title: 2012/792/EU: Council Decision of 6 December 2012 on the conclusion of the Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Brazil pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994, and of the Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Thailand pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994#Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Brazil pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994#Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Thailand pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994

text:
               20.12.2012

               EN

               Official Journal of the European Union

               L 351/47

         COUNCIL DECISION
   of 6 December 2012
   on the conclusion of the Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Brazil pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994, and of the Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Thailand pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994
   (2012/792/EU)
   THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
   Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular the first subparagraph of Article 207(4) in conjunction with Article 218(6)(a)(v) thereof,
   Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,
   Having regard to the consent of the European Parliament,
   Whereas:

               (1)

               On 25 May 2009 the Council authorised the Commission to open negotiations under Article XXVIII of the GATT 1994 with a view to the renegotiation of concessions on poultry meat tariff lines under Chapter 16 of the Combined Nomenclature as provided for in Article 1 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff (1) (‘CN’).

               (2)

               Those negotiations resulted in Agreements in the form of exchanges of letters initialled with Thailand on 22 November 2011 and with Brazil on 7 December 2011 (hereinafter ‘the Agreements’).

               (3)

               In accordance with Council Decision 2012/231/EU of 23 April 2012 (2) the Agreements were signed on behalf of the Union on 26 June 2012 with Brazil and on 18 June 2012 with Thailand.

               (4)

               The Agreements should be approved,

         HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
   Article 1
   The Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Brazil pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994, and the Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Thailand pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994 are hereby approved on behalf of the Union.
   The texts of the Agreements are attached to this Decision.
   Article 2
   The President of the Council shall, on behalf of the Union, give the notifications provided for in the Agreements.
   Article 3
   This Decision shall enter into force on the day following that of its adoption

      Done at Brussels, 6 December 2012.

            For the Council

            The President

         S. CHARALAMBOUS

      (1)  OJ L 256, 7.9.1987, p. 1.

      (2)  OJ L 117, 1.5.2012, p. 1.

      AGREEMENT
      in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Brazil pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994
      Geneva, 26 June 2012
      Sir,
      Following negotiations under Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994, relating to the modification of EU concessions with respect to processed poultry meat, I have the honour to propose the following:

                  1.

                  The European Union shall incorporate in its Schedule the following modifications:

                              The bound rate of duty for items 1602 3211, 1602 3230 and 1602 3290 shall be 2 765 €/tonne.

                              For item 1602 3211 a tariff rate quota of 16 140 tonnes is opened, of which 15 800 tonnes shall be allocated to Brazil. The in-quota rate shall be 630 €/tonne.

                              For item 1602 3230 a tariff rate quota of 79 705 tonnes is opened, of which 62 905 tonnes shall be allocated to Brazil. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3290 a tariff rate quota of 2 865 tonnes is opened, of which 295 tonnes shall be allocated to Brazil. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                  2.

                  Imports under the tariff rate quotas referred to in paragraph 1 shall take place on the basis of certificates of origin issued in a non-discriminatory way by the competent authorities in Brazil.

                  3.

                  Consultations may be held at any time with regard to any of the above matters at the request of either Party.

            I should be obliged if you would confirm that your Government is in agreement with the content of this letter. Should this be the case, this letter and your confirmation shall together constitute an Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Brazil.
      The European Union and Brazil shall notify each other the completion of their internal procedures for the entry into force of the agreement. The agreement shall enter into force 14 (fourteen) days after the date of the latest notification.
      Please accept, Sir, the assurance of my highest consideration.
      Съставено в Женева на
      Hecho en Ginebra, el
      V Ženevě dne
      Udfærdiget i Geneve, den
      Geschehen zu Genf am
      Genf,
      Έγινε στη Γενεύη, στις
      Done at Geneva,
      Fait à Genève, le
      Fatto a Ginevra, addì
      Ženēvā,
      Priimta Ženevoje,
      Kelt Genfben,
      Magħmul f’Ġinevra,
      Gedaan te Genève,
      Sporządzono w Genewie dnia
      Feito em Genebra,
      Întocmit la Geneva, la
      V Ženeve
      V Ženevi,
      Tehty Genevessä,
      Utfärdat i Genève den

         За Европейския съюз
         Por la Unión Europea
         Za Evropskou unii
         For Den Europæiske Union
         Für die Europäische Union
         Euroopa Liidu nimel
         Гια την Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση
         For the European Union
         Pour l’Union européenne
         Per l’Unione europea
         Eiropas Savienības vārdā –
         Europos Sąjungos vardu
         Az Európai Unió részéről
         Għall-Unjoni Ewropea
         Voor de Europese Unie
         W imieniu Unii Europejskiej
         Pela União Europeia
         Pentru Uniunea Europeană
         Za Európsku úniu
         Za Evropsko unijo
         Euroopan unionin puolesta
         För Europeiska unionen

      Geneva, 26 June 2012
      Sir,
      I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of 26 June 2012, which reads as follows:
      “Following negotiations under Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT), relating to the modification of EU concessions with respect to processed poultry meat, I have the honour to propose the following:

                  1.

                  The European Union shall incorporate in its Schedule the following modifications:

                              The bound rate of duty for items 1602 3211, 1602 3230 and 1602 3290 shall be 2 765 €/tonne.

                              For item 1602 3211 a tariff rate quota of 16 140 tonnes is opened, of which 15 800 tonnes shall be allocated to Brazil. The in-quota rate shall be 630 €/tonne.

                              For item 1602 3230 a tariff rate quota of 79 705 tonnes is opened, of which 62 905 tonnes shall be allocated to Brazil. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3290 a tariff rate quota of 2 865 tonnes is opened, of which 295 tonnes shall be allocated to Brazil. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                  2.

                  Imports under the tariff rate quotas referred to in paragraph 1 shall take place on the basis of certificates of origin issued in a non-discriminatory way by the competent authorities in Brazil.

                  3.

                  Consultations may be held at any time with regard to any of the above matters at the request of either Party.

            I should be obliged if you would confirm that your Government is in agreement with the content of this letter. Should this be the case, this letter and your confirmation shall together constitute an Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Brazil.
      The European Union and Brazil shall notify each other the completion of their internal procedures for the entry into force of the agreement. The agreement shall enter into force 14 (fourteen) days after the date of the latest notification.”.
      I hereby have the honour to express my Government’s agreement with the above letter.
      Feito em Genebra,
      Съставено в Женева на
      Hecho en Ginebra, el
      V Ženevě dne
      Udfærdiget i Geneve, den
      Geschehen zu Genf am
      Genf,
      Έγινε στη Γενεύη, στις
      Done at Geneva,
      Fait à Genève, le
      Fatto a Ginevra, addì
      Ženēvā,
      Priimta Ženevoje,
      Kelt Genfben,
      Magħmul f’Ġinevra,
      Gedaan te Genève,
      Sporządzono w Genewie dnia
      Întocmit la Geneva, la
      V Ženeve
      V Ženevi,
      Tehty Genevessä,
      Utfärdat i Genève den

         Pelo Brasil
         За Бразилия
         Por Brasil
         Za Brazílii
         For Brasilien
         Für Brasilien
         Brasiilia nimel
         Για τη Βραζιλία
         For Brazil
         Pour le Brésil
         Per il Brasile
         Brazīlijas vārdā –
         Brazilijos vardu
         Brazília részéről
         Għall-Brażil
         Voor Brazilië
         W imieniu Brazylii
         Pentru Brazilia
         Za Brazíliu
         Za Brazilijo
         Brasilian puolesta
         För Brasilien

      AGREEMENT
      in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Thailand pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 relating to the modification of concessions with respect to processed poultry meat provided for in the EU Schedule annexed to GATT 1994
      Brussels, 18 June 2012
      Sir,
      Following negotiations under Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994, relating to the modification of EU concessions with respect to processed poultry meat, I have the honour to propose the following:

                  1.

