The financial regulation contains the rules for the establishment of the EU budget and the way it is spent. On 27 June 2012 the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission came to a political agreement on the reform of the financial regulation which the Commission launched in December 2010, address- ing the main concerns from beneficiaries of EU funds.
After a formal adoption in autumn 2012, most of the provisions of the new finan- cial regulation were to be applied from 1 January 2013. There will therefore be an improvement in the delivery of EU funds to businesses, NGOs, researchers, students, municipalities and other beneficiaries thanks to simplified procedures. The new legislation enables increased transparency and introduces higher ac- countability for all involved in dealing with EU finances. It moves the protection of EU financial interests to a higher level.
Some 80 % of EU funds are distributed under ‘shared management’; in other words projects are selected and managed by the Member States themselves. The new rules will increase the accountability of the Member States, especially in the field of regional policy. National authorities in charge of EU funding will have to sign and submit to the Commission annual declarations certifying that EU funds have been used correctly.
In future, various financial instruments such as loans, equity or guarantees will be used to multiply the financial impact of EU funds. New possibilities are cre- ated for a more flexible implementation of public–private partnerships, reflecting the needs of European industry partners.
(million € — 2011 prices)
COMMITMENT APPrOPrIATIONS 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Total 2014–20
1. Smart and inclusive growth 64 769 67 015 68 853 70 745 72 316 74 386 76 679 494 763
of which: economic, social and territorial cohesion 50 464 51 897 53 177 54 307 55 423 56 474 57 501 379 243
2. Sustainable growth: natural resources 57 845 57 005 56 190 55 357 54 357 53 371 52 348 386 472
of which: market-related expenditure and direct payments 42 363 41 756 41 178 40 582 39 810 39 052 38 309 283 051
3. Security and citizenship 2 620 2 601 2 640 2 679 2 718 2 757 2 794 18 809
4. Global Europe 9 400 9 645 9 845 9 960 10 150 10 380 10 620 70 000
5. Administration 8 622 8 755 8 872 9 019 9 149 9 301 9 447 63 165
of which: administrative expenditure of the institutions 7 047 7 115 7 184 7 267 7 364 7 461 7 561 51 000
6. Compensation 27 0 0 0 0 0 0 27
TOTAL COMMITMENT APPROPRIATIONS 143 282 145 021 146 400 147 759 148 690 150 195 151 888 1 033 235
as a percentage of GNI 1.10 % 1.09 % 1.08 % 1.08 % 1.07 % 1.06 % 1.06 % 1.08 %
TOTAL PAYMENT APPROPRIATIONS 133 976 141 175 144 126 138 776 146 870 144 321 138 356 987 599
as a percentage of GNI 1.03 % 1.06 % 1.06 % 1.01 % 1.06 % 1.02 % 0.96 % 1.03 %
S T r O N G E r G r O w T h 93
EndnotEs
(1) Commission communication — EU regulatory fitness (COM(2012) 746).
(2) http://ec.europa.eu/europe2020/making-it-happen/country-specific-
recommendations/index_en.htm
(3) Commission communication — Towards a job-rich recovery (COM(2012) 173).
http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-2014/andor/headlines/ news/2012/04/20120418_en.htm
(4) Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 on the coordination of social security systems (OJ l 166, 30.4.2004).
(5) Proposal for a directive on improving the portability of supplementary pension rights (COM(2005) 507).
(6) Amended proposal for a directive on minimum requirements for enhancing worker mobility by improving the acquisition and preservation of supplementary pension rights (COM(2007) 603).
(7) Commission White Paper — An agenda for adequate, safe and sustainable pensions (COM(2012) 55).
(8) http://ec.europa.eu/social/yoi
(9) Regulation (EU) No 121/2012 as regards distribution of food products to the most deprived persons in the Union (OJ l 44, 16.2.2012).
(10) ‘Tackling and preventing child poverty, promoting child well-being’, see
http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=758&langId=en&moreDocuments =yes
(11) Commission communication — National Roma integration strategies: a first step in the implementation of the EU framework (COM(2012) 226). (12) Commission communication — Europe 2020 flagship initiative — Innovation
union (COM(2010) 546).
(13) Commission communication — A reinforced European research area
partnership for excellence and growth (COM(2012) 392).
