5.2.2016   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 45/169

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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 Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 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 36 thereof,

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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 (2),

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having regard to its resolution of 6 February 2013 on the guidelines for the 2014 budget procedure — Sections I, II, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX and X (3),

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having regard to the Secretary-General's report to the Bureau on drawing up Parliament's preliminary draft estimates for the financial year 2014,

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having regard to the preliminary draft estimates drawn up by the Bureau on 11 March 2013 pursuant to Rules 23(7) and 79(1) of Parliament's Rules of Procedure,

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having regard to the draft estimates drawn up by the Committee on Budgets pursuant to Rule 79(2) of Parliament's Rules of Procedure,

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having regard to Rule 79 of its Rules of Procedure,

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having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A7-0112/2013),

A.

whereas if an agreement on the regulation laying down the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) is not reached by the end of this year, Article 312(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union foresees the application of the ceilings of the last year of the current MFF and Article 30 of the current Interinstitutional Agreement on budgetary discipline and sound financial management foresees a prolongation of the 2013 ceilings, adjusted with a 2 % fixed deflator a year, until a new MFF is adopted;

B.

whereas the budget of the European Parliament does not only contain administrative expenditure but also expenditure for pensions;

C.

whereas in the context of continuing economic and financial difficulties, as reflected in the austerity measures taken by many Member States in response to the debt crisis, Parliament should continue to exercise a high degree of budgetary responsibility, control and self-restraint; whereas, at the same time, Parliament must strike a delicate balance between budgetary rigour and structural savings, on one hand, and a concerted drive for efficiency on the other hand;

D.

whereas certain investments strengthen the institutional role of Parliament and improve the sustainability of the budget in the long-term, they should be considered, despite tight margins for manoeuvre;

E.

whereas it is particularly important that the Committee on Budgets and the Bureau continue enhanced cooperation throughout the annual budget procedure under Rules 23 and 79 of Parliament’s Rules of Procedure;

F.

whereas the prerogatives of the plenary in adopting the estimates and the final budget will be fully maintained in accordance with the Treaty and the Rules of Procedure;

G.

whereas pre-conciliation and conciliation meetings between delegations of the Bureau and of the Committee on Budgets took place on 5 March and 13 March 2013;

1.

Welcomes the cooperation between the Bureau and the Committee on Budgets during the current budget procedure and the agreement reached in the conciliation meeting of 13 March 2013;

2.

Recalls that the level of the preliminary draft estimates for the 2014 budget, as suggested by the Secretary-General in his report to the Bureau, amounts to EUR 1 813 144 206; takes into account the rate of increase of 3,58 % compared with the 2013 budget; stresses that this proposed increase consists of legal obligations, specifically an increase of 2,20 %, stems from the exceptional one-year additional expenses of electing a new Parliament and becoming a truly independent democratic institution by applying its own Statutes for Members and their assistants, and an increase of 1,30 % deriving from other legal obligations; welcomes the plans of the Joint Bureau and Committee on Budgets Working Group to investigate structural reforms in Parliament's budget and expects this work to present options for savings in the 2014 budget by September 2013, without jeopardising legislative excellence or the quality of working conditions;

3.

Emphasises the fact that the financial implications of the European elections and the turnover of Members and their assistants during the changeover between legislative terms are of an exceptional nature and recognises the efforts already made to accommodate those one-off costs within the budget; regrets that those additional costs must be borne in one single budget year and asks the Secretary General to identify a way of ensuring that those costs are spread over the lifetime of the parliamentary term in future; believes, however, that further efforts must be made to implement further changes, savings and structural reforms, including using the possibilities of the Financial Regulation, with the ambition of keeping the budget increase closer to the rate of inflation;

4.

Notes that in 2014, all costs relating to the accession of Croatia will need to be met over a full financial year; notes that estimated direct costs may total EUR 13,6 million, including support for the integration of Croatia into the Union;

5.

