7 Amendments of Hristo PETROV related to 2024/2019(DEC)
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. ObservesIs concerned that the total outstanding commitments reached a record high of EUR 543 billion by the end of 2023, mainly due to an increased commitment of shared management funds, as well as NextGenerationEU (NGEU), but notices that the total outstanding commitments are expected to decrease in the 2024-2026 period;
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes with concerns that the Court of Auditors estimates that the level of error for MFF heading 2 ‘Cohesion, resilience and values’ in 2023 reached 9,3 %, compared with 6,4 % in 2022, significantly above the already high rates of previous years, resulting in the Court issuing an adverse opinion on the legality and regularity of budget expenditure; recognises that the majority of spending in this area is deemed high-risk expenditure as mainly reimbursement-based and often subject to complex rules; calls for urgent action to decrease the errnotes the main types of error quantified were ineligible projects and costs, non-compliance with public procurement or rstate in the futureaid rules, and absence of essential documents;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Calls for urgent action to decrease the error rate in the future especially for the new funding period, and notes the Court’s observation that the complexity of the way funds are disbursed has an impact on the risk of error; further calls on the Commission to assist the agencies to improve their internal procedures in order to ensure compliance with applicable public procurement and state aid rules;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3 b. Notes however that the Court recognises several factors which put additional pressure on Member State administrations and increased the risk regarding their capacity to ensure spending was regular and in line with the principles of sound financial management; recalls these factors include the significant additional REACT-EU resources being made available, and the end date of 31 December 2023 for the 2014-2020 cohesion eligibility period, which for the last few years overlaps with the eligibility period of the RRF;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Expresses concerns that the Commission forecast decommitments for cohesion policy funds, including the European Social Fund Plus, at EUR 2,2 billion for the 2024-2027 period, five times higher its 2022 forecast, mainly due to persistent low absorption; stresses the Commission should identify ways to help Member States accelerate the use of EU funds, in particular shared management funds under the Common Provisions Regulation to improve absorption, while respecting sound financial management;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4 a. Recalls the importance of the ESF+ which aims to achieve high employment, fair social protection, a skilled and resilient workforce, and inclusive/cohesive societies as key in eradicating poverty; underlines the importance of closely involving regional actors, in particular civil society organisations and social partners working on the ground in the implementation of ESF+ funded activities;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4 b. Notes the Court issued a qualified opinion on the legality and regularity of RRF expenditure due to weaknesses in the design of measures and cases of vaguely defined milestones/targets contributing to a more discretionary assessment and persistent weaknesses in the Member States’ reporting and control systems;