2011 discharge: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)

Having examined the revenue and expenditure accounts for the financial year 2011 and the balance sheet at 31 December 2011 of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, as well as the Court of Auditors' report on the annual accounts of the Centre for the financial year 2011, accompanied by the Centre's replies to the Court's observations, the Council recommends the European Parliament to give a discharge to the Director of the Centre in respect of the implementation of the budget for the financial year 2011.

The observations in the Court of Auditors' report in relation to the financial year 2011 call for some comments by the Council, which may be summarised as follows:

• the Council welcomes the Court's opinion that, in all material respects, the Centre's annual accounts present fairly its financial position as at 31 December 2011 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, in accordance with the provisions of the Centre's Financial Regulation, and that the underlying transactions for that financial year are legal and regular with the exception of the matter described below;
• the Council regrets the Court's qualified opinion regarding the irregularities detected in the management of one framework contract, leading to payments above the threshold set in the framework contract;
• moreover, the Council notes with concern the weaknesses identified by the Court in the management of several contracts, including the non-compliance with the Centre's Implementing Rules to its Financial Regulation, the lack of a clear link between the technical specifications, the award criteria and the pricing structure, as well as the ineligibility of expenditure for activities carried out before the signature of the grant agreement;
• as last year, the Council notes that the level of carry-overs still remains high. It urges the Centre to intensify its efforts to improve its planning and implementation of the budget and to pursue its efforts to address the shortcomings detected by the Court in its staff recruitment procedures.