1996 discharge: 6th and 7th EDF. Communication included

In adopting the report by Mr Terence WYNN (PSE, UK) on the discharge to be granted for the management of the sixth and seventh EDF, Parliament noted with great disappointment that the new Amsterdam Treaty made no progress towards the budgetization of the EDFs and that, therefore, democratic control of this instrument was subverted by its legal framework. It observed that the discharge procedure was seriously devalued by the absence of the corresponding budgetary powers but stressed that it intended to maintain whatever democratic control was possible under the circumstances. While granting the discharge to the Commission in respect of the management of the sixth and seventh EDF it was concerned that measures under the fourth Lomé Convention had been financed under the EDF without any legal basis. It called on the Commission to ensure that the regulations covering EDF tendering procedures were consistently and transparently applied and asked the Court of Auditors to examine this question once again to verify the improvements which the Commission claimed had been made. It also called on the Commission to check the quality of tender proposals and the ability of tenderers to fulfil their contractual obligations. It also asked the Commission to review contracting practices under the EDFs whereby fixed exchange rates could give rise to windfall profits for contractors (depreciation of ACP currencies in relation to foreign currencies). Lastly, it called on the Court of Auditors and the Commission to seek to resolve the problems giving rise to the high level of 'non-opinions' in the statement of assurance provided by the Court.