                  The European Union shall incorporate in its Schedule the following modifications:

                              The bound rate of duty for items 1602 3230, 1602 3290 and 1602 39 shall be 2 765 €/tonne.

                              For item 1602 3230 a tariff rate quota of 79 705 tonnes is opened, of which 14 000 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3290 a tariff rate quota of 2 865 tonnes is opened, of which 2 100 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3921 a tariff rate quota of 10 tonnes allocated to Thailand is opened. The in-quota rate shall be 630€/tonne.

                              For item 1602 3929, a tariff rate quota of 13 720 tonnes is opened, of which 13 500 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3940 a tariff rate quota of 748 tonnes is opened, of which 600 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3980 a tariff rate quota of 725 tonnes is opened, of which 600 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                  2.

                  Imports under the tariff rate quotas referred to in paragrapf 1 shall take place on the basis of certificates of origin issued in a non-discriminatory way by the competent authorities in Thailand.

                  3.

                  Consultations may be held at any time with regard to any of the above matters at the request of either Party.

            I should be obliged if you would confirm that your Government is in agreement with the content of this letter. Should this be the case, this letter and your confirmation shall together constitute an Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Thailand
      The European Union and Thailand shall notify each other the completion of their internal procedures for the entry into force of the agreement. The agreement shall enter into force 14 (fourteen) days after the date of the latest notification.
      Please accept, Sir, the assurance of my highest consideration.

            For the European Union

      Brussels, 18 June 2012
      Sir,
      I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of 18 June 2012, which reads as follows:
      “Following negotiations under Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994, relating to the modification of EU concessions with respect to processed poultry meat, I have the honour to propose the following:

                  1.

                  The European Union shall incorporate in its Schedule the following modifications:

                              The bound rate of duty for items 1602 3230, 1602 3290 and 1602 39 shall be 2 765 €/tonne.

                              For item 1602 3230 a tariff rate quota of 79 705 tonnes is opened, of which 14 000 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3290 a tariff rate quota of 2 865 tonnes is opened, of which 2 100 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3921 a tariff rate quota of 10 tonnes allocated to Thailand is opened. The in-quota rate shall be 630€/tonne.

                              For item 1602 3929, a tariff rate quota of 13 720 tonnes is opened, of which 13 500 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3940 a tariff rate quota of 748 tonnes is opened, of which 600 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                              For item 1602 3980 a tariff rate quota of 725 tonnes is opened, of which 600 tonnes shall be allocated to Thailand. The in-quota rate shall be 10,9 %.

                  2.

                  Imports under the tariff rate quotas referred to in paragrapf 1 shall take place on the basis of certificates of origin issued in a non-discriminatory way by the competent authorities in Thailand.

                  3.

                  Consultations may be held at any time with regard to any of the above matters at the request of either Party.

            I should be obliged if you would confirm that your Government is in agreement with the content of this letter. Should this be the case, this letter and your confirmation shall together constitute an Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and Thailand
      The European Union and Thailand shall notify each other the completion of their internal procedures for the entry into force of the agreement. The agreement shall enter into force 14 (fourteen) days after the date of the latest notification.”
      I hereby have the honour to express my Government’s agreement with the above letter.

            For the Kingdom of Thailand


title: 2011/574/EU: Decision of the European Parliament of 10 May 2011 on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for the financial year 2009#Resolution of the European Parliament of 10 May 2011 with observations forming an integral part of its Decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for the financial year 2009

text:
               27.9.2011

               EN

               Official Journal of the European Union

               L 250/145

         DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
   of 10 May 2011
   on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for the financial year 2009
   (2011/574/EU)
   THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

               —

               having regard to the final annual accounts of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for the financial year 2009,

               —

               having regard to the Court of Auditors’ report on the annual accounts of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for the financial year 2009, together with the Centre’s replies (1),

               —

               having regard to the Council’s recommendation of 15 February 2011 (05892/2011 — C7-0052/2011),

               —

               having regard to Article 276 of the EC Treaty and Article 319 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

               —

               having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (2), and in particular Article 185 thereof,

               —

               having regard to Regulation (EC) No 851/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 establishing a European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (3), and in particular Article 23 thereof,

               —

               having regard to Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 of 19 November 2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (4), and in particular Article 94 thereof,

               —

               having regard to Rule 77 of, and Annex VI to, its Rules of Procedure,

               —

               having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinion of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (A7-0107/2011),

               1.

               Grants the Director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control discharge in respect of the implementation of the Centre’s budget for the financial year 2009;

               2.

               Sets out its observations in the resolution below;

               3.

               Instructs its President to forward this Decision and the resolution that forms an integral part of it to the Director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, the Council, the Commission and the Court of Auditors, and to arrange for their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union (L series).

            The President

         Jerzy BUZEK

            The Secretary-General

         Klaus WELLE

      (1)  OJ C 338, 14.12.2010, p. 124.

      (2)  OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

      (3)  OJ L 142, 30.4.2004, p. 1.

      (4)  OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 72.

      RESOLUTION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
      of 10 May 2011
      with observations forming an integral part of its Decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for the financial year 2009
      THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

                  —

                  having regard to the final annual accounts of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for the financial year 2009,

                  —

                  having regard to the Court of Auditors’ report on the annual accounts of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for the financial year 2009, together with the Centre’s replies (1),

                  —

                  having regard to the Council’s recommendation of 15 February 2011 (05892/2011 — C7-0052/2011),

                  —

                  having regard to Article 276 of the EC Treaty and Article 319 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

                  —

                  having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (2), and in particular Article 185 thereof,

                  —

                  having regard to Regulation (EC) No 851/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 establishing a European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (3), and in particular Article 23 thereof,

                  —

                  having regard to Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 of 19 November 2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (4), and in particular Article 94 thereof,

                  —

                  having regard to Rule 77 of, and Annex VI to, its Rules of Procedure,

                  —

                  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinion of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (A7-0107/2011),

                  A.

                  whereas the Court of Auditors stated that it has obtained reasonable assurances that the annual accounts for the financial year 2009 are reliable and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular,

                  B.

                  whereas on 5 May 2010 Parliament granted the Director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control discharge for implementation of the Centre’s budget for the financial year 2008 (5), and in its resolution accompanying the discharge decision, inter alia:

                              —

                              noted that the Court of Auditors pointed out that about EUR 16 200 000 (representing 40 % of the Centre’s total budget) had to be carried over,

                              —

                              was concerned that as of 31 December 2008 there was still no seat agreement between the Centre and the Swedish Government,

                              —

                              pointed out that there were still weaknesses in the planning of recruitment procedures,

                              —

                              deplored the fact that the Centre has not comprehensively fulfilled its obligation to send to the authority responsible for discharge a report drawn up by its Director summarising the number of internal audits conducted by the Internal Auditor as provided for in Article 72(5) of the framework Financial Regulation,

                  C.

                  whereas the budget of the Centre for the year 2009 was EUR 51 000 000, which is an increase of 25,3 % on the financial year 2008,

                  1.

