Report on the annual accounts of the European Police College for the financial year 2006 together with the College's replies
Date: 2007-09-27
Institutions: European Court of Auditors
Subjects: CEPOL, European Court of Auditors, administration of the Institutions, financial control, implementation of the budget, powers of the institutions (EU), report

19.12.2007

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 309/105

on the annual accounts of the European Police College for the financial
year 2006 together with the College’s replies

REPORT

(2007/C 309/18)

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

STATEMENT OF ASSURANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

OBSERVATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Paragraph

1-2

3-6

7-11

Tables 1 to 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The College’s replies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Page

106

106

106

108

110

C 309/106

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Official Journal of the European Union

19.12.2007

INTRODUCTION

The Court has thus obtained a reasonable basis for the

6.
Statement set out below.

1.
The European Police College (hereinafter called ‘the
College’) was established by Council Decision 2000/820/JHA,
as
repealed in 2005 and replaced by Council Decision
2005/681/JHA (1). The College’s task is to function as a network
and bring together the national training institutes in the Member
States to provide training sessions, based on common standards,
for senior police officers. The College became fully autonomous
in 2006.

2.
Table 1 summarises the College’s competences and activi-
ties. Key data summarised from the financial statements drawn up
by the College for the financial year 2006 is presented in Tables 2
and 3 for information purposes.

Reliability of the accounts

The College’s accounts for the financial year ended 31 Decem-
ber 2006 are, in all material respects, reliable. Nevertheless,
the Court draws attention to the observations in paragraph 9.

Legality and regularity of the underlying transactions

Except for the situation described in paragraph 11, the trans-
actions underlying the College’s annual accounts, taken as a
whole, are legal and regular.

STATEMENT OF ASSURANCE

3.
This Statement is addressed to the European Parliament
and the Council in accordance with Article 185(2) of Council
Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 (2); it
was drawn up following an examination of the College’s accounts,
as required by Article 248 of the Treaty establishing the European
Community.

4.
The College’s accounts for the financial year ended
31 December 2006 (3) were drawn up by its Director, pursuant
to Article 11 of Council Decision 2005/681/JHA, and sent to the
Court, which is required to give Statement of Assurance on their
reliability and on the legality and regularity of the underlying
transactions.

OBSERVATIONS

7.
In 2006 the College did not establish the necessary sys-
tems and procedures to enable it to prepare a financial report in
compliance with the requirements of the framework Financial
Regulation applicable to the Agencies.

The College’s Financial Regulation refers to the need for
8.
detailed rules for its implementation (4). The College did not yet
adopt any detailed implementing rules, including those ensuring
the transparency of the College’s procurement procedures.

9.
The College did neither implement its budget using differ-
entiated appropriations as provided for by its Financial Regula-
tion (5) nor draw up budgetary implementation statements. The
introduction of commitment appropriations would improve con-
trol over the College’s budgetary implementation and ensure that
any appropriations which were unused at the close of the finan-
cial year could be carried over under strictly defined conditions in
accordance with the Financial Regulation.

5.
The Court conducted its audit in accordance with the IFAC
and INTOSAI International Auditing Standards and Codes of Eth-
ics, insofar as these are applicable in the European Community
context. The audit was planned and performed to obtain reason-
able assurance that the accounts are reliable and that the under-
lying transactions are legal and regular.

As regards the courses and seminars (1 296 636 euro in
10.
2006), although information relating to the events was made
available, there was no formal submission and approval of cost
estimates prior to the events taking place. Budget appropriations
were not used in accordance with the principle of sound finan-
cial management (6).

(1) OJ L 256, 1.10.2005, p. 63.
(2) OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.
(3) These accounts were drawn up on 28 March 2007 and received by the

Court on 6 July 2007.

(4) For example, in Article 10(3), Article 34 and Article 74.
(5) Article 8 of the College’s Financial Regulation.
(6) Article 25 of the College’s Financial Regulation.

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Official Journal of the European Union

C 309/107

The system of procurement did not comply with the pro-
11.
visions of the Financial Regulation. There was no documentation
available to justify the need to purchase particular items and
to explain the recourse to a particular supplier. A similar

issue arose with removal costs for staff, which were not dealt with
following standard procurement procedures for the acquisition of
goods and services.

This report was adopted by the Court of Auditors in Luxembourg at
27 September 2007.

its meeting of

For the Court of Auditors
Hubert WEBER
President

Table 1

European Police College (Bramshill)

Areas of Community
Competence deriving from
the Treaty

Competences of the College as defined in Council Decision 2005/681/JHA

Governance

Resources made available
to the College in 2006

Main products and services
supplied in 2006

Approximation of laws

Objectives

Tasks

1. Governing Board

Final budget

No information provided.

