9.3.2016   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 93/406

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having regard to Article 314 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Article 106a of the Euratom Treaty,

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having regard to Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union and repealing Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 (1), and in particular to Article 41 thereof,

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having regard to the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2013, as definitively adopted on 12 December 2012 (2)

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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 management (3),

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having regard to Council Decision 2007/436/EC, Euratom of 7 June 2007 on the system of the European Communities' own resources (4),

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having regard to Draft amending budget No 4/2013, which the Commission submitted on 29 April 2013 (COM(2013)0254),

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having regard to the position on Draft amending budget No 4/2013 which the Council adopted on 15 July 2013 (11696/2013 — C7-0247/2013),

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having regard to Rule 75b and 75e of its Rules of Procedure,

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having regard to the letter of the Committee on Culture,

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having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A7-0285/2013),

A.

whereas Draft amending budget No 4/2013 aims to modify the establishment plans of the European GNSS Agency by adding 20 posts due to the new tasks entrusted to it, of the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) by adding two temporary agents and 13 contract agents due to the extension of its mandate and of the Court of Justice of the European Union by adding seven posts needed for the additional Advocates-General of the Court of Justice of the European Union,

B.

whereas the proposed reinforcements are presented as budgetary neutral since they are planned to be fully offset by corresponding reductions in the Commission's section of the budget and for the Court of Justice of the European Union by the available appropriations within its own section,

C.

whereas the recruitment of the 20 posts in question for the European GNSS Agency is a matter of urgency in order to allow the agency to prepare for its new tasks as of January 2014,

D.

whereas this Draft amending budget includes only the part of the original request of the Court of Justice of the European Union which is based on the Declaration number 38 annexed to the final act of the Intergouvernemental Conference which adopted the Lisbon Treaty, omitting the nine law clerks requested by the Court of Justice of the European Union,

E.

whereas additional law clerks could alleviate the extra burden on the Court of Justice of the European Union, due to the failure of Council until now to agree on any system for adding Judges to the General Court (despite the need for such reform not being contested); whereas such posts have indeed been included in the Draft Budget presented by the Commission for 2014;

1.

Takes note of Draft amending budget No 4/2013 as presented by the Commission and of the Council's position thereon;

2.

Notes with regard to the staff increase for the European GNSS Agency that the offsetting through reductions in Commission staff will not start immediately in 2013 but will only be fully accomplished in the course of the next MFF period;

3.

Is concerned about the misleading presentation of staff savings with regard to the Commission's establishment plan; notes that 13 contract agents and two posts are freed in Commission's direct services but are added to the EACEA establishment plan; notes that as all executive agencies are part of the Commission's administration, no removal from the Commission's budget, as presented, can be detected; is aware that staff employed within executive agencies are paid entirely by operational funds;

4.

Intends to support the additional posts for the Court of Justice of the European Union which the Commission omitted in this Draft, in the context of the annual budgetary procedure 2014;

5.

Approves the Council position on Draft amending budget No 4/2013;

6.

Instructs its President to declare that Amending budget No 4/2013 has been definitively adopted and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;

7.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.