2002 budget: interinstitutional conciliation procedure

By adopting the report by Mr Carlos COSTA NEVES (EPP-ED, P), the European Parliament broadly agreed with position of the committee responsible. (Please refer to the previous text). The report deals essentially with expenditure in sectors such as agriculture, fisheries, common foreign and security policy (CFSP). This procedure, known until now as "ad hoc procedure", aims to evaluate the needs and come to an agreement between the Parliament and the Council on the level of expenditure to be provided in the various sectors. Firstly, the Parliament considers that the appreciable margin which exists in the SAB under the overall ceiling for payment appropriations should be used better to implement Community policies, especially under Heading 3 and Heading 4 (internal policies and external actions) and to liquidate the continuing large volume in outstanding commitments in various sectors. Moreover, the Parliament considers that the payments to be made available for the the reserve for agriculture should not prejudice the assessment of needs for payments in Headings 3 and 4. It also considers that the proposal by the Commission to create a reserve for agriculture earmarked for measures regarding BSE and FMD partly meets the concerns expressed by Parliament on this subject on successive occasions in the past. However, the Parliament wonders at the Commission's reasons for proposing such a large reserve at this stage when it still has the opportunity of adjusting the PDB by means of a Letter of Amendment later in the procedure. The Parliament expects the Commission to substantiate the need for this reserve in time for Parliament's first reading. In addition, the Parliament expects that on the occasion of the presentation of the Letter of Amendment, the Commission shall present a detailed study analysing the different measures taken in the context of the agriculture reform making up Agenda 2000 in order to help the budgetary authority to come to a decision on the appropriations to be provided to the agriculture sector in 2002. Furthermore, the Parliament reaffirms its determination that agriculture expenditure should remain within the ceilings laid down in the financial perspective, in accordance with the Regulation on Budgetary Discipline. It notes that a margin of EUR 365 million below the ceiling remains within Titles B-1 to B-3 and it calls for it to be made possible, in future, to transfer funding not needed from the compulsory expenditure area to non-compulsory CAP expenditure in order to give appropriate acknowledgement to the growing importance of Title B1-4 (Rural Development) in terms of policy formulation and budgeting. The Parliament asks the Commission to submit a report on the implementation and possible violation of rules relating to animal transport in the Community and suggests this report should be made available by 15 September 2001 so that it can be taken into account before Parliament's first reading. With regard to fisheries, recalling the failure to reach an agreement with Morocco, the Commission is called upon to propose a specific action programme for restructuring the Community fleet. Parliament also notes that the PDB stillincludes a provision for EUR 125 million in the reserve which was initially provided to finance the new EC/Morocco Agreement. In relation to the appropriations for the CFSP, that the Commission proposes to keep at the same level as in 2001, the European Parliament expresses doubts that this allocation is really justified given the number of activities previously financed under CFSP which now have their own separate legal base and given the actual implementation record of the last 3 years. It supports the Commission's efforts to secure a better planning and evaluation of CFSP actions and urges the Commission and the Council to move towards a multiannual programme of actions. The House calls for the further development of actions for the reduction and destruction of weapons of mass destruction, as part of the development of the CFSP. On the subject of administrative expenditure, the Parliament insists that the costs of the new European security and defence policy is presented in a transparent way in a separate title of Section II of the budget, in line with the Council's undertakings on the occasion of SAB No 2/2001. It also points out that similar questions are raised in connection with Eurojust. The Parliament considers that it is now urgent for the Council to engage with Parliament and the Commission in a study both for budget 2002 and for the longer-term needs of the ESDP, enlargement, other expanding budget areas and their implications for Heading 5 of the budget (administrative expenditure). In its resolution, the Parliament expresses its willingness to discuss with the Commission and the Council the pilot projects and preparatory actions that it intends to include in the budget.