(14) Regulation (EU) No 1257/2012 implementing enhanced cooperation in the area of the creation of unitary patent protection (OJ l 361, 31.12.2012). Competitiveness Council conclusions, 17 December 2012 (http://www. consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/intm/134394.
pdf).
(15) Commission communication — Towards joint programming in research: Working together to tackle common challenges more effectively (COM(2008) 468).
(16) See http://www.neurodegenerationresearch.eu/home, http://www.faccejpi.
com, https://www.healthydietforhealthylife.eu and http://www.jpi-climate.eu
(17) Commission communication — A European strategy for key enabling technologies — A bridge to growth and jobs (COM(2012) 341).
(18) Commission communication — Second regulatory review on nanomaterials (COM(2012) 572). Nanomaterials are chemical substances or materials that are manufactured and used at a very small scale and are developed to exhibit novel characteristics (such as increased strength, chemical reactivity or conductivity) compared to the same material without nanoscale features. Hundreds of products containing nanomaterials are already in use: batteries, coatings, anti-bacterial clothing, etc. and nano-innovation will be seen in many sectors including public health, employment and occupational safety
and health, the information society, industry, environment, energy, transport, security and space. Analysts expect markets to grow to hundreds of billions of euros by 2015. Nanomaterials have the potential to improve the quality of life and to contribute to industrial competitiveness in Europe. However, the new materials may also pose risks to the environment and raise health and safety concerns.
(19) Commission communication — Towards better access to scientific
information: Boosting the benefits of public investments in research (COM(2012) 401).
(20) Commission recommendation on access to and preservation of scientific information C(2012) 4890).
(21) Commission communication — Enhancing and focusing EU international cooperation in research and innovation: A strategic approach (COM(2012) 497).
(22) Commission communication — A stronger European Industry for growth and economic recovery — industrial policy communication update (COM(2012) 582).
(23) Commission communication — CARS 2020: Action plan for a competitive and sustainable automotive industry in Europe (COM (2012) 636). (24) Commission communication — The digital agenda for Europe — Driving
European growth digitally (COM (2012) 784).
(25) Commission communication — A coherent framework for building trust in the digital single market for e-commerce and online services (COM(2011) 942).
(26) Commission communication — Unleashing the potential of cloud computing in Europe (COM(2012) 529).
(27) Proposal for a regulation on a common European sales law (COM(2011) 635). (28) Proposal for a regulation on electronic identification and trust services for
electronic transactions in the internal market COM(2012) 238).
(29) Commission communication — European strategy for a better Internet for children (COM(2012) 196).
(30) Commission communication — Promoting the shared use of radio spectrum resources in the internal market (COM(2012) 478).
(31) http://ec.europa.eu/regiostars
(32) Proposal for a regulation establishing the ‘Connecting Europe facility‘ (COM(2011) 665).
(33) Proposal for a regulation on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (COM(2010) 748).
(34) Proposal for a regulation amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1346/2000 on insolvency proceedings (COM(2012) 744).
(35) Proposal for a directive on the fight against fraud to the Union’s financial interests by means of criminal law (COM(2012) 363).
(36) Proposal for a directive on criminal sanctions for insider dealing and market manipulation (COM(2011) 654).
(37) Proposal for a regulation on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (general data protection regulation) (COM(2012) 11) .
G E N E R A l R E P O R T 2 0 1 2 — C H A P T E R 3
(38) Proposal for a directive on improving the gender balance among non- executive directors of companies listed on stock exchanges and related measures (COM(2012) 614).
(39) More information and factsheets for all 27 Member States at: http://
ec.europa.eu/justice/newsroom/gender-equality/news/121114_en.htm
(40) Commission communication — Innovating for sustainable growth: a
bioeconomy for Europe (COM(2012) 60).
(41) Regulation (EU) No 601/2012 on the monitoring and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions (OJ l 181, 12.7.2012).
(42) Regulation (EU) No 600/2012 on the verification of greenhouse gas emission reports and tonne-kilometre reports and the accreditation of verifiers (OJ l 181, 12.7.2012).
(43) Commission communication — Smart regulation in the European Union (COM(2010) 543).
(44) Commission communication — EU regulatory fitness (COM(2012) 746). As an input to this communication, the Commission carried out an open public consultation on smart regulation (http://ec.europa.eu/governance/better_ regulation/smart_regulation/consultation_2012/consultation_docs_en.
htm).
(45) Commission document — Review of the Commission consultation policy (SWD(2012) 422).
