Expiry of the ECSC Treaty: managing assets of the ECSC in liquidation and assets of the Research Fund for Coal and Steel

PURPOSE : to lay down multiannual financial guidelines for managing the assets of the "ECSC in liquidation". CONTENT : by their resolutions of 20 July 1998 and 21 June 1999, the Council and the Representatives of the Member States meeting within the Council stated that, upon the expiry of the Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community in 2002, the assets and liabilities of the ECSC should remain separate from other Community funds, and be administered by the Commission. It was further stated that these assets should be managed by the Commission according to multiannual financial guidelines, proposed by the Commission and adopted by the Council, intended to ensure a long-term return on such assets. This proposal for a Council Decision is intended to meet this requirement for multiannual financial guidelines. The proposed guidelines set out the following main elements: - they define the types of transactions the Commission is authorised to undertake, and establish prudential limits for different categories of investment in order to minimise risk; - they propose budgetary and accounting procedures to ensure that the returns on such assets are correctly attributed within the Budget to their intended purposes; - they refer to the Commission's use of Internal Regulations, which are currently used to manage the ECSC's funds and which are based on the experience of the services responsible, acquired over nearly fifty years of managing such funds; - as instructed by the Council and the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States of the European Communities meeting within the Council, they also refer to the review of such guidelines at regular intervals, leading eventually to any adjustments which may be considered necessary.