16.3.2018   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 101/179

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having regard to Article 314 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

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having regard to Article 106a of the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community,

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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 Article 41 thereof,

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having regard to the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2016, as definitively adopted on 25 November 2015 (2),

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having regard to Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 of 2 December 2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2014-2020 (3),

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having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 2 December 2013 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management (4),

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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 (5),

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having regard to Draft amending budget No 2/2016, which the Commission adopted on 15 April 2016 (COM(2016)0227),

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having regard to the position on Draft amending budget No 2/2016 which the Council adopted on 17 June 2016 and forwarded to Parliament on the same day (09586/2016 — C8-0225/2016),

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having regard to Rules 88 and 91 of its Rules of Procedure,

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having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A8-0212/2016),

A.

whereas Draft amending budget No 2/2016 aims to enter in the 2016 budget the surplus from the 2015 financial year, amounting to EUR 1 349 million;

B.

whereas the main components of that surplus are a positive outturn on income of EUR 980 million, an under-spending in expenditure of EUR 187 million, and exchange rate differences amounting to EUR 182 million;

C.

whereas on the revenue side, the two main components are interest on late payments and fines (EUR 180 million) and a positive outturn on own resources (EUR 1 071 million), from which a negative outturn on surpluses, balances and adjustments is deducted (-EUR 537 million);

D.

whereas on the expenditure side, the under-implementation for Section III is relatively low with EUR 78 million for 2015 and EUR 14 million for 2014 carryovers, while it amounts to EUR 94 million for the other institutions;

E.

whereas the high rate of implementation in Section III underlines the pressure on payment appropriations which still represented a key challenge in 2015 and which is expected to reappear in the last years of the current Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF);

1.

Takes note of Draft amending budget No 2/2016, as submitted by the Commission, which is devoted solely to the budgeting of the 2015 surplus, for an amount of EUR 1 349 million, in accordance with Article 18 of the Financial Regulation, and of the Council's position on that Draft amending budget;

2.

Observes that the adoption of Draft amending budget No 2/2016 will reduce the share of GNI contributions from Member States to the Union budget in 2016 by EUR 1 349 million; urges, once again, the Member States to use the opportunity of such a reflow to honour their pledges in relation to the refugee crisis and to match the Union contribution to the two dedicated Union Trust Funds; notes with concern that in spring 2016 Member States only contributed EUR 82 million to the Africa Trust Fund and EUR 69 million to the Madad Trust Fund on the Syrian crisis, while the Union's contributions stand at EUR 1,8 billion and more than EUR 500 million respectively;

3.

Insists that, instead of adjusting the GNI contribution, the Union budget should be enabled to reuse any surplus resulting from under-implementation of appropriations or from fines imposed on companies for breaching Union competition law in order to deal with its financing needs, especially in the context of payment shortages; expects this matter to be settled as part of the revision of the MFF;

4.

Approves the Council position on Draft amending budget No 2/2016;

5.

Instructs its President to declare that Amending budget No 2/2016 has been definitively adopted and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;

6.

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