(46) Commission document — Action programme for reducing administrative burdens in the EU — Final report (SWD(2012) 423).
(47) Commission communication — Action programme for reducing
administrative burdens in the European Union (COM(2007) 23).
(48) Commission report — Minimising regulatory burden for SMEs — Adapting EU regulation to the needs of micro-enterprises (COM(2011) 803).
(49) http://ec.europa.eu/isa
(50) http://ec.europa.eu/energy/gas_electricity/index_en.htm
(51) Commission communication — Making the internal energy market work (COM(2012) 663).
(52) Commission communication — EU state aid modernisation (SAM)
(COM(2012) 209).
(53) Regulation (EU) No 360/2012 on the application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to de minimis aid granted to undertakings providing services of general economic interest (OJ l 114, 26.4.2012).
(54) General Court ruling of 17.5.2011 in Case T-299/08 Elf Aquitaine v
Commission.
(55) General Court rulings of 16.6.2011 in Case T-199/08 Ziegler v Commission,
Joined Cases T-204/08 Team Relocations and others v Commission and
T-212/08 Amertranseuro International and others v Commission and Case
T-211/08 Putters International v Commission.
(56) General Court rulings of 2.2.2012 in Case T-76/08 EI du Pont de Nemours
and Others v Commission, Case T-77/08 Dow Chemical v Commission and
Case T-83/08 Denki Kagaku Kogyo and Denka Chemicals v Commission.
(57) General Court ruling of 24.5.2012 in Case T-111/08 MasterCard and Others v Commission.
(58) General Court ruling of 29.6.2012 in Case T-360/09 E.ON Ruhrgas and E.ON v Commission and Case T-370/09 GDF Suez v Commission.
(59) General Court ruling of 27.6.2012 in Case T-167/08 Microsoft v Commission. (60) Proposal for a directive on a common consolidated corporate tax base
(CCCTB) (COM (2011) 121).
(61) Commission communication on the future of VAT — Towards a simpler, more robust and efficient VAT system tailored to the single market (COM(2011) 851).
(62) Proposal for a regulation amending implementing Regulation (EU)
No 282/2011 as regards the special schemes for non-established taxable persons supplying telecommunication services, broadcasting services or electronic services to non-taxable persons (COM(2012) 2).
(63) Proposal for a regulation laying down the Union Customs Code (COM(2012) 64). (64) Proposal for a regulation establishing a framework for managing financial
responsibility linked to investor–state dispute settlement tribunals established by international agreements to which the European Union is party (COM(2012) 335).
(65) Regulation (EU) No 1219/2012 on transitional arrangements for bilateral investment agreements between Member States and third countries (OJ l 351, 20.12.2012).
(66) For the benefits for the citizens of 50 years of the CAP, see ‘The common agricultural policy: a story to be continued’.
(67) Amendment to the Commission proposal COM(2011) 628/2 for a regulation on the financing, management and monitoring of the common agricultural policy (COM(2012) 551).
(68) Court of Justice ruling of 9.11.2010 in Joined Cases C-92/09 and C-93/09,
Volker und Markus Schecke and Eifert,
(69) Regulation (EC) No 259/2008 laying down detailed rules for the application of Regulation (EC) No 1290/2005 as regards the publication of information on the beneficiaries of funds deriving from the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) (OJ l 76, 19.3.2008).
(70) Commission report — Evolution of the market situation and the consequent conditions for smoothly phasing out the milk quota system — Second ‘soft landing’ report (COM(2012) 741).
(71) http://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/cfp/illegal_fishing/index_en.htm
(72) Decision on notifying the third countries that the Commission considers as possible of being identified as non-cooperating third countries (OJ C 354, 17.11.2012).
(73) Commission communication — Blue growth — Opportunities for marine and maritime sustainable growth (COM(2012) 494).
(74) http://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/policy/documents/limassol_en.pdf
(75) For further details see http://ec.europa.eu/budget/mff/index_en.cfm
photo CREdits
European Union, pages 51, 54, 58, 61, 62, 65, 66, 67, 69, 74, 76, 79, 83, 84, 86, 89, 90, 91 European Union/Dati Bento, page 76
John Minihan/Hulton Archive/Getty Images, page 50
S T R O N G E R G R O W T H 95
Cars queuing at the German-Polish border crossing near the German town of Görlitz
on the Polish side in Zgorzelec.