Brussels, 17/04/2001 (Agence Europe) - By adopting, on 5 April in Strasbourg, the report by Salvador Jove Perez (GUE/NGL, Spanish) on the financial participation of the Community in certain spending earmarked by the Member States for audits, inspections and monitoring in the framework of the Common Fisheries Policy, the European Parliament called for these measures to be 100% financed by the Community budget. In fact, the MEPs feel that the Union participation in international fishing organisations (ORP) constitutes a field stemming from the exclusive competence of he Community and that the principal of sufficient credits from the CFP requires that the spending for taking part in these organisations be part of the Community budget, including the auditing and monitoring of fishing spending. Furthermore, the EP finds "surprising", the decision foreseeing to reduce, each year, from EUR 41 to 35 million the spending aimed at audit operations, while the adequate infrastructure to cover the programmes would seemingly call, in the future, not for a reduction, but an increase in the annual financial burden.
This is the third decision concerning the financing of this kind of measures, after those covering the periods 1991-1995 and 1996-2000; but this decision covers a three year period (2001-2003) so that it coincides with the launching of the new Common Fisheries Policy.