                  Notes that the Centre’s budget increased from EUR 17 100 000 in 2006 to EUR 51 000 000 in 2009;

                  2.

                  Notes that EUR 51 000 000 had been made available as resources for the Centre in 2009, of which EUR 48 100 000 came from subsidies from the Union budget;

                  3.

                  Underlines that the implementation of payment credits slightly improved to 91 %, which represents an amount of unused credits of EUR 4 800 000; notes, however, that this under-execution is related to the fact that the Centre limited its request for payment credits in order to reduce the amount of cash in its bank account at year-end, as requested by the Court of Auditors and the Commission;

         Performance

                  4.

                  Calls once more on the Centre to set out, in a table to be annexed to the Court of Auditors’ next report, a comparison of the operations that were carried out during the year for which discharge is to be granted and during the previous financial year, so as to enable the discharge authority to assess more effectively the Centre’s performance from one year to the next;

                  5.

                  Considers, nevertheless, that the Centre is an important institution that can strengthen and develop European disease surveillance and assess and communicate current and emerging threats to human health posed by infectious diseases;

                  6.

                  Points to the important contributions made by the Centre to the measures to fight the H1N1 pandemic in 2009, for example by issuing preliminary guidelines on the ‘Use of specific pandemic influenza vaccines during the H1N1 2009 pandemic’;

                  7.

                  Takes the view that the Centre’s powers must be strengthened so that the Union has an independent capacity to assess the severity of the risk of infection should a pandemic occur and so that coordination between the Member States can be improved;

                  8.

                  Notes that the Centre was able to develop a considerable number of products and services in 2009 on epidemiology, surveillance, prevention and control of communicable diseases as well as publishing a variety of scientific reports;

                  9.

                  Requests the Court of Auditors to undertake performance audits on the Centre;

         Carry-over of appropriations

                  10.

                  Is concerned that already in 2006 the Court of Auditors reported a high level of carry-overs which has a negative impact on the implementation of the budget and is at odds with the principle of annuality; notes in particular that appropriations carried forward from 2008, amounting to EUR 2 200 000, had to be cancelled and in 2009 appropriations carried forward represented 42 % of Title II — Administrative expenditure, and 63 % of Title III — Operational expenditure; calls therefore on the Centre to inform the discharge authority of the measures taken to redress this deficiency;

         The Centre’s seat

                  11.

                  Welcomes the fact that, in the end, a Seat Agreement was signed by the Chair’s Management Board and the Swedish Minister for Public Health and Elderly Care on 30 June 2010 as well as an accompanying change in the law to enable the Centre’s staff and their families to be included in Sweden’s population register;

         Internal audit

                  12.

                  Is concerned about the fact that once again the Centre has not comprehensively fulfilled its obligation to send to the discharge authority a report drawn up by its Director summarising the content of the Internal Audit Service (IAS) recommendation as provided for in Article 72(5) of the framework Financial Regulation; is concerned, in particular, that, in relation to the follow-up of earlier recommendations, the Centre received one ‘very important’ recommendation and seven other ‘important’ recommendations from the IAS but that no information is given on their content; urges therefore the Director of the Centre to provide this information;

                  13.

                  Acknowledges that the IAS also performed an audit on financial management in 2009 which had the overall objective of obtaining reasonable assurance on the adequacy of the internal controls supporting procedures for financial management, procurement planning, budget implementation, management reporting and monitoring and controls; stresses that the IAS’ recommendations concern the need to update and reinforce financial procedures for commitments and payments to define and record more accurately the controls performed;

                  14.

                  Refers, in respect of the other observations accompanying its Decision on discharge, which are of a horizontal nature, to its resolution of 10 May 2011 (6) on the performance, financial management and control of the agencies.

         (1)  OJ C 338, 14.12.2010, p. 124.

         (2)  OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

         (3)  OJ L 142, 30.4.2004, p. 1.

         (4)  OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 72.

         (5)  OJ L 252, 25.9.2010, p. 141.

         (6)  Texts adopted, P7_TA(2011)0163 (see page 269 of this Official Journal).


title: 2013/620/EU: Decision of the European Parliament of 17 April 2013 on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking for the financial year 2011#Resolution of the European Parliament of 17 April 2013 with observations forming an integral part of its Decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking for the financial year 2011

text:
               16.11.2013

               EN

               Official Journal of the European Union

               L 308/351

         DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
   of 17 April 2013
   on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking for the financial year 2011
   (2013/620/EU)
   THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

               —

               having regard to the final annual accounts of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking for the financial year 2011,

               —

               having regard to the Court of Auditors’ report on the annual accounts of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking for the financial year 2011, together with the replies of the Joint Undertaking (1),

               —

               having regard to the Council’s recommendation of 12 February 2013 (05755/2013 – C7-0040/2013),

               —

               having regard to Article 319 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

               —

               having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (2), and in particular Article 185 thereof,

               —

               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 (3), and in particular Article 208 thereof,

               —

               having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 521/2008 of 30 May 2008 setting up the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (4), and in particular Article 11(4) thereof,

               —

               having regard to Council Regulation (EU) No 1183/2011 of 14 November 2011 amending Regulation (EC) No 521/2008 setting up the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (5),

               —

               having regard to Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 of 19 November 2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (6), and in particular Article 94 thereof,

               —

               having regard to Rule 77 of, and Annex VI to, its Rules of Procedure,

               —

               having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A7-0084/2013),

               1.

               Grants the Executive Director of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking discharge in respect of the implementation of the Joint Undertaking’s budget for the financial year 2011;

               2.

               Sets out its observations in the resolution below;

               3.

               Instructs its President to forward this Decision and the resolution that forms an integral part of it to the Executive Director of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, the Council, the Commission and the Court of Auditors, and to arrange for their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union (L series).

            The President

         Martin SCHULZ

            The Secretary-General

         Klaus WELLE

      (1)  OJ C 6, 10.1.2013, p. 56.

      (2)  OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

      (3)  OJ L 298, 26.10.2012, p. 1.

      (4)  OJ L 153, 12.6.2008, p. 1.

      (5)  OJ L 302, 19.11.2011, p. 3.

      (6)  OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 72.

