2015 discharge: European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA)

The European Parliament decided to grant discharge to the Director of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) in respect of the implementation of its budget for the financial year 2015.

The vote on the decision on discharge covers the closure of the accounts (in accordance with Annex IV, Article 5 (1)(a) to Parliament’s Rules of Procedure).

Noting that the Court of Auditors stated that it had obtained reasonable assurance that the annual accounts of the Agency for the financial year 2015 were reliable and that the underlying transactions were legal and regular, Parliament adopted by 514 votes to 106 with 3 abstentions, a resolution containing a series of recommendations, which form an integral part of the decision on discharge and which add to the general recommendations set out in the resolution on performance, financial management and control of EU agencies.

These recommendations may be summarised as follows:

• Agency’s financial statements: Parliament stated that the final budget of the Agency for the financial year 2015 was EUR 16 852 526, representing a decrease of 2.34 % compared to 2014.
• Budget and financial management: It noted that the budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2015 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 97.5 %, representing a decrease of 1.2 % compared to 2014. The budget allocated for operational expenditure was implemented to 98.36 % and the carry-overs were partly or fully justified by the multiannual nature of the agencies’ operational programmes.

Parliament also made a series of observations regarding transfers, internal controls and audits, the prevention and management of conflicts of interests, procurement and recruitment procedures.

On transparency, Parliament noted that the Agency has yet to implement internal rules on whistleblowing. It called on the Agency to adopt the rules that will allow its internal whistleblowing policy to foster a culture of transparency and accountability in the workplace, to inform and train employees regularly of their duties and rights with regard to that policy. It also called on the Agency to publish annual reports on the number of whistleblower cases and on how they were followed up.

Lastly, Parliament recognised the role that the Agency is playing in the implementation of the EU Strategic Framework on Health and Safety at Work 2014 to 2020 and appreciated the Agency’s contribution to promoting healthy and safe workplaces across the Union and beyond. It noted the progress in the implementation of its Multiannual Strategic Programme, in particular the pilot project on ‘Safer and healthier work at any age’ and the online interactive risk assessment.