Resolution (EU) 2018/1350 of the European Parliament of 18 April 2018 with observations forming an integral part of the decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training for the financial year 2016
Date: 2018-04-18
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: Cedefop, budgetary discharge, financial year, general budget (EU)








L_2018248EN.01017901.xml










3.10.2018   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


L 248/179








            RESOLUTION (EU) 2018/1350 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
         
of 18 April 2018
         
with observations forming an integral part of the decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training for the financial year 2016


THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,






—


having regard to its decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training for the financial year 2016,










—


having regard to Rule 94 of and Annex IV to its Rules of Procedure,










—


having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinion of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (A8-0068/2018),










A.


whereas in the context of the discharge procedure, the discharge authority wishes to stress the particular importance of further strengthening the democratic legitimacy of the Union institutions by improving transparency and accountability, and implementing the concept of performance-based budgeting and good governance of human resources;










B.


whereas, according to its statement of revenue and expenditure (1), the final budget of the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (the ‘Centre’) for the financial year 2016 was EUR 18 019 949, representing a decrease of 1,83 % compared to 2015; whereas the Centre’s budget derives mainly from the Union budget;










C.


whereas the Court of Auditors (the ‘Court’), in its report on the Centre’s annual accounts for the financial year 2016 (the ‘Court’s report’), states that it has obtained reasonable assurances that the Centre’s annual accounts are reliable and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular;






Follow-up of 2015 discharge









1.


Notes with satisfaction that the Court’s comment on the building, repair work, structural strengthening and various safety issues is now marked as ‘completed’;





Budget and financial management









2.


Notes with satisfaction that the budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2016 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 99,99 %, representing an increase of 1,43 % compared to the previous year; furthermore welcomes that the payment appropriations execution rate was at 94,55 %, representing a significant increase of 11,55 % compared to the previous year;





Commitments and carry-overs









3.


Notes that the Centre was able to utilise additional savings resulting from the downward adjustment in the salary weighting factor from 79,9 % to 79,3 %; notes with satisfaction that the Centre transferred the ensuing savings in personnel costs to operational activities and successfully managed to commit them before the year end;












4.


Notes that carry-overs may often be partly or fully justified by the multiannual nature of the Centre’s operational programmes, do not necessarily indicate weaknesses in budget planning and implementation and are not always at odds with the budgetary principle of annularity, in particular if they are planned in advance by the Centre and communicated to the Court;





Transfer









5.


Notes that the Centre made transfers in 2016, totalling EUR 309 187 from Title I (staff expenditure) and Title II (administrative expenditure) to Title III (operational expenditure); notes with satisfaction that the level and nature of transfers in 2016 remained within the limits of the financial rules;





Procurement









6.


Notes that the Centre processed 46 procurement procedures in 2016, of which 46 % were open procedures, 48 % were negotiated procedures and 6 % were restricted procedures;





Staff policy









7.


Notes that on 31 December 2016 the occupation rate of the establishment plan was 98 %, namely 92 posts filled in the establishment plan which had 94 authorised posts;












8.


Notes with appreciation the fact that the Centre remained committed to supporting equal opportunities in recruitment and employment; notes that there was a gender balance of 60 % female to 40 % male staff, which could be improved; welcomes the fact, however, that women are well represented at all grades, including at management level, which is noteworthy for not always being the case;












9.


Stresses that work-life balance should be part of the Centre’s staff policy; notes that the budget spent on well-being activities amounts to approximately EUR 46 000, corresponding to 0,5 day per staff; calls on the Centre to provide a more thorough breakdown of those expenses to the discharge authority; observes that the average number of sick leave is 7,9 days per staff;












10.


Recalls that the Centre adopted a decision concerning the psychological and sexual harassment in November 2011; calls on the Centre to support the organisation of training and information sessions to increase the awareness of the staff;












11.


Notes with satisfaction that the Centre did not receive any complaints, law-suits or reported cases linked to hiring or dismissal of staff in 2016;





Prevention and management of conflicts of interests, transparency and democracy









12.


Welcome the fact that the Centre has obtained all missing declarations of conflicts of interests from newly appointed board members and that they are now published on its website;












13.


Recalls that the Centre adopted its anti-fraud strategy on 22 October 2014, together with its policy on the prevention and management of conflicts of interests; welcomes the fact that the Centre organised regular training sessions in order to raise awareness among its staff on the correct implementation of the strategy and policy;












14.


Notes that the Centre adopted guidelines on whistleblowing on 9 February 2017, which are based on the Commission’s Guidelines and which satisfy the requirements as set out in Article 22c of the Staff Regulations; notes that the Centre had no whistleblowing case in 2016;












15.


Expresses the need to establish an independent disclosure, advice and referral body with sufficient budgetary resources, in order to help whistle-blowers use the right channels to disclose their information on possible irregularities affecting the financial interests of the Union, while protecting their confidentiality and offering needed support and advice;












16.


Regrets the fact that the Centre does not make public the minutes of its management board meetings; calls on the Centre to change its policy in this regard;





Main achievements









17.


Welcomes the three main achievements identified by the Centre in 2016, namely that it:






—


released the outcome of its three-year project on the role that vocational education and training (VET) can play in addressing early leaving from education and training;










—


designed a toolkit that provides practical guidance, tips, good practices and tools drawn from VET to feed into activities and policies which help young people at risk of becoming early leavers to remain in education and training and qualify and to help early leavers to reintegrate into education or training and the labour market;










—


published an updated skills and demand forecast projecting trends in employment up to 2025;
















18.


Regrets, however, that the Centre did not use the impact indicators to monitor the success of those achievements;





Internal audit









19.


Acknowledges the fact that all recommendations stemming from the agreed action plan which resulted from the internal audit service (IAS) audit on procurement, including fraud prevention and legal advice at the Centre — carried out in 2015 — were implemented and sent for review by the end of 2016; notes that four out of five recommendations were closed and one was recommended by the IAS to be closed; notes, moreover, that the IAS carried out a risk assessment exercise at the Centre in March 2016 in order to prepare the Strategic Audit Plan for 2017 to 2019;





Performance









20.


Notes the Centre’s close cooperation with the European Training Foundation and with the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, formalised in collaboration agreements;












21.


Acknowledges the fact that the Centre actively contributed to a number of activities of the EU Agencies’ Performance Development Network, such as the revision of the Commission’s Roadmap, while sharing its experience with other Union agencies on developing key performance indicators for Union Agency Directors; notes that the Centre’s performance measurement system is an integral part of its planning and reporting processes;












22.


Notes the ongoing external evaluation of the Centre, required by the financial regulation, which started in April 2017;












23.


Refers, for other observations of a cross-cutting nature accompanying its decision on discharge, to its resolution of 18 April 2018 (2) on the performance, financial management and control of the agencies.






(1)  
            OJ. C 113, 30.3.2016, p. 1.


(2)  Texts adopted, P8_TA(2018)0133 (see page 393 of this Official Journal).