      RESOLUTION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
      of 17 April 2013
      with observations forming an integral part of its Decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking for the financial year 2011
      THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

                  —

                  having regard to the final annual accounts of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking for the financial year 2011,

                  —

                  having regard to the Court of Auditors’ report on the annual accounts of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking for the financial year 2011, together with the replies of the Joint Undertaking (1),

                  —

                  having regard to the Council’s recommendation of 12 February 2013 (05755/2013 – C7-0040/2013),

                  —

                  having regard to Article 319 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

                  —

                  having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (2), and in particular Article 185 thereof,

                  —

                  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 (3), and in particular Article 208 thereof,

                  —

                  having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 521/2008 of 30 May 2008 setting up the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (4), and in particular Article 11(4) thereof,

                  —

                  having regard to Council Regulation (EU) No 1183/2011 of 14 November 2011 amending Regulation (EC) No 521/2008 setting up the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (5),

                  —

                  having regard to Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 of 19 November 2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (6), and in particular Article 94 thereof,

                  —

                  having regard to Rule 77 of, and Annex VI to, its Rules of Procedure,

                  —

                  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A7-0084/2013),

                  A.

                  whereas the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (‘the Joint Undertaking’) was set up in May 2008 as public-private partnership by Regulation (EC) No 521/2008 for a period until 31 December 2017 to focus on developing market applications and hence facilitating additional industrial efforts towards a rapid deployment of fuel cells and hydrogen technologies,

                  B.

                  whereas Regulation (EC) No 521/2008 was amended by Regulation (EU) No 1183/2011,

                  C.

                  whereas the Joint Undertaking enjoyed financial autonomy only from November 2010, and in 2011 established its first annual financial statements for a complete financial year,

                  D.

                  whereas the Members of the Joint Undertaking are the Union, represented by the Commission, the New Energy World Industry Grouping (NEW-IG) and the Research community (N.ERGHY),

                  E.

                  whereas the Court of Auditors stated that it has obtained reasonable assurances that the annual accounts of the Joint Undertaking for the financial year 2011 are reliable,

                  F.

                  whereas the Court of Auditors delivered a qualified opinion on the legality and the regularity of the transactions underlying the Joint Undertaking’s accounts,

                  G.

                  whereas the maximum contribution for the entire period from the Union to the Joint Undertaking is EUR 470 000 000 to be paid from the budget of the Seventh Research Framework Programme, of which the proportion earmarked for running costs must not exceed EUR 20 000 000,

         Budget and financial management

                  1.

                  Welcomes the fact that the Court of Auditors states that in its annual accounts of 2011 the Joint Undertaking fairly present, in all material respects, its financial position as of 31 December 2011 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, in accordance with the provisions of its Financial Rules;

                  2.

                  Is concerned that the Joint Undertaking’s annual accounts received a qualified opinion from the Court of Auditors on the legality and the regularity of the transactions underlying those accounts on the grounds that eight out of 12 ex post audits, as defined in the ex post audit strategy adopted by the Joint Undertaking Governing Board in January 2011, were completed as of September 2012, covering EUR 4 800 000 (27 % of all cost claims received by the Joint Undertaking in 2011), of which two detected significant errors, of which the larger (EUR 764 000) was corrected the following year;

                  3.

                  Notes that except for the matters described in the two audits, the transactions underlying the annual accounts of the Joint Undertaking for the year 2011 are, in all material respects, legal and regular;

                  4.

                  Notes, furthermore, that the 2011 Joint Undertaking’s final budget included commitment and payment appropriations amounting to EUR 117 000 000 and EUR 60 000 000 respectively and the utilisation rates for the available commitment and payment appropriations were 99,8 % and 87,9 % respectively; takes note that an amount of EUR 112 000 000 representing commitment appropriations available for operational activities (Title III of the budget) was implemented through a global commitment relating to the 2011 call for proposals;

                  5.

                  Notes with concern that the budgetary procedure outlined in the Joint Undertaking’s Financial Rules was not followed as the derogation granted by the Commission to enter cancelled appropriations in the estimates of revenue and expenses for the following three years was misinterpreted; notes that as a consequence of the Joint Undertaking’s interpretation of the budgetary procedure, the budgetary outturn of the year 2011 is incorrect as EUR 6 300 000 in payment appropriations carried over from 2011 to 2012 were not included in the calculation and the budgetary outturn account for 2010 does not reflect the EUR 3 300 000 in payment appropriations carried over from 2010 to 2011;

                  6.

                  Is concerned that unused global commitments from 2010 amounting to EUR 10 400 000 and with a final date of implementation at 31 December 2011, were not decommitted by the end of 2011 but were decommited in January 2012;

                  7.

                  Acknowledges that the calls for proposals organised in 2008, 2009 and 2010 resulted in signed grant agreements totalling EUR 183 400 000, and in 2011 a fourth call for proposals was launched amounting to EUR 111 600 000, which represents 41 % and 25 % respectively of the maximum Union contribution to the Joint Undertaking for research activities; further notes that in January 2012 a fifth call for proposals was launched amounting to EUR 79 000 000, a further 18 % of the maximum Union contribution; notes the progress in budget implementation;

         Supervisory and control systems

                  8.

                  Notes that at the end of 2011, the underlying business processes had been validated by the Accounting Officer as required by the Joint Undertaking’s Financial Rules with a certain number of weaknesses being identified; notes that an action plan has been defined by the Joint Undertaking to address those weaknesses identified and that according to the Joint Undertaking, most of the actions are implemented;

         Annual assessment of the level of the in-kind contribution

                  9.

                  Welcomes the fact that the method for evaluating the level of the in-kind contribution has been finalised and was jointly assessed by the Commission’s Internal Audit Service (IAS) and the Joint Undertaking’s Internal Audit Capability (IAC) in April 2012;

                  10.

                  Takes duly note that the aggregated level of in-kind contributions validated by the Authorising Officer as at 8 February 2012 was EUR 347 600 000 and the assessment report concluded that this amount should be reduced by EUR 930 000 since certain participants had presented their budgeted costs on the basis of a 60 % flat rate system for the calculation of indirect costs instead of the 20 % flat rate applicable to the Joint Undertaking; notes that this correction was made;

         Treasury management

                  11.

                  Highlights the fact that at the end of December 2011, the balance on the Joint Undertaking’s bank account was EUR 9 200 000 and between the months of August 2011 and December 2011, the Joint Undertaking’s cash balance ranged between approximately EUR 30 000 000 and EUR 60 000 000; urges the Joint Undertaking to implement, together with the Commission, all the necessary measures to minimise the cash balances held on account to the levels that are required within the limits provided in the financing agreements with the Commission;

         Other management matters

                  12.

                  Acknowledges that during 2011, the Joint Undertaking set up a Business Continuity Plan and made progress on the formalisation of the IT security policies with the Business Continuity plan including a disaster recovery plan adopted by on June 2012;

                  13.

                  Takes note that the Financial Rules of the Joint Undertaking have not yet been amended to include the provision referring to the powers of the Commission’s Internal Auditor; notes however that the respective roles of the IAS and of the IAC were defined and approved by the Governing Board in March 2011;

                  14.

                  Welcomes the fact that the Host State Agreement between the Joint Undertaking and the Belgian authorities concerning office accommodation, privileges and immunities and other support to be provided was signed on 3 February 2012;

         Other issues

                  15.

                  Reiterates its invitation for the Court of Auditors to provide, within a reasonable deadline, a special report to Parliament on common issues which occur due to the nature of the joint undertakings, and which should be addressed by the joint undertakings together with their partners in order to ensure their added value and efficient execution of Union research, technological development and demonstration programmes; notes, furthermore, that that report should include an assessment of the effectiveness of the joint undertakings’ establishment and structure.

         (1)  OJ C 6, 10.1.2013, p. 56.

         (2)  OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

         (3)  OJ L 298, 26.10.2012, p. 1.

         (4)  OJ L 153, 12.6.2008, p. 1.

         (5)  OJ L 302, 19.11.2011, p. 3.

