-house e-mails to the entire EP-
domain; invites the Secretary-General to submit a report by 1 September 2004 on multiannual plan on
expenditure in informatics;

Security

Calls on the Secretary-General to submit a report by 1 July 2004 on the measures taken as a

27.
follow-up to the Bureau decision of 25 February 2004;

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Miscellaneous

28.
Invites the Conference of Presidents to take into account the budgetary implications and the
opinion of the Committee on Budgets before deciding on the annual work programme of interparliamen-
tary delegations and delegations to Joint Parliamentary Committees and to respect the budgetary means
envisaged for this purpose; reiterates its position that ad hoc delegations should be authorised only in
exceptional circumstances, which could not have been foreseen when setting up the annual work pro-
gramme; considers that an annual financial reference envelope should be set for ad hoc delegations;

Requests the Secretary-General to submit a report by 1 July 2004 on the progress of the study on

29.
EMAS (Energy Management Assistance Scheme);

30.
Takes note of theOmbudsman’s decision regarding smoking in the EP premises; calls on the Secre-
tary-General to come up with new measures to comply with the remarks made by the Ombudsman, e.g. to
ensure that non-smoker areas are respected;

31.
Reiterates, once again, its request for the re-introduction of limitations to the entry into its canteens
to ensure that Members and staff can use the premises without unnecessary loss of time and in an appro-
priate environment; calls on the Secretary-General to propose appropriate measures;

32.
Notes that the Bureau is proposing to continue the pilot project on the use of taxis; recalls the
discussions in the framework of the 2004 budget and calls on the competent bodies to come up with
further proposals for a revision of the car service including monitoring and quality assessment surveys of
the users of the service following the discussions in the framework of the 2004 budget; considers that
20 % of the proposed budget for 2005 is placed in reserve pending a further report by September 2004;

33.
Calls on its Administration to encourage the use of public transport and other sustainable means of
transportation in view of the increase of Members and staff after enlargement; invites its Secretary-General
to present to the Committee on Budgets innovative proposals for incentives for the use of public transport
together with the possible budgetary implications and to report on the introduction of service bicycles
authorised in the 2004 budget;

34.
Stresses that subsidies granted from Parliament’s budget to the association of former Members (Item
3600) and to the European Parliamentary Association (Item 3601) must comply with the provisions of the
Financial Regulation; considers that financial support should be dependent on the submission of detailed
information on the planned activities; has decided, at this stage, to enter an amount of EUR 100 000
against Item 3600 (‘Cost of meetings and other activities of former Members’) in reserve, pending the
submission of the following documents: a programme of planned activities and a financial plan for the
financial year 2005, proof of paid membership fees during the financial year 2004, as well as a balance
sheet and an annual report for the financial year 2003;

35.
Is determined, as the driving force behind the movement to set up a WTO Parliamentary Assembly,
to ensure that sufficient appropriations become available to provide for the adequate participation, with
the necessary infrastructure, of its delegations in all meetings of or leading up to such an assembly;

Authorises the amendments proposed in Annex V of the Secretary-General’s report on the 2005

36.
preliminary draft estimates concerning the nomenclature of Section I;

37.

Reserves its position on the total amount for Section I until Parliament’s first reading;

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38.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission.