Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-04-01-Speech-3-169"
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"en.20090401.15.3-169"2
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"The Structural Funds are also helping us to come to terms with the new economic reality. They enable Member States to optimise EU investments as an effective remedy against the ongoing economic crisis.
The European Parliament, through the Committee on Regional Development, is constantly calling for greater simplification of administrative rules. I am delighted that the Commission finally took note and that it has found common ground with the Council.
Costly administration, delayed payments and complicated verification of the eligibility of payments are creating financial difficulties for final recipients. Many officials in my own country, Slovakia, frequently blame Brussels for placing enormous emphasis on bureaucracy and checking accounts to the nth degree. They forget that the important issue is to choose the correct activity, project content and quality, efficient implementation and project benefits.
People in the project teams must concentrate on high quality projects which bring benefits in terms of creating a competitive environment, and not to sit for hours at a time in accounts offices wasting precious time and energy, not to mention the mountains of paperwork required for statements. Checking negligible items often costs much more than the items themselves are worth.
I therefore agree with expanding the use of one-off sums and across-the-board rates in European Regional Development Fund regulations and introducing three new forms of eligible payments: indirect costs of up to 20% of the level of direct costs, one-off sums of up to EUR 50,000 and across-the-board standard scales for individual costs.
For this reason I consider the package of decisions adopted by the European Commission with the aim of boosting flexibility in drawdowns from the Structural Funds by Member States to be a positive response to the ongoing economic crisis.
I believe that simplification of the rules and flexible financing will help Member States to prepare good projects targeted on sectors that will bring a high return. We must direct investments towards energy efficiency and renewable energy in the area of housing, with the aim of creating new jobs and saving energy. By supporting clean technologies we can contribute to the recovery of both the automobile and construction industries."@en1
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