         (6)  OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 72.


title: 2013/564/EU: Decision of the European Parliament of 17 April 2013 on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the financial year 2011#Resolution of the European Parliament of 17 April 2013 with observations forming an integral part of its Decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the financial year 2011

text:
               16.11.2013

               EN

               Official Journal of the European Union

               L 308/189

         DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
   of 17 April 2013
   on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the financial year 2011
   (2013/564/EU)
   THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

               —

               having regard to the final annual accounts of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the financial year 2011,

               —

               having regard to the Court of Auditors’ report on the annual accounts of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the financial year 2011, together with the Agency’s replies (1),

               —

               having regard to the Council’s recommendation of 12 February 2013 (05753/2013 – C7-0041/2013),

               —

               having regard to Article 319 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

               —

               having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (2), and in particular Article 185 thereof,

               —

               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 (3), and in particular Article 208 thereof,

               —

               having regard to Regulation (EC) No 216/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council (4) establishing a European Aviation Safety Agency, and in particular Article 60 thereof,

               —

               having regard to Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 of 19 November 2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (5), and in particular Article 94 thereof,

               —

               having regard to Rule 77 of, and Annex VI to, its Rules of Procedure,

               —

               having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinion of the Committee on Transport and Tourism (A7-0075/2013),

               1.

               Grants the Executive Director of the European Aviation Safety Agency discharge in respect of the implementation of the Agency’s budget for the financial year 2011;

               2.

               Sets out its observations in the resolution below;

               3.

               Instructs its President to forward this Decision and the resolution that forms an integral part of it to the Executive Director of the European Aviation Safety Agency, the Council, the Commission and the Court of Auditors, and to arrange for their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union (L series).

            The President

         Martin SCHULZ

            The Secretary-General

         Klaus WELLE

      (1)  OJ C 388, 15.12.2012, p. 53.

      (2)  OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

      (3)  OJ L 298, 26.10.2012, p. 1.

      (4)  OJ L 79, 19.3.2008, p. 1.

      (5)  OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 72.

      RESOLUTION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
      of 17 April 2013
      with observations forming an integral part of its Decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the financial year 2011
      THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

                  —

                  having regard to the final annual accounts of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the financial year 2011,

                  —

                  having regard to the Court of Auditors’ report on the annual accounts of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the financial year 2011, together with the Agency’s replies (1),

                  —

                  having regard to the Council’s recommendation of 12 February 2013 (05753/2013 – C7-0041/2013),

                  —

                  having regard to Article 319 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

                  —

                  having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (2), and in particular Article 185 thereof,

                  —

                  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 (3), and in particular Article 208 thereof,

                  —

                  having regard to Regulation (EC) No 216/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council (4) establishing a European Aviation Safety Agency, and in particular Article 60 thereof,

                  —

                  having regard to Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 of 19 November 2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (5), and in particular Article 94 thereof,

                  —

                  having regard to Rule 77 of, and Annex VI to, its Rules of Procedure,

                  —

                  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinion of the Committee on Transport and Tourism (A7-0075/2013),

                  A.

                  whereas the Court of Auditors stated that it has obtained reasonable assurances that the annual accounts of the European Aviation Safety Agency (‘the Agency’) for the financial year 2011 are reliable and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular,

                  B.

                  whereas on 10 May 2012, Parliament granted the Executive Director of the Agency discharge for the implementation of the Agency’s budget for the financial year 2010 (6), and in its resolution accompanying the discharge decision, inter alia:

                              —

                              called on the Agency to take adequate measures in order to avoid deficiencies that put at risk the transparency of the procurement process as well as the principle of sound financial management,

                              —

                              called on the Commission to ensure that the Agency applies Union rules correctly; stressed the importance of transparency in procurement and staff selection procedures,

                              —

                              called on the Agency to take the professional background of its staff members duly into consideration in order to avoid any conflict of interest; was of the opinion that the Agency’s conflicts of interest policy should set out to what extent and under which conditions an Agency employee can be involved in the certification of an aircraft on which they worked prior to joining the Agency,

                              —

                              called on the Agency to adopt effective processes that duly address potential cases of allegations of conflicts of interest within the Agency; called on the Agency, moreover, to publish on its website the declarations of interest and the professional background of its experts, management staff, Management Board members and of any other persons whose activities are related to the certification process; indicated that the Agency should follow the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) guidelines in the area of conflicts of interest,

                              —

                              called on the Agency to further implement the existing activity-based structure for the operational budget in order to establish a clear link between the work programme and the financial forecasts and to further improve performance monitoring and reporting,

                              —

                              called on the Agency to further improve the documentation of inspection planning and inspection programming; reminded the Agency of the importance of documenting risk assessment and the criteria used when establishing its inspection planning in order to justify its internal decision-making process for cases presenting significant deficiencies affecting Union citizens’ safety,

                              —

                              also called on the Agency to further improve its effectiveness in managing key safety concerns by:

                                          —

                                          monitoring information,

                                          —

                                          reducing the length of the reporting and implementing timeframe,

                                          —

                                          documenting the decision-making process between the Agency and the Commission,

                                          —

                                          adequately mitigating the risks of any potential conflict of interest situation,

                  C.

                  whereas the Agency is financed by approximately 75 % in fees, charges and other revenues and approximately 25 % by contribution from the Union budget,

                  D.

                  whereas, according to the Court of Auditors, the Agency’s budget for the financial year 2011 was EUR 138 700 000, compared to EUR 137 200 000 in 2010, which represents an increase of 1,09 %,

                  E.

                  whereas, according to the Court of Auditors, the contribution of the Union to the Agency’s budget for 2011 was EUR 34 400 000, compared to EUR 34 197 000 in 2010, which represents an increase of 0,59 %,

                  1.

                  Stresses the Agency’s important contribution to maintaining a high and uniform level of civil aviation safety in Europe;

         Budgetary and financial management

                  2.

                  Takes note from the Court of Auditors’ report that the Union contribution to the Agency for 2011 amounted to EUR 34,4 million, compared to EUR 34,2 million in 2010;

                  3.

                  Notes from the Court of Auditors’ report that the total budget of EUR 138 700 000 included:

                              —

                              EUR 34,4 million, representing the Union subsidy (24,8 %),

                              —

                              EUR 75,2 million, representing the Agency’s own revenue (54,2 %),

                              —

                              EUR 1,7 million, representing a contribution from third countries (1,2 %),

                              —

                              EUR 24,7 million, representing assigned revenue from fees and charges (17,8 %),

                              —

                              EUR 1,4 million, representing the Agency’s other revenue (1 %),

                              —

                              EUR 1,2 million, representing other subsidies (1 %);

                  4.

                  Acknowledges that budget monitoring efforts during the financial year contributed to the high budget implementation rate of 98,80 %;

         Commitments and carryovers

                  5.

                  Establishes from the Agency’s 2011 Annual Report that in 2011, the Agency has only used non-differentiated appropriations;

                  6.

                  Acknowledges from the Court of Auditors’ report that the decrease in the country coefficient for Germany in June 2010 caused a significant surplus in the Agency’s Title I ‘Staff Expenditure’ appropriations for 2011 and that about EUR 3 million (7 % of the appropriations) were transferred from Title I to various budget lines in Title III ‘Operational Expenditure’, despite their low implementation rate in terms of payments; notes, moreover, that this significant cross title transfer, which changed the structure of the budget considerably, was not put to the Agency’s Management Board for approval; calls on the Agency to inform the discharge authority of the actions taken as this situation is at odds with the budgetary principle of specification;

                  7.

