Proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument
Date: 2008-12-02
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU financial instrument, EU financing, EU programme, common foreign and security policy, credit, food price

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 2.12.2008 
COM(2008) 833 final 

Proposal for a 

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on the Mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

The  Interinstitutional  Agreement  of  17  May  20061  allows  for  the  mobilisation  of  the 
Flexibility Instrument to allow the financing of clearly identified expenditure which could not 
be  financed  within  the  limits  of  the  ceilings  available  for  one  or  more  headings  of  the 
multiannual financial framework. 

For  budget  2009,  additional  expenditure,  beyond  the  ceilings  of  heading  4  is  required.  It  is 
therefore proposed to mobilise the Flexibility Instrument in accordance with point 27 of the 
Interinsitutional Agreement.  

The amounts to be mobilised are as follows: 

–  EUR 420 million towards the financing of the facility for a rapid response to soaring food 

prices in developing countries. 

The two arms of the budgetary authority are reminded that the publication of the Decision in 
the Official Journal of the European Union shall not intervene later than the publication for 
the 2009 budget. 

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OJ C 139, 14.06.2006, p. 1 

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Proposal for a 

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on the Mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Interinstitutional  Agreement  of  17  May  2006  between  the  European 
Parliament,  the  Council  and  the  Commission  on  budgetary  discipline  and  sound  financial 
management2, and in particular the fifth paragraph of point 27 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission3, 

Whereas,  at  the  conciliation  meeting  on  21  November  2008,  the  two  arms  of  the  budgetary 
authority  agreed  to  mobilise  the  Flexibility  Instrument  to  complement  the  financing  in  the 
2009 budget, beyond the ceilings of heading 4, of EUR 420 million towards the financing of 
the facility for a rapid response to soaring food prices in developing countries. 

HAVE DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:  

Article 1 

For  the  general  budget  of  the  European  Union  for  the  financial  year  2009  (hereinafter  “the 
2009 budget”), the flexibility instrument shall be used to provide the sum of EUR 420 million 
in commitment appropriations. 

That amount shall be used to complement the financing of the facility for a rapid response to 
soaring food prices in developing countries in heading 4. 

Article 2 

This decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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OJ C 139, 14.06.2006, p. 1. 
OJ […] 

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