Brussels, 31/08/2006 (Agence Europe) - On 5 September, the European Parliament will vote on expenditure that is not always justified by the Community institutions for interpretation into the different languages of the EU. The report by Alexander Stubb (EPP-ED, Finland), adopted on 13 July this year by the Committee on Budgetary Control, points to the €25.9 million (16% of total interpreting costs in the three institutions), which, in 2003, were not used for various reasons (services cancelled at the last minute, stand-by arrangements, etc.). The report also notes that the average cost per interpreter of an interpretation day was about 30% higher at the EP (€1476 in 2003) than at the Council and Commission (€1046), a situation that can be explained by the lack of local interpreters available during plenary sessions in Strasbourg. The report also stresses that, in 2003, the EP spent €4 million for interpreting services made available but not used due to lack of demand or last minute cancellations.
Alexander Stubb's report also contains recommendations on ways to lower interpreting costs by: - reducing stand-by (€18 million not used by the three institutions); - carrying out an exchange of interpreters between the services of the EP and Commission, and creating mixed interpretation teams; - and encouraging and facilitating the use of local interpreters. Furthermore, Mr Stubb calls on the EU institutions to reduce interpreters' travelling and accommodation costs (Ed. which are usually increased for displacement to Strasbourg). Concerning the EP more particularly, the report calls on its administration to study the possibility of applying the Council's “request system” for interpreting, and invites the relevant bodies to adjust the timetable for meetings of political groups and committees as well as plenary sessions in order to “achieve a better balance between needs and resources available”.
According to the estimates of the Court of Auditors (Report No5/2005 on interpretation expenditure), a full day's meeting with interpretation cost €40,000 at the EP and €34,500 at the Commission before enlargement (11 languages) and cost €88,500 and €63,000 after the 2004 enlargement (20 languages) for three interpreters per booth.