2011 discharge: Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER)

Having examined the revenue and expenditure accounts for the financial year 2011 and the balance sheet at 31 December 2011 of the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators, as well as the Court of Auditors' report on the annual accounts of the Agency for the financial year 2011, accompanied by the Agency's replies to the Court's observations, the Council recommends the European Parliament to give a discharge to the Director of the Agency 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 Agency'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 Agency's Financial Regulation, and that the underlying transactions for that financial year are legal and regular;
• the Council urges the Agency to improve its financial programming and monitoring of the budget implementation in order to improve budget execution and to reduce the amounts carried over to the next financial year, in line with the budgetary principle of annuality;
• it encourages the Agency to pursue its efforts to address the shortcomings detected by the Court in its staff recruitment procedures;
• lastly, the Council regrets the irregular payments made in favour of national seconded experts and urges the Agency to ensure a strict application of the relevant rules.