2008 discharge: European GNSS Supervisory Authority GSA

The Committee on Budgetary Control adopted the report by Véronique MATHIEU (EPP, FR) on discharge to be granted to the European GNSS Supervisory Authority, calling on the European Parliament to grant the Executive Director of the Authority discharge in respect of the implementation of its budget for the financial year 2008.

Noting that the Authority’s annual accounts for the financial year 2008 are reliable, and the underlying transactions are legal and regular, MEPs approve the closure of the Authority’s accounts. However, they make a number of recommendations that need to be taken into account when the discharge is granted, in addition to the general recommendations that appear in the draft resolution on financial management and control of EU agencies (see 2010/2007(INI):

• budgetary and financial management: Members regret that the Court of Auditors qualified its statement of assurance on the reliability of the annual accounts for the financial year 2008 and on the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions. They note that the Authority has decided to present the results of its activities without taking into account the fact that the Authority’s management of the Galileo and EGNOS programmes would be discontinued after the finalisation of the transfer of assets and funds to the Commission scheduled for the end of the first quarter of 2008. In spite of the transfer to the Commission of responsibility for the programmes, the Commission transferred EUR 95 million to the Authority’s bank account on 24 December 2008, although no proper amending budget had been established. Members also note that a very substantial reduction in the Authority’s budget was adopted in 2008 (from EUR 436.5 million in 2007 to EUR 22.7 million in 2008) and are concerned that, although under Regulation (EC) No 683/2008, the Commission became responsible, from 1 January 2009, for fund management and implementation of the European satellite navigation programmes (EGNOS and Galileo), neither of these activities nor any assets had been transferred to the Commission by the end of 2008. In addition, the new distribution of responsibilities between the Commission and the Authority was not clearly reflected in their respective annual accounts. Members also note important differences in the treatment of certain amounts attributed to the Authority as a result of the transfer of responsibility to the Commission;
• internal audit: Members also call on the Authority to implement the recommendations made by the Internal Audit Service (IAS) in particular in regard to human resources.