RECOMMENDATION on the draft Council regulation amending Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014/2020

on the draft Council regulation amending Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014/2020

(05479/2015 – C8‑0047/2015 – 2015/0010(APP))

(Special legislative procedure – consent)

The European Parliament,

–       having regard to the draft Council regulation (05479/2015),

–       having regard to the request for consent submitted by the Council in accordance with Article 312 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Article 106a of Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community (C8‑0047/2015),

–       having regard to its resolution of 15 April 2014 on negotiations on the MFF 2014-2020: lessons to be learned and the way forward[1],

–       having regard to Rule 86 and Rule 99(1), first and third subparagraphs, of its Rules of Procedure,

–       having regard to the recommendation of the Committee on Budgets and the opinion of the Committee on Regional Development (A8-0125/2015),

1.      Gives its consent to the draft Council regulation amending Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 laying down the Multiannual Financial Framework for the years 2014-2020 as set out in annex to this resolution;

2.      Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

• [1]    Texts adopted, P7_TA(2014)0378.

(EU, Euratom) 2015/....

of …

amending Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014-2020

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 312 thereof,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community, and in particular Article 106a thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

Having regard to the consent of the European Parliament,

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,

Acting in accordance with a special legislative procedure,

Whereas:

(1)         Article 19 of Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013[1] provides that in the event of the adoption after 1 January 2014 of new rules or programmes under shared management for the Structural Funds, the Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund and the Internal Security Fund, the multiannual financial framework is to be revised in order to transfer to subsequent years, in excess of the corresponding expenditure ceilings, allocations not used in 2014. Pursuant to that Article, the revision concerning the transfer of unused allocations for the year 2014 shall be adopted before 1 May 2015.

(2)         As a result of such late adoption, EUR 11 216 187 326 in current prices of the allocation provided for the Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund, EUR 9 446 050 652 in current prices of the allocation provided for the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, and EUR 442 319 096 of the allocation provided for the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund and the Internal Security Fund could not be committed in 2014 nor carried over to 2015.

(3)  The Annex to Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 should therefore be revised by transferring the commitment appropriations not used in 2014 to subsequent years for sub-heading 1b, heading 2 and heading 3. For that purpose, the figures in current prices should be converted into 2011 prices.

(4)         Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

The Annex to Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 is replaced by the text set out in the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels,

                                                                                              For the Council

                                                                                              The President

ANNEX

"ANNEX

MULTIANNUAL FINANCIAL FRAMEWORK (EU-28)

"

_______________________

• [1]     Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 of 2 December 2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014-2020 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 884).

for the Committee on Budgets

on the draft Council regulation amending Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014-2020
(05479/2015 – C8‑0047/2015 – 2015/0010(APP))

Rapporteur: Victor Boștinaru

PA_Leg_Consent

SHORT JUSTIFICATION

The late adoption of the Cohesion Policy regulations for the period 2014-2020 led to the impossibility of a timely adoption of all Operational Programmes. The forecast made by the Commission resulted in being too optimistic, as by the end of 2014 only a small percentage of programmes[1] (39 % or 252 Union programmes) had been adopted. The adoption of the remaining programmes was postponed, either through the carry-over procedure set out in point (a) of Article 13(2) of the Financial Regulation, or based on a revision of the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).

Carry-over programmes (14 % or 93 Union programmes) do not require a revision of the MFF, as they were ready for adoption before the end of 2014, and were not adopted only due to a lack of time. For them, even though the adoption was postponed to early 2015, the 2014 appropriations can still be used.

All other programmes (47 % or 300 Union programmes) require - in order not to lose the 2014 appropriations - a revision of the MFF under Article 19 of the MFF Regulation, whereby 2014 allocations are transferred to following years.

Your rapporteur therefore welcomes the proposal for a Council regulation amending Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014-2020. He recommends that the Parliament give its consent, as this is an indispensable step to complete the starting process of the new Cohesion Policy programming period avoiding any negative impact for regions and cities and consequently for European citizens. The European Structural and Investment Funds are the Union's most important investment policy and it is essential that all resources are used in as timely a manner and as effectively as possible, to generate growth and jobs. The new programming period has already experienced significant delays, and it must be ensured that there are neither further delays, nor any losses.

The proposal aims to transfer almost all of the 2014 unused appropriations for heading 1b Economic, Social and Territorial Cohesion to 2015, with the exception of the contributions from the ERDF to the cross-border programmes under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) and the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI) which are transferred to 2017. Your rapporteur acknowledges the principle of equality between Member States and programmes which lies behind the proposal, but underlines the necessity for the Commission to cooperate with Member States and regions in order not only to swiftly adopt all remaining programmes, but also to carefully implement the programmes themselves, with the aim of achieving full and effective use of all resources. He therefore welcomes the statement of the Commission where it declares that it "will be an active partner in the programming process for the concerned programmes, that it will collaborate fully with the national and regional authorities, and will take all available measures with the aim of achieving the adoption of the programmes in line with the provisions of the Common Provisions Regulation as soon as possible after the adoption of the amended Council Regulation laying down the MFF for the years 2014-2020, and in any event before the end of 2015".

Concerning the transfer of the whole 2014 ERDF contribution to cross-border programmes under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) and the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI) to 2017, the rapporteur acknowledges the delays in the adoption of such programmes, and the complexity which characterises them. However, he believes that, as a matter of coherence and for the purposes of quicker implementation of the programmes, it would have been advisable to follow the same logic as for the rest of the allocations.

The proposal does not include any changes in payment appropriations, based on the assumption that the transfer of commitment appropriations from 2014 to 2015 will not bring about any particular obstacles to payments in the coming years. Your rapporteur expresses reservations in this regard, and hopes that calculations made by the services of the Commission will prove to be realistic and that the existing flexibility provisions of the MFF Regulation will be sufficient to face any increase in interim payment claims in 2017 and 2018. He stresses that the issue of a payments backlog - as already reiterated by the European Parliament on many occasions - is unsustainable and needs to be addressed once and for all, and that any additional problems with payments must be avoided by all necessary means and efforts.

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The Committee on Regional Development calls on the Committee on Budgets, as the committee responsible, to recommend that Parliament give its consent to the proposal for a Council regulation amending Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014-2020.

RESULT OF FINAL VOTE IN COMMITTEE

• [1]  This includes the European Structural and Investment Funds as well as the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund and the Internal Security Fund.