Brussels, 05/03/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 4 March, European Commissioner for Financial Programming and Budget Janusz Lewandowski told the European Parliament's budgets committee that the total amount of the invoices unpaid in 2013 stands at €23.4 billion, “which is by no means standard”, he added.
Following a stand-off in 2013 between the Council and the Parliament over payment appropriations, this battle could spill over into the funding requirements for 2014.
Extremely tight budget for 2014. Lewandowski explained that the execution of the 2013 budget was €8.6 billion higher than for 2012. There were delays regarding the European Social Fund in Spain, France and Italy. He stated that the payments for 2014 are €8.8 billion less than the level executed in 2013, meaning that the budget is extremely tight, said Lewandowski. “We are back at 2012 levels”, he pointed out. In addition, there will be very little room for manoeuvre in 2014 (just €711 million euros). The unpaid invoices in 2013 for the cohesion policy have now been paid, Lewandowski stressed, and these totalled €23.4 billion. “This is by no means standard. In December, we could have anticipated €7 or 6 billion “. There were 20% more applications than in 2012. “All of our efforts with the Council and the Parliament to reach the ceiling of payments in 2013 were not enough to reduce the backlog enough”, he lamented. In explanation of this situation, many applications arrived in December. There was a peak in September, a downturn in October and a rise in requests for payment in November and December (38% of applications, compared to 28% received at the end of 2012). The end of the flexibility period for the structural funds (N+3 rule and Greek rule in the event of increased tension) and the top-up payments for countries in crisis (Greece, Romania, Portugal, Ireland and Cyprus) explain this “influx of applications at the end of December 2013”, the Lewandowski summed up.
The total of the accumulated invoices could rise even further in April, when the member states submit their estimates (requests for reimbursement) for the whole of the year, the Lewandowski added.
Humanitarian aid. European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid Kristalina Georgieva told MEPs that there was a deficit of €400 million in her sector in 2014 and that €150 million was required before July. She also warned of the growing gap between commitments and appropriations (for humanitarian aid). “Payment delays mean that people die”, she said.
Considerable tension emerged over the payment appropriation needs in certain highly sensitive areas, said Alain Lamassoure (EPP, France), president of the EP budgets committee. Initially, the problems were in the field of humanitarian aid, “but we fear that there could be tension elsewhere”, in the emergency situations which have recently come to light, such as Ukraine, he clarified. “We have to be sure that during the period when there is no Parliament due to the elections, from April to early July, the EU is not in a situation of suspension of payment appropriations but is able to honour its commitments”, Lamassoure stressed.
Lamassoure lamented the fact that the Parliament's budgets committee was not properly informed about the extreme tension over humanitarian aid credits when the Parliament examined amending budget no. 9 for 2013 (the last of the year). This budget covered aid under the Solidarity Fund (€400 million for the countries which suffered severe flooding). He intimated that it would have been better first of all to help the organisations “which save lives”, rather than to reimburse public authorities for earlier damage. “If this €400 million had been mobilised for humanitarian aid, we would not be in this position”, said Lamassoure. “To begin with”, it was the Commission which was responsible for its management. “If the Commission had let us know in advance, if it had fully exercised its responsibilities”, we would not be in this position, Lamassoure concluded.
The MEPs from the budgets committee homed in on the fact that the unpaid invoices are continuing to rise each year and asked Lewandowski how he would tackle this challenge. The solution is to make full use of the new flexibility laid down in the multi-annual financial framework, instead of putting forward amending budgets, the commissioner replied. (LC)