                  Takes note that the transfer increased Title III appropriations to EUR 13,7 million and that at the end of 2011, EUR 7,8 million was carried over to 2012, and that the amount carried over represents 56,9 % of the increased amount; requires that the Agency informs the discharge authority of the actions taken to reduce the high level of carryovers as this is at odds with the budgetary principle of annuality;

                  8.

                  Observes from the AAR that the total consumption of commitment appropriations reached EUR 148 450 344,53, of which EUR 121 966 394,59 has been committed and EUR 26 483 949,94 on credit appropriations from assigned revenue were automatically carried over in accordance with Article 10 of the Agency’s Financial Regulation; observes that this carry-over represents 17,8 % of the total; calls on the Agency to inform the discharge authority of the actions taken to reduce the high level of carryovers as this is at odds with the budgetary principle of annuality; asks the Commission to come forward, as soon as possible, with a proposal to solve the contradiction between the principle of annuality and the need to finance multiannual certification projects;

         Supervisory and control systems

                  9.

                  Acknowledges from the Court of Auditors’ report that the Agency needs to improve the management of fixed assets; calls on the Agency to inform the discharge authority as a matter of urgency of the actions taken to improve the inventory system and the financial management of internal IT projects costs;

                  10.

                  Notes with concern that at the end of 2011, the Agency held bank balances of EUR 55 million (2010: EUR 49 million) in one bank only; notes the Agency’s intention to open bank accounts in at least two banks, as recommended by the Court of Auditors; notes, to this purpose, its plan to launch a negotiated tender at the beginning of 2013; calls on the Agency to inform the discharge authority on the completion of the actions taken to reduce its financial risk;

         Conflict of interest and transparency

                  11.

                  Welcomes the fact that the Court of Auditors carried out an audit aimed at evaluating the policies and procedures for the management of conflict of interest situations for four European Agencies, including the European Aviation Safety Agency, and presented the results of the audit in the Court of Auditors’ Special Report No 15/2012;

                  12.

                  Regrets that according to the findings of the Court of Auditors, at the time of completion of the field work (October 2011), the Agency did not adequately manage conflict of interest situations; regrets, moreover, that the Agency had no policies in place for managing conflicts of interest;

                  13.

                  Reiterates that the Agency should refrain from assigning a staff member recruited from an aircraft manufacturer to work for the certification of the aircraft he/she used to work on while employed by the manufacturer, given that this could result in a conflict of interest situation; notes that such situation occurred at least in one certification case; points out that the sole principle of collegiality for technical assessments and decision-making process is not by itself avoiding the risks of conflict of interest;

                  14.

                  Notes that the Agency has taken a number of steps, following the Court of Auditors’ audit and publication of the Special Report No 15/2012, and in particular:

                              —

                              on 1 August 2012, the Agency adopted a revised ‘Code of Conduct for staff of EASA’, including a policy on gifts and hospitality together with a policy on the prevention and mitigation of conflicts of interest, covering the recommendations of the Court of Auditors and in line with the guidelines of the OECD; notes that the Conflict of Interest policy requires all managers, members of the Executive Committee and staff members having sensitive positions and external experts involved in the Agency’s core activities to complete a Declaration of Interest; requests that in addition to the Declarations of Interest of the staff, those of the managers and of the external experts are also made public on EASA’s website;

                              —

                              on 1 August 2012, the Agency created an Ethical Committee to ensure independent, impartial and objective assessment of declarations of interests of Agency staff, to provide support to managers in the assessment of the completed declaration of interest form and to deal with any related matter brought before the Ethical Committee; the Ethical Committee is now fully operational upon having adopted its rules of procedure, including detailed criteria for the evaluation and assessment of the Declarations of Interests of staff of the Agency; notes that the members of the Management Board are not willing to sign a declaration of interest; calls for action to be taken on this issue and urges the Chair of the Management Board to inform the discharge authority on this situation;

                              —

                              at present (January 2013), the Agency is implementing the Conflict of Interests policy, including mandatory training provided by an external consultant for all Agency staff members, as well as regular induction training for newly arrived Agency staff,

                              —

                              on 1 August 2012, a similar code of conduct was released for the Board of Appeal and training will be provided by an external consultant to the Members of the Board of Appeal before the end of February 2013;

                              —

                              in June 2012, the Agency released a proposal for a code of conduct for its Management Board; subsequently the Commission took the lead, with the support of the Agency, on that code of conduct to be adopted by the Management Board;

                        Requires the Agency to continue to act on the recommendations of the Court of Auditors in order to avoid any conflict of interests among its various governing and operational structures and to report to the discharge authority on the implementation of the abovementioned policies and procedures, as well as on any further developments as regards the management of conflicts of interest;

                  15.

                  Calls on the Agency to introduce in its annual activity reports a special section describing the actions taken to prevent and manage conflict of interest, which shall include inter alia:

                              —

                              the number of conflict-of-interest cases verified,

                              —

                              the number of revolving door cases,

                              —

                              the measures taken in each category of cases,

                              —

                              the number of breach of trust procedures launched and their outcomes;

                              —

                              the sanctions applied;

                  16.

                  Acknowledges that the curriculum vitae of the Agency’s Executive Director and four other Directors are now available on its website, together with their respective declarations of interest; notes the Agency’s efforts for greater transparency but remains of the opinion that those provisions should also apply to any expert/staff member involved in the certification process of aircrafts as expressed during the 2010 discharge procedure; calls on the Agency to inform the discharge authority of the progress made on this matter as soon as possible;

                  17.

                  Regrets that neither the curriculum vitae (including at least the professional background) nor the declaration of interest of the Management Board Members and Observers are publicly available on the website of the Agency as requested during the previous discharge procedure; urges the Agency and its Management Board to take immediate measures to remediate this issue;

         Internal audit

                  18.

                  Acknowledges from the Annual Report on Internal Audit for 2011 that in 2011, the Internal Audit Service (IAS) performed an assessment of the progress made by the Agency in implementing their recommendations resulting from their 2006 audit on the implementation of the Commission’s internal control standards, the subsequent follow-up in 2007, the 2008 audit of Revenues and Direct Costs and the 2009 audit of Human Resources Management; notes, moreover, that the IAS confirmed that 16 of the 18 recommendations have been adequately and effectively implemented; calls on the Agency to keep the discharge authority informed on the actions undertaken to complete the two remaining recommendations;

         Recruitment procedures

                  19.

                  Notes from the AAR that in 2011, the Agency concluded 85 new contracts of employment and that at year-end it employed a total of 642 staff members;

                  20.

                  Acknowledges from the Court of Auditors’ report the Agency’s further need to improve the transparency of staff selection procedures; calls on the Agency to inform the discharge authority of actions taken to improve the recruitment procedures;

                  21.

                  Reminds the Agency of the importance to ensure adequate training and qualification criteria for inspection teams and team leaders; calls on the Agency to continue to make efforts in this respect;

                  22.

                  Refers, in respect of the other observations accompanying its Decision on discharge, which are of a horizontal nature, to its resolution of 17 April 2013 (7) on the performance, financial management and control of the agencies.

         (1)  OJ C 388, 15.12.2012, p. 53.

         (2)  OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

         (3)  OJ L 298, 26.10.2012, p. 1.

         (4)  OJ L 79, 19.3.2008, p. 1.

         (5)  OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 72.

         (6)  OJ L 286, 17.10.2012, p. 175.

