Strasbourg, 13/12/2001 (Agence Europe) - By adopting in record time, in Strasbourg on Thursday, the report by Carlos Costa Neves and Kathalijne Maria Buitenweg and that of Terry Wynn, the European Parliament established the budget for next year, amounting to 98.63 billion euro in commitment appropriations and 95.65 billion in payment appropriations, which, as agreed with the Council, represents an increase in payment appropriations of 2% on the Budget 2001. Total appropriations correspond to 1.034% of the Community GNP, planned for 2002, whereas the financial perspectives provide for a maximum envelope of 1.08% of GNP. Parliament placed special emphasis on the fact that the appropriations necessary for spending under Heading 3 (internal policies), 4 (external actions and 5 (administrative expenditure), were subject to "notable and growing pressure from year to year". It sees in the Council's refusal to settle this problem by a review of the financial perspectives "a negation of the EU's genuine political objectives". Nicole Fontaine and Belgian Budget Minister, Johan Vande Lanotte signed the 2002 budget and initialled the act authorising the mobilisation of the flexibility instrument to the tune of 200 million euro to finance restructuring programmes relating to fisheries and the additional aid scheme for the neighbouring regions of the candidate countries.
At a press conference, a Council representative declared that it was a question of the last budget that "we shall live with two figures" and that the "100 billion euro ceiling would be burst in 2003". Michaele Schreyer let it be understood that if new and unpredictable needs arose for external policy next year, they would have to consider reviewing the financial perspectives in the course of the year in the sense that that margin for external actions had already been exhausted. In the medium term, Mr. Wynn warned that if an agreement was not concluded with the Council in 2003 on administrative expenditure (the ceiling of which should be exceeded by 125 million euro in 2003 due to preparing the institutions for enlargement, according to a report by the Secretaries General), "w shall be moving towards a crisis". Mr. Costa Neves welcomed the fact that the institutions had undertaken to improve the execution of te budgetary appropriations. A action plan has been drawn up, together with a timetable, to allow for several budgetary headings presenting a problem of under-execution of appropriations to be examined.
Agricultural spending: with the approval of the amending letter No.2, the amount for the sub-heading (market expenditure) amounts to 39.66 billion euro and that for Heading 1b (rural development) 4.59 billion euro. The total for this heading is 4.255 million euro.
Structural actions: appropriations have been set at 33.83 billion euro in commitment appropriations (payments of 32.12 billion euro). The 200 million provided for by the flexibility instrument will be mobilised under this heading: 170 million for re-conversion relating to fisheries, and 30 million for aid earmarked for neighbouring border regions with the candidate countries. Worth noting that, in a declaration, the institutions are committed to including an additional 27 million in the Budget 2003 for the re-conversion of the fleet, as well as 15 million for border regions.
Internal policies: 6.55 billion euro in commitment appropriations ad 6.15 billion in payment appropriations. In an agreement reached during the dialogue, Parliament and the Council agreed that pilot projects proposed by the EP concerning the effects of enlargement in the Community's border regions should be funded to the tune of 120 million. You may recall that the Council had agreed to some of Parliament's priorities like the European Fund for Refugees and the "e-learning" initiative..
External actions: the budget is 4.803 billion in commitment appropriations and 4.665 billion in payment appropriations, very close to the ceiling provided for by the financial perspectives (4.873 billion euro), 165 million of which for Afghanistan: 60 million euro (of the 488 million euro earmarked for co-operation with developing countries of Asia), plus 70 million euro (from the margin agreed on or that purpose) and 35 million euro from the reserve of emergency aid. 715.57 million euro will be devoted to MEDA and 765 million euro to the Balkans.
Administrative expenditure: 5.177 billion euro will be allocated to the spending on the operations of the institutions (including real estate spending). The EP has decided to freeze appropriations for 70 of the positions of the 317 positions requested by the Commission. An informal trilogy will be held arly-2002 to assess the consequences of preparing the institutions for enlargement.