Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-04-24-Speech-2-054"
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"en.20070424.4.2-054"2
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".
Madam President, honourable Members, I just have some brief comments to make.
First of all, thank you all for your comments. Concerning some smaller issues, such as the secondment of agents, we will investigate or study the case raised about gender mainstreaming. A pilot study is under way and it is difficult to collect information about policies linked to gender issues.
I would also like to stress that interinstitutional dialogue concerning the agencies is extremely valuable, if Parliament is in favour of this idea. The Commission proposed an interinstitutional agreement concerning agencies in 2005 and this was blocked in the Council. Now, during the German Presidency, you have tried to revitalise interest in this agreement. This is vital if we are to really straighten out this issue.
As regards some small details, one Member asked about the size of the losses from the European budget. I just want to repeat that, in exact accounting terms, the losses are those amounts of money which are written off from our balance sheet. In the year 2005, the amount was EUR 90 805 147.47, which is 0.09% of our budget. This is the exact figure corresponding to the definition of losses.
Also, I must say to Mr Seppänen that the accounts for 2006 have already been signed by our chief accounting officer. Those agencies are an important issue. Secondly, national declarations were the main issue on which many participants touched, saying that there are problems with the shared management of EU funds. The wording from the interinstitutional agreement was included in the revised Financial Regulation. Article 53b says that Member States should produce an annual summary at the appropriate national level of the available audits and declarations. It has been agreed with the Council that on 15 February 2008 a summary of audits in agriculture will be made available. The technical aspects of doing this in other areas, in particular in relation to the structural funds, are still under discussion, but there will definitely be firm results.
The Commission raised this issue on 27 March in ECOFIN and yesterday it was discussed in the Council’s Financial Committee. We have been in contact with the German Presidency and the German Ministry of Finance with a view to discussing again in June how we can reach a definite outcome on the issue of shared management. The main problem here, visible throughout all these discussions, is that this must be done in such a way as to provide evidence for the Court of Auditors. A great deal of tension could arise if the Court of Auditors says, ‘You can provide us with your national declaration but this does not mean anything. We will still make our checks and audits and evaluate the situation’. There must be a workable solution.
From the beginning, the Commission has supported the idea of shared management. We are working with national audit institutions to involve them in this process, but there must also be clear evidence for the Court of Auditors. It is going ahead. Five countries have already declared their readiness to issue national declarations. When I compare the Council meetings I attended at the beginning of this Commission with the situation today, which is completely different, I see a great step forward.
I would like to make one last point on an issue raised by some Members. Yes, there will be an intergovernmental conference. As we understand it, quite intensive preparations are being made for this intergovernmental conference. This is a situation where we can also have some input concerning this issue of discharge, perhaps from the angle Mr Elles referred to, or in terms of the wording of the statement of assurance. In any case, something can be done. If Parliament also expresses its great interest in these possible amendments, it will definitely help to prepare the way for a positive statement of assurance."@en1
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