         (7)  Texts adopted, P7_TA(2013)0134 (see page 374 of this Official Journal).


title: 2011/853/EU: Council Decision of 29 November 2011 on the signing, on behalf of the Union, of the European Convention on the legal protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access#European Convention on the legal protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access

text:
               20.12.2011

               EN

               Official Journal of the European Union

               L 336/1

         COUNCIL DECISION
   of 29 November 2011
   on the signing, on behalf of the Union, of the European Convention on the legal protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access
   (2011/853/EU)
   THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
   Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and in particular Article 114 thereof, in conjunction with Article 218(5) thereof,
   Having regard to the proposal by the European Commission,
   Whereas:

               (1)

               On 16 July 1999, the Council authorised the Commission to negotiate within the Council of Europe, on behalf of the European Community, a convention concerning the legal protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access.

               (2)

               The European Convention on the legal protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access (‘the Convention’) was adopted by the Council of Europe on 24 January 2001.

               (3)

               The Convention establishes a regulatory framework which is almost identical to that set out in Directive 98/84/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 1998 on the legal protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access (1).

               (4)

               The Convention entered into force on 1 July 2003 and is open for signing by the Union and its Member States.

               (5)

               The signing of the Convention would help to extend the application of provisions similar to those in Directive 98/84/EC beyond the borders of the Union and establish a law on services based on conditional access which would be applicable throughout the European continent.

               (6)

               By adopting Directive 98/84/EC, the Union has exercised its internal competence in the fields covered by the Convention except as regards Articles 6 and 8 thereof, insofar as Article 8 relates to the measures under Article 6. The Convention should be therefore signed both by the Union and its Member States.

               (7)

               The Convention should be signed on behalf of the Union, subject to its conclusion,

         HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
   Article 1
   The signing of the European Convention on the legal protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access is hereby authorised on behalf of the Union, subject to the conclusion of the Convention.
   The text of the Convention is attached to this Decision.
   Article 2
   The President of the Council is hereby authorised to designate the person(s) empowered to sign, on behalf of the Union, the Convention.
   Article 3
   This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption.

      Done at Brussels, 29 November 2011.

            For the Council

            The President

         K. SZUMILAS

      (1)  OJ L 320, 28.11.1998, p. 54.

      EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE LEGAL PROTECTION OF SERVICES BASED ON, OR CONSISTING OF, CONDITIONAL ACCESS
      PREAMBLE
      The member States of the Council of Europe, other States and the European Community signatory hereto,
      Considering that the aim of the Council of Europe is to achieve a greater unity between its members;
      Bearing in mind Recommendation No R (91) 14 of the Committee of Ministers on the legal protection of encrypted television services;
      Considering that piracy of decoding equipment for encrypted services is still a problem throughout Europe;
      Noting that new types of conditional access services and devices, as well as new forms of unlawful access to these, have appeared since the adoption of the above recommendation;
      Noting that there is great disparity among European States on legislation aimed at protecting services based on, or consisting of, conditional access;
      Noting that unlawful access threatens the economic viability of the organisations providing broadcasting and information society services and, in consequence, may affect the diversity of programmes and services offered to the public;
      Convinced of the need to pursue a common policy aimed at the protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access;
      Convinced that criminal, administrative or other sanctions can play an effective role in the prevention of unlawful activities against conditional access services;
      Believing that particular attention should be given to illicit activities that are undertaken for commercial purposes;
      Taking account of existing international instruments which contain provisions aiming at the protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access,
      HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:
      SECTION I

         GENERAL PROVISIONS

      Article 1
      Object and purpose
      This Convention is concerned with broadcasting and information society services offered against payment and based on, or which consist of, conditional access. The purpose of this Convention is to make illegal on the territory of the Parties a number of activities which give unauthorised access to protected services, and to approximate the legislation of Parties in this area.
      Article 2
      Definitions
      For the purposes of this Convention:

                  (a)

                  ‘protected service’ means any of the following services, when provided against remuneration and on the basis of conditional access:

                              —

                              television programme services, as defined in Article 2 of the amended European Convention on Transfrontier Television,

                              —

                              radio broadcasting services, meaning radio programmes intended for reception by the public, transmitted by wire or over the air, including by satellite,

                              —

                              information society services, understood as those offered by electronic means, at a distance and at the individual request of a recipient of services,

                        or the provision of conditional access to the above services, considered as a service in its own right;

                  (b)

                  ‘conditional access’ means any technical measure and/or arrangement permitting access in an intelligible form, and subject to prior individual authorisation, to one of the services mentioned in point (a) of this Article;

                  (c)

                  ‘conditional access device’ means any equipment, software and/or arrangement designed or adapted to give access in an intelligible form to one of the services mentioned in point (a) of this Article;

                  (d)

                  ‘illicit device’ means any equipment, software and/or arrangement designed or adapted to give access in an intelligible form to one of the services mentioned in point (a) of this Article, without the authorisation of the service provider.

            Article 3
      Beneficiaries
      This Convention shall apply to any legal or natural persons offering a protected service as defined in Article 2(a) above, regardless of their nationality and whether or not they come under the jurisdiction of a Party.
      SECTION II

         ILLICIT ACTIVITIES

      Article 4
      Offences
      It shall be unlawful to carry out one of the following activities on the territory of a Party:

                  (a)

                  the manufacture or production of illicit devices for commercial purposes;

                  (b)

                  the importation of illicit devices for commercial purposes;

                  (c)

                  the distribution of illicit devices for commercial purposes;

                  (d)

                  the sale or rental of illicit devices for commercial purposes;

                  (e)

                  the possession of illicit devices for commercial purposes;

                  (f)

                  the installation, maintenance or replacement of illicit devices for commercial purposes;

                  (g)

                  the commercial promotion, marketing or advertising of illicit devices.

            Each Party may, at any time, in a declaration addressed to the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe, declare that it will also make unlawful other activities than those referred to in the first paragraph of this Article.
      SECTION III

         SANCTIONS AND REMEDIES

      Article 5
      Sanctions for unlawful activities
      The Parties shall adopt measures to make the unlawful activities established in Article 4 above punishable by criminal, administrative or other sanctions. Such measures shall be effective, dissuasive and proportionate to the potential impact of the unlawful activity.
      Article 6
      Confiscation measures
      The Parties shall adopt such appropriate measures as may be necessary to enable it to seize and confiscate illicit devices or the promotional, marketing or advertising material used in the commission of an offence, as well as the forfeiture of any profits or financial gains resulting from the unlawful activity.
      Article 7
      Civil proceedings
      The Parties shall adopt the necessary measures to ensure that providers of protected services whose interests are affected by an unlawful activity established in Article 4 above have access to appropriate remedies, including bringing an action for damages and obtaining an injunction or other preventive measure, and where appropriate, applying for the elimination of illicit devices from commercial channels.
      SECTION IV