Treaty on European Union,
in particular Article 30(1)
and Article 34(2) thereof.

The aim of CEPOL shall be to
help train the senior police
officers of the Member States
by optimising cooperation
between CEPOL’s
various
components. It shall support
and develop a European
approach to the main prob-
lems facing Member States in
the fight against crime, crime
prevention and the mainte-
nance of law and order and
public security, in particular
the cross-border dimensions
of those problems.

(1) To increase knowledge of
the
national police systems and structures
of other Member States and of cross-
border police cooperation within the
European Union;

(2) To improve knowledge of inter-
national and Union instruments, par-
ticularly in the following sectors:

(a) The institutions of the European
Union, their functioning and role,
as well as the decision-making
mechanisms and legal
instru-
ments of the European Union, in
particular as regards their implica-
tions for law-enforcement coop-
eration;

(b)

Europol’s objectives, structure and
functioning, as well as ways to
maximise cooperation between
Europol
law-
enforcement services in the Mem-
ber States in the fight against
organised crime;

relevant

and

Composed of:

5 million euro

— one delegation from each Member
State. Each delegation shall have
one vote. Representatives of the
European Commission and of the
General Secretariat of the Council
of
the European Union and
Europol shall be invited to attend
meetings as non-voting observers.

2. Director

Manages the Agency, is appointed and
removed by the Governing Board.

(100 % Community subsidy)

Staff at 31 December 2006

Number of posts in the establish-
ment plan: 22,5

Posts occupied: 7

Other posts: (contract staff, sec-
onded national experts, etc.): 8

Total staff: 15.

3. External Audit

European Court of Auditors.

4.

Internal Auditors

Internal Audit services of the Commis-
sion.

(c)

Eurojust’s objectives,
and functioning;

structure

5. Discharge

(3) To provide appropriate training
with regard to respect for democratic
safeguards, with particular reference to
the rights of defence.

European Parliament following a rec-
ommendation from the Council.

Source:

Information supplied by the College.

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.

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Official Journal of the European Union

C 309/109

European Police College (Bramshill) — Economic outturn account for the financial year 2006

Table 2

Operating revenue

Community subsidies

Operating expenditure

Staff expenditure

Other administrative expenditure

Operational expenditure

Financial operations revenues (e)

Financial operations expenditure (f)

Total (a)

Total (b)

Surplus/(deficit) from operating activities (c = a – b)

Surplus/(deficit) from non-operating activities (g = e – f)

Economic result for the year (h = c + g)

European Police College (Bramshill) — Balance sheet at 31 December 2006

Table 3

Non-current assets

Tangible fixed assets

Current assets

Short-term receivables

Cash and cash equivalents

Current liabilities

Accounts payable

Net assets

Economic result for the year

Total assets

Total liabilities

Total net assets

(1 000 euro)

2006

4 352

4 352

1 460

358

2 454

4 272

80

0

12

– 12

68

(1 000 euro)

2006

37

298

3 682

4 017

3 949

3 949

68

68

Source: Data supplied by the College. This table summarises the data provided by the College in its annual accounts: these accounts are drawn

up on a accrual basis.

Total liabilities and net assets

4 017

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THE COLLEGE’S REPLIES

The College is in the process of implementing the new
7.
budget management system ABAC during 2007 and of becom-
ing compliant with the requirements of its Financial Regulation.
For 2006, the College was able to transmit to the Commission the
information necessary for the consolidation of the Community
accounts.

The Governing Board of the College, in its meeting of
10.
May 2007, has adopted a legal commitment system to be imple-
mented from the second half of 2007 onwards. The College shall
pay due attention to the principle of sound financial management
when deciding on, approving and managing the activities under
its work programme.

8.
The implementing Rules to the Financial Regulation of the
College shall be presented for adoption to the Governing Board
in its meeting of November 2007.

9.
The College is in the process of implementing ABAC. This
system shall provide the basis for achieving a rapid progress dur-
ing the financial year 2007 on the implementation of procedures
that shall allow for full compliance in the management of the Col-
lege’s budget, as defined in the Financial Regulation.

11.
The College has improved its procurement procedures
and aims at fully respecting EC public procurement directives,
rules and regulations, for instance, on the launching of large open
calls for tenders such as the e-Platform Network.