OPINION OF THE COMMISSION  pursuant to Article 294, paragraph 7, point (c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, on the European Parliament's amendments  to the Council's position regarding the  proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT  AND OF THE COUNCIL  amending regulation (EC) n° 1889/2006 on establishing a financing instrument for the promotion of democracy and human rights worldwide
Date: 2011-04-01
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU aid, EU financial instrument, cooperation policy, democratisation, human rights

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 1.4.2011 
COM(2011) 170 final 

2009/0060/B (COD) 

OPINION OF THE COMMISSION 

pursuant to Article 294, paragraph 7, point (c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the 
European Union, 
on the European Parliament's amendments  
to the Council's position regarding the  
proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT  
AND OF THE COUNCIL 

amending regulation (EC) n° 1889/2006 on establishing a financing instrument for the 
promotion of democracy and human rights worldwide 

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   EN 

 
 
 
 
2009/0060/B (COD) 

OPINION OF THE COMMISSION 

pursuant to Article 294, paragraph 7, point (c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the 
European Union, 
on the European Parliament's amendments 
to the Council's position regarding the  
proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT  
AND OF THE COUNCIL 

amending regulation (EC) n° 1889/2006 on establishing a financing instrument for the 
promotion of democracy and human rights worldwide 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

Article 294 (7) (c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union provides 
that  the  Commission  is  to  deliver  an  opinion  on  the  amendments  proposed  by  the 
European Parliament at second reading. The Commission sets out its opinion below 
on the amendments proposed by the Parliament.  

2. 

BACKGROUND 

Date on which the proposal was sent to Parliament and Council: 21 April 2009 

Doc COM (2009) 194 final 2-2009/0060B (COD) corrigendum 30 November 2009, 
amended 01 December 2009 (entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty) 

Date of Parliament's opinion at first reading: 21 October 2010 

Date on which the amended proposal was sent to Parliament and Council: none 

Date of political agreement on the Council position: none  

Date of formal adoption of the Council position: 10 December 2010 

Date of Parliament's opinion at second reading: 3 February 2011 

3. 

PURPOSE OF THE PROPOSAL 

instruments  external  actions  contain  a  slight 
The  various  Union  financial 
inconsistency  regarding  exceptions  to  the  principle  of  non-eligibility  for  Union 
financing of costs related to taxes, duties and other charges. 

Regulation  No  1905/2006  establishing  a  financing  instrument  for  development 
cooperation (DCI) and Regulation No 1889/2006 establishing a financing instrument 

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for  the  promotion  of  democracy  and  human  rights  worldwide  (EIDHR)  do  not 
provide for some flexibility as regards the non-eligibility of such costs for funding. 
The  other  instruments  lay  down  that  EU  support  may  not  be  used  to  finance  these 
costs “in principle”: they therefore allow for flexibility on a case-by-case basis, and 
the  authorising  officer  responsible  may,  where  appropriate,  decide  to  accept 
eligibility in the interests of sound financial management and proper implementation 
of  programmes  and  projects.  Indeed,  it  is  essential  to  preserve  flexibility  where  a 
deadlock  risks  to  occur  because  exemption  mechanisms  are  absent  or  impractical 
(owing,  for  example,  to  the  extreme  complexity  of  procedures  in  the  beneficiary 
country, or in the case of regional projects). 

Therefore  the  Commission,  in  the  framework  of  the  Mid  Term  Review  of  the 
financial  instruments  for  external  actions,  has  proposed  to  align  the  relevant 
provisions of the DCI and EIDHR instruments on the other instruments by adding the 
wording “in principle” to the non-eligibility of taxes, duties and other charges, thus 
signalling  the  possibility  of  exceptions,  these  being  regulated  internally  by  the 
instructions given to Authorising Officers. 

4. 

OPINION  OF  THE  COMMISSION  ON  THE  AMENDMENTS  BY  THE  EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT 

4.1 

Amendments accepted by the Commission 

The  Commission  can  accept  the  text  relating  to  the  aim  of  the  Mid  Term  review: 
(recital1; 2; 3; 4; and Article 1(5) and 2. For information these Recitals and Articles 
have already been approved by the Council in first reading 

4.2 

Amendments rejected by the Commission 

The  Commission  cannot  accept  the  Articles  relating  to  Delegated  acts  and 
Comitology issues (Recital 3a; Articles 1 (1); 1(7) (delegated acts), Articles 1 (2); 1 
(3), 1(4); 1(6) (Comitology)) 

5. 

CONCLUSION 

The  discussions  with  the  co-legislators  shall  continue  after  the  second  reading,  in 
order  to  work  on  a  consensual  solution  preferably  giving  EP  substantive  scrutiny 
rights for the remainder of the current Multiannual Programming Period and leaving 
options  open  for  the  next  one,  including  the  possibility  of  having  recourse  to 
delegated acts while fully respecting the criteria established in Article 290 TFEU. 

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