         IMPLEMENTATION AND AMENDMENTS

      Article 8
      International cooperation
      The Parties undertake to render each other mutual assistance in order to implement this Convention. The Parties shall afford each other, in accordance with the provisions of relevant international instruments on international cooperation in criminal or administrative matters and with their domestic law, the widest measure of cooperation in investigations and judicial proceedings relating to criminal or administrative offences established in accordance with this Convention.
      Article 9
      Multilateral consultations
      1.   The Parties shall, within two years from the entry into force of this Convention and every two years thereafter, and, in any event, whenever a Party so requests, hold multilateral consultations within the Council of Europe to examine the application of this Convention and the advisability of extending or revising any of its provisions, in particular as regards the definitions under Article 2. These consultations shall take place at meetings convened by the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe.
      2.   Each Party may be represented at multilateral consultation meetings by one or more delegates. Each Party shall have the right to vote. Each State Party to this Convention shall have one vote. Concerning questions within its competence, the European Community shall exercise its right to vote and cast a number of votes equal to the number of its member States that are Parties to the Convention. The European Community shall not exercise its right to vote when the vote concerns a question which does not fall within its competence.
      3.   Any State referred to in Article 12, paragraph 1, or the European Community, which is not a Party to this Convention, may be represented in the consultation meetings by an observer.
      4.   After each consultation, the Parties shall forward to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe a report on the consultation and on the functioning of the Convention, including, if it is considered necessary, proposals for the amendment of the Convention.
      5.   Subject to the provisions of this Convention, the Parties shall lay down rules of procedure for the consultation meetings.
      Article 10
      Amendments
      1.   Any Party may propose amendments to this Convention.
      2.   Any proposal for amendment shall be notified to the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe who shall communicate it to the member States of the Council of Europe, to the other States Party to the European Cultural Convention, to the European Community and to any non-member State which has acceded to or has been invited to accede to this Convention in accordance with the provisions of Article 13.
      3.   Any amendment proposed in accordance with the provisions of the previous paragraph shall be examined, within six months from the date on which it is communicated by the Secretary-General, at a multilateral consultation meeting, where that amendment can be adopted by a majority of two-thirds of the States which have ratified the Convention.
      4.   The text adopted by the multilateral consultation meeting shall be submitted to the Committee of Ministers for approval. Once it has been approved, the text of the amendment shall be forwarded to the Parties for acceptance.
      5.   All amendments shall enter into force on the 30th day after all the Parties have informed the Secretary-General of their acceptance thereof.
      6.   On the basis of a recommendation by a multilateral consultation meeting, the Committee of Ministers may decide, by the majority provided for in Article 20(d) of the Statute of the Council of Europe and by the unanimous vote of the representatives of the Parties entitled to sit on the Committee, that a particular amendment shall enter into force following the expiry of a period of two years after the date on which it has been forwarded for acceptance, unless a Party has notified the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe of an objection to its entry into force. Should such an objection be notified, the amendment shall enter into force on the first day of the month following the date on which the Party to the Convention which has notified the objection has deposited its instrument of acceptance with the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe.
      7.   If an amendment has been approved by the Committee of Ministers, but has not yet entered into force in accordance with paragraph 5 or 6 above, a State or the European Community may not express their consent to be bound by the Convention without accepting at the same time the amendment.
      Article 11
      Relationship with other conventions or agreements
      1.   This Convention does not affect the rights and undertakings derived from international multilateral conventions concerning special matters.
      2.   The Parties to the Convention may conclude bilateral or multilateral agreements with one another on the matters dealt with in this Convention, for purposes of supplementing or strengthening its provisions or facilitating the application of the principles embodied in it.
      3.   If two or more Parties have already concluded an agreement or treaty in respect of a subject which is dealt with in this Convention or otherwise have established their relations in respect of that subject, they shall be entitled to apply that agreement or treaty or to regulate those relations accordingly, in lieu of the present Convention, if it facilitates international cooperation.
      4.   In their mutual relations, Parties which are members of the European Community shall apply Community rules and shall not therefore apply the rules arising from this Convention except in so far as there is no Community rule governing the particular subject concerned.
      SECTION V

         FINAL CLAUSES

      Article 12
      Signature and entry into force
      1.   This Convention shall be open for signature by the member States of the Council of Europe and the other States party to the European Cultural Convention, and by the European Community. Such States and the European Community may express their consent to be bound by:

                  (a)

                  signature without reservation as to ratification, acceptance or approval; or

                  (b)

                  signature subject to ratification, acceptance or approval, followed by ratification, acceptance or approval.

            2.   Instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe.
      3.   This Convention shall enter into force on the first day of the month following the expiration of a period of three months after the date on which three States have expressed their consent to be bound by the Convention in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph.
      4.   In respect of any signatory State or the European Community which subsequently expresses its consent to be bound by it, the Convention shall enter into force on the first day of the month following the expiration of a period of three months after the date of the expression of its consent to be bound by the Convention in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1.
      Article 13
      Accession to the Convention by non-member States
      1.   After the entry into force of this Convention, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, after consulting the Parties to the Convention, may invite any State which is not referred to in Article 12, paragraph 1, to accede to this Convention, by a decision taken by the majority provided for in Article 20(d) of the Statute of the Council of Europe and by the unanimous vote of the representatives of the Contracting States entitled to sit on the Committee.
      2.   In respect of any acceding State, the Convention shall enter into force on the first day of the month following the expiration of a period of three months after the date of deposit of the instrument of accession with the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe.
      Article 14
      Territorial application
      1.   Any State or the European Community may, at the time of signature or when depositing its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, specify the territory or territories to which this Convention shall apply.
      2.   Any State or the European Community may, at any later date, by a declaration addressed to the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe, extend the application of this Convention to any other territory specified in the declaration. In respect of such territory the Convention shall enter into force on the first day of the month following the expiration of a period of three months after the date of receipt of such declaration by the Secretary-General.
      3.   Any declaration made under the two preceding paragraphs may, in respect of any territory specified in such declaration, be withdrawn by a notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe. The withdrawal shall become effective on the first day of the month following the expiration of a period of three months after the date of receipt of such notification by the Secretary-General.
      Article 15
      Reservations
      No reservation may be made to this Convention.
      Article 16
      Settlement of disputes
      In case of a dispute between Parties as to the interpretation or application of this Convention, the Parties concerned shall seek to achieve a friendly settlement of the dispute through negotiation or any other peaceful means of their choice, including submission of the dispute to an arbitral tribunal whose decisions shall be binding upon the Parties.
      Article 17
      Denunciation
      1.   Any Party may, at any time, denounce this Convention by means of a notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe.
      2.   Such denunciation shall become effective on the first day of the month following the expiration of a period of three months after the date of receipt of the notification by the Secretary-General.
      Article 18
      Notifications
      The Secretary-General of the Council of Europe shall notify the member States of the Council of Europe, the other States party to the European Cultural Convention, the European Community and any other State which has acceded to this Convention of:

                  (a)

                  any signature in accordance with Article 12;

                  (b)

                  the deposit of any instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession in accordance with Article 12 or 13;

                  (c)

                  any date of entry into force of this Convention in accordance with Articles 12 and 13;

                  (d)

                  any declaration made in accordance with Article 4;

                  (e)

                  any proposal for amendment made under Article 10;

                  (f)

                  any other act, notification or communication relating to this Convention.

         In witness whereof the undersigned, being duly authorised thereto, have signed this Convention.
         Done at Strasbourg, the 24th day of January 2001, in English and in French, both texts being equally authentic, in a single copy which shall be deposited in the archives of the Council of Europe. The Secretary-General of the Council of Europe shall transmit certified copies to each member State of the Council of Europe, to the other States party to the European Cultural Convention, to the European Community and to any State invited to accede to it.