Appreciates the fact that all other expenditure is reduced in total by 0,15 %, according to preliminary draft estimates, compared with the 2013 budget; welcomes the fact that reductions were made possible by structural savings introduced in the past, the different nature of parliamentary activity in an election year and the freezing of expenditure items, where possible;

6.

Welcomes the efforts made by the Bureau to present realistic preliminary draft estimates; appreciates that the rate of increase in the 2014 budget, as proposed by preliminary draft estimates, is particularly low when compared with the corresponding period under the previous MFF (2007-2013) when the rate was lower only in the 2012 and 2013 financial years; notes that the 2014 rate would be the lowest by some margin (1,38 %) if the additional expenditure linked to the election of a new Parliament was to be factored out;

7.

Stresses that pursuant to the agreement reached by the Bureau and the Committee on Budgets at the Conciliation meeting of 13 March 2013, the overall level of the draft estimates for 2014 is set at EUR 1 808 144 206 (corresponding to a rate of net increase of 3,29 % over the 2013 budget), of which some 2,20 % accounts for compulsory expenditure linked to the election of a new Parliament, 1,30 % accounts for other legal obligations, 0,78 % accounts for the accession of Croatia while inflation accounts for some 1,9 % (4) of the increase, resulting in the real decrease of Parliament's budget of 2,89 % from the 2013 level; calls, however, for further savings and redeployments via structural reforms to be sought during the Parliament's reading in autumn 2013 in the course of the 2014 budgetary procedure and in the following years; recalls, in that regard, the measures identified by the Joint Bureau and Committee on Budgets Working Group to be further explored in order to generate substantial organisational savings, such as the scope for inter-institutional cooperation arrangements between Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions;

8.

Welcomes the two-step procedure in spring and autumn in the 2014 budget of Parliament pursuant to the agreement reached in the conciliation meeting on 13 March 2013 between the Bureau and the Committee on Budgets; supports the first step, which consists of reductions and savings on the preliminary draft estimates for the financial year 2014 in the following areas and for the following amounts: ‘energy consumption’ (EUR -0,5 million, Item 2024), ‘Official Journal’ (EUR - 1 million, Item 3240), ‘parliamentary assistance’ (EUR - 1 million, Article 422), ‘European Parliament carbon offsetting scheme’ (EUR -0,25 million, Article 239),‘fitting-out of premises’ (EUR -1,25 million, Item 2007) and ‘contingency reserve’ (EUR - 1 million, Chapter 101);

9.

Proposes to analyse the possibility of moving the article ‘Pensions’ (article 103) and the transitional allowances for Members out of the sub-ceiling of administrative expenditure during the 2014 annual budgetary procedure;

10.

Takes into consideration the initial conclusions of the Joint Bureau and Committee on Budgets Working Group on the Parliament budget to pursue structural and organisational reforms that aim to achieve greater efficiencies without endangering legislative excellence and the quality of working conditions; notes, in that regard, that the provision of independent scientific advice and the capacity to exercise scrutiny should be improved to strengthen Parliament's work as an institution vested with legislative and democratic scrutiny powers; welcomes the fact that the Joint Working Group is looking for further potential savings and efficiencies, and expects it to present its first findings in time for the preparation of Parliament's 2014 budget reading according to the two-step procedure agreed in the Conciliation;

11.

Points to the significant savings that could be achieved if Parliament were to have a single seat; recalls its resolution of 23 October 2012 in the interests of achieving a positive outcome of the MFF 2014-2020 approval procedure (5), in which Parliament urged the budgetary authority to raise this issue in the negotiations on the next MFF 2014-2020;

12.

Recalls that structural reforms such as reforms in travel policy and management, a reduced length and number of missions, the increased use of video-conferencing and reorganisation of translation and interpretation services, some of which have been in place since 2011, are estimated to allow annual savings of approximately EUR 29 million;

13.

