DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 7 September 2005

on the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund according to point 3 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 7 November 2002 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on the financing of the European Union Solidarity Fund supplementing the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 on budgetary discipline and improvement of the budgetary procedure

(2005/706/EC)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 7 November 2002 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on the financing of the European Union Solidarity Fund supplementing the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 on budgetary discipline and improvement of the budgetary procedure (1), and in particular point 3 thereof,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2012/2002 of 11 November 2002 establishing the European Union Solidarity Fund (2),

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas:

(1)	The European Union has created a Solidarity Fund (the Fund) to show solidarity with the population of regions struck by disasters.

(2)	Slovakia submitted an application to mobilise the Fund on 24 January 2005, following a disaster caused by a storm.

(3)	The Interinstitutional Agreement of 7 November 2002 allows mobilisation of the Fund within an annual ceiling of EUR 1 billion.

(4)	The storm disaster in Slovakia in November 2004 fulfils the criteria for mobilising the European Union Solidarity Fund,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

The European Union Solidarity Fund shall be mobilised to provide the sum of EUR 5 667 578 in commitment appropriations from the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2005.

Article 2

This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Done at Strasbourg, 7 September 2005.

For the European Parliament

The President

J. BORRELL FONTELLES

For the Council

The President

D. ALEXANDER