L 258/162
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
5.10.2022
80.
Welcomes that following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the Union on 31 January 2020, the EEAS finally established an EU delegation in London and a UK division within its HQ structure; regrets however the delay in the granting of diplomatic status to Parliament staff working at the Liaison Office in London, and the initial refusal of the EEAS to bring this issue to a satisfactory conclusion; understands that the Establishment Agreement replaces any temporary provisions and ensures that the delegation in London, its members of staff and property, enjoy privileges and immunities equivalent to those referred to in the Vienna Convention in a similar way as the other 144 delegations and offices; regrets that the EEAS negotiated the draft establishment agreement with the UK authorities without consulting Parliament; stresses that sending regular updates to Parliament rather than properly consulting Parliament does not meet the EEAS’ obligation of ‘appropriate support and cooperation’ as laid down in Article 3(4) of the Decision establishing the EEAS; notes that by the end of 2020, almost 40 posts (including expatriate and local staff) were filled out of the 43 posts available in total; is aware that the delegation is located in the building, property of the Union, used in the past by the Representation of the Commission and the European Parliament Liaison Office (EPLO);
81.
Welcomes the cooperation in 2020 between the EEAS and the Parliament to successfully update the 2015 ‘Practical arrangement for sharing specific political reports from EU Delegations with designated Members of the European Parliament’, which will allow the electronic transmission of documents;
82.
Regrets past situations of leakage to the press of confidential reports on election observation missions and welcomes the solutions found between Parliament and the EEAS with regard to the transmission of files; expresses confidence that the EEAS will keep facilitating the regular exchange of views between the Chief Observers and Deputy Chief Observers and the MEPs, before, during and after an election observation mission;
83.
Welcomes that in 2020 the EEAS concluded a service level agreement (SLA) with the European Investment Bank for the colocation of its members of staff within the premises of delegations worldwide; is aware that further SLAs were negotiated in 2020 with both the European Central Bank and the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) to share office space and related services;
84.
Commends the intense coordination and exchanges held throughout the COVID-19 pandemic with the human resource departments of the Member States’ Ministries of Foreign Affairs and of the United Nations, in order to share views and best practices on special working arrangements, and also commends the EEAS’ participation in weekly interinstitutional meetings where all Union institutions and agencies regularly updated their measures and shared the practices implemented as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic;
COVID-19 pandemic
85.
Understands that the COVID-19 pandemic led to a special situation for the entire EEAS and impacted heavily on the operations of its HQ and delegations; stresses that the EEAS was able to ensure business continuity and sound financial management of its operations without experiencing any significant issues during that particular period; welcomes that in early March 2020, the EEAS established a Core Crisis Team (CCT) in charge of assessing the latest developments, coordinating communication and actions, and supporting delegations; highlights that the CCT were essential to effectively managing the crisis;
86.
Notes that, for the adoption of COVID-19 measures, the EEAS mainly aligned with the official guidance from Belgium for its HQ, whilst the delegations were instructed to follow the applicable rules of the host countries, but also followed HQ’s practice of generalised teleworking in the place of employment, combined with a reduced physical presence on premises;
87.
Supports the additional measures that were implemented in a number of countries to reduce the medical risks posed to members of staff because the health care systems were deemed fragile; highlights that the EEAS shipped vaccines to the 72 delegations asking for support, which were provided to around 4 000 people, including expatriate staff in delegations, their family members and to local agents; points out that all members of staff in HQ were provided with a corporate laptop and that over 5 000 were dispatched to the delegations, together with PPE and medical supplies