Welcomes the proposed decreases compared with the 2013 budget in the areas of translation (-56 %) and interpreting costs (-23 %), lease payments (-60 %), web TV (-38 %) and fitting-out of premises (-31 %) and asks for detailed information proving the feasibility of those proposed cuts; reiterates that savings proposed in the translation and interpretation services cannot jeopardise the principle of multilingualism and insists that the Members' equal access to the linguistic services are ensured and that the right working conditions of the services concerned are upheld;

14.

Notes that a significant cut in expenditure related to Parliament television (Europarl TV) is already anticipated; asks for a detailed analysis of the consumer base in order to verify the effective benefit of this service; invites Parliament to realise partnerships with national broadcasting networks in order to share expenses;

15.

Welcomes plans for the communication campaign highlighting the major directions of Parliament's work in the current legislative term associated with the European elections as a part of the overall information and communication budget; requests further details about planned election-related expenditure;

16.

Notes that the process of the internalisation of the security services as part of the new global security concept will be carried on; welcomes the fact that the recruitment of the additional contract staff members will be budget-neutral since it will be offset by a reduction in appropriations for the outsourcing of security services;

17.

Considers that the Joint Bureau and Committee on Budgets Working Group on the Parliament budget could, on the basis of work it began in 2012, continue to play an important role in identifying possible structural savings and reflecting on and presenting to the Committee on Budgets ideas for further savings, more effectiveness and more efficiency; encourages the continuation of its work through the thorough examination of possible efficiencies, synergies and savings which could create space for investment into institutional development for 2014 and beyond;

18.

Requests a report on savings achieved during the implementation of the 2013 budget, in line with the call for further savings expressed in its position of 23 October 2012 on the 2013 draft general budget — all sections (6); expects such a report to be communicated to the Committee on Budgets in time to take it into account for the 2014 budgetary procedure;

19.

Emphasises the fact that institutional self-restraint has, considering the level of relevant inflation rates, resulted in a reduction of Parliament's budget in real terms; recalls that visible expressions of self-restraint include the fact that staff mission allowances have not been indexed since 2007 and the freeze on all Members' allowances at the 2011 level until the end of the current parliamentary term; welcomes, moreover, the plan to freeze all Members' allowances until the end of 2014; requests, after the adoption of the revised Staff Regulations, a roadmap for its implementation to be presented to the Committee on Budgets;

20.

Recalls the structural savings made in all travel-related budget lines in 2013; stresses that in terms of travel arrangements, Members cannot be discriminated on the basis of their home country;

21.

Believes that in the current climate of austerity, long-term investments such as Parliament's building projects need to be handled prudently and transparently; insists on strict cost management, project planning and supervision; reiterates its call for a transparent decision-making process in the field of buildings policy, based on early information; recalls Parliament's request in its resolution of 16 February 2012 on the guidelines for the 2013 budget procedure (7) for precise information on the progress in buildings projects and its financial implication to be provided every six months and the Parliament's statement that no new unforeseen building projects should be undertaken until the end of the current legislature;

22.

Is aware that the KAD project is a significant undertaking for Parliament which aims to rationalise Parliament's administration in Luxembourg to obtain synergies; recognises the efforts to communicate the state-of-play of the KAD building to the Committee on Budgets and requests that this communication continues throughout the duration of the project; notes that adaptations and downsizing have been achieved, following the requests of the Committee on Budgets, and therefore welcomes the fact that, following the second Call for Tender, the KAD project will most likely remain under and, in any case, not exceed the predetermined financial framework; notes that due to construction of the KAD building, the total payments per year in future would be lower than rent expenses of comparable property;

23.

Takes note of the fact that the opening of the European House of History is foreseen for 2015; appreciates the updated information on the state-of-play of the project from the Secretary-General and the Bureau; reinforces its view that the final cost outturn must not exceed the figures set out in its business plan; expects an update on the possible co-financing agreement with the Commission;

24.

Adopts the estimates for the financial year 2014;

25.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution and the estimates to the Council and the Commission.