Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-11-20-Speech-4-135"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20031120.5.4-135"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spoken text |
".
I regret that Parliament was not informed. This is not within my portfolio but I am told it was not intentional, and would not want it to lead to any deterioration in the essential cooperation between our institutions. We recognise the acuteness of feelings, especially since the work of the information system and centres is of clear importance not only to Members of this House, but also to anyone committed to developing an understanding of the European Union, what it does and what it stands for.
The Commission acknowledges, of course, that the decision provoked sharp reactions and protests from many national relay coordinators, several Member States, and several Members of this House. We understand the reasons but we also seek to abide by the letter and spirit of the law of the European Union.
Further to the amendment to the 2004 draft budget tabled in this House, and placing in reserve the appropriations under three of the budget headings related to the activities of DG Press, the Commission was given the task of trying to reach an accommodation that, as far as possible, satisfied the demands for operational continuity sought by Parliament, whilst also securing financial monitoring and control.
The Commission is aware of the particular political importance of the year ahead and, in response to the honourable Member’s question, I would make the following points.
First, at our meeting on 11 November 2003, the Commission noted that we would have to take up the matter of host entities’ grants again, with a view to taking a final decision in the light of the outcome of the budget trialogue of 13 November.
Second, in order to retain the current system for 2004, there would need to be a Commission decision providing for a waiver to the rule in the Financial Regulation that requires a call for proposals that is accompanied by adequate monitoring and control provisions tailored to the results of risk analysis and backed by a joint policy declaration by the three institutions. This solution would be justifiable for one year only, but may provide a kind of bridge that would ensure the continuity the honourable Member seeks.
That proposed solution was subsequently examined by the budgetary trialogue and will now be formally presented for approval at the Conciliation Committee meeting of 24 November 2003.
In response to the honourable Member’s third question, the Commission has instructed DG Press to formulate proposals that will ensure the proper availability of comprehensive information for citizens in the Union of 25 Member States. These proposals, to be set out in a communication that will hopefully be produced before Christmas, will build on the July 2002 communication on Information and Communication Strategy for the European Union, and will follow four principles for relay management set out in that communication: a more homogenous brand; a more streamlined and decentralised set of information outlets and networks; closer partnership with Member State authorities; and more interinstitutional cooperation.
The relays act as a uniquely important bridge between the European Union’s policy-making mechanism and the citizens to whom we are all accountable. The Commission will therefore do its utmost to ensure that they continue to provide that facility at the dispersed centres throughout the Union, which obviously is one of the features that gives them their greatest value.
The honourable Member has made it clear that she, like many other Members, has criticisms of the Commission's decision to cancel from next year the operating grants hitherto provided to networks and Info-Points. I would therefore like to clarify exactly which information outlets we are dealing with, explain the nature, size and impact of the subsidies provided by the Commission to them and update her and the House on the Commission’s latest course of action in direct response to her question and the numerous questions and representations on this issue by Members of this House and others.
There are currently more than a thousand grassroots public information relays and networks overseen by the Commission’s Directorate General for Press and Communication. They are housed in what are known as 'host structures', which are generally national, regional or local authorities, NGOs or universities. They include: 126 rural information and promotion Carrefours; 140 Info-Points Europe
IPE
in urban areas of the Union; nearly 800 European Documentation Centres
EDC
generally situated in large higher education establishments worldwide; and a network of around 500 experts in one or more areas of European Union policy as conference or other forms of public speakers known as 'Team Europe'.
All of these public information relays receive support services in kind from the Commission. The main types of support are: free public documentation and publication: around 3 million copies a year and specialised assistance via a dedicated helpdesk at a cost of about EUR 1.5 million a year; free training for relay staff totalling about 800 person-days a year; access to an interactive intranet; and an exchange programme for relay staff
with over 3 000 person-days a year.
These services are designed to help the relays provide their correspondents with quick and up-to-date responses to their questions on EU policies, programmes and funding opportunities. They are not in jeopardy. It has long been the Commission’s intention not only to maintain such technical assistance but also to increase it.
Meanwhile, it is important to note, in order to avoid any misunderstanding, that only the 266 host structures of the first two of these relays and networks – the IPEs and Carrefours – have ever received operating grants from the Commission since DG Press started overseeing them in 2001. They generally amount to about EUR 20 000 a year or EUR 5.4 million in total. In the majority of cases, the money given to the host structures has been supplemented by larger contributions provided from domestic resources.
As the House is aware, the Financial Regulation that came into force on 1 January 2003 no longer permits direct operating subsidies to be awarded to external bodies without either a call for proposals or the establishment of a legal basis for expenditure.
I would also add that, in its 2002 Activity Report, the Director-General of DG Press felt compelled to enter a reservation about the management of the relays because it was not possible to guarantee, with the resources at its disposal, proper monitoring and control of a relatively high number of small grants. Those misgivings were borne out by the recent findings of the Commission’s Internal Audit Service which recommended first, the development of different working methods and audit practices, second, the introduction of more appropriate management tools, and third, the improvement of the standard of agreements and the structure of the expenditure financed.
The Commission therefore confirms that the proposal adopted on 29 September 2003 to terminate grants with effect from 2004 complied fully with the Financial Regulation and its implementing provisions. It was therefore right, in legal terms and for practical purposes."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples