[ParlTrack]

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 1

(1) IThe provision of foodstuffs and agricultural products and assistance for the most deprived persons is an imperative, and whereas in line with the conclusions of the European Council of 17 June 2010, whereby the Union strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth was adopted, the Union and the Member States have set themselves the objective of having at least 20 million fewer people at risk of poverty and social exclusion by 2020.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 2

(2) The number of persons suffering from food and material or even severe food and material deprivation in the Union is increasing and those persons are often too excluded to benefit from the activation measures of Regulation (EU) No […CPR], and, in particular of Regulation (EU) No […ESF].

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 2 a (new)

(2a) In 2010 nearly a quarter of Europeans (119.6 million people, almost 4 million more than in 2009) were at risk of poverty or social exclusion. Of those 119.6 million, 18 million were dependent almost every day on food parcels or meals distributed by charitable associations.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 6

(6) Those provisions also ensure that the operations supported shall comply with applicable Union and national laws, notably in regard to the safety of the goods and the quality of the food products that are distributed to the most deprived persons.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 7

(7) In order to set out an appropriate financial framework, the Commission should establish, by means of implementing acts, an annual breakdown of global resources by Member State using an objective and transparent method reflecting disparities in terms of poverty and material deprivation within each Member State, taking account of the number of people classifiable in each Member State as ‘most deprived’ and also of the amounts that were allocated from the Food Distribution Programme to participating Member States.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 16

(16) USimple, uniform and equitable rules on the eligibility period, operations and expenditures for the Fund should be applied across the Union. The conditions of eligibility should reflect the specific nature of the Fund’s objectives and target populations, notably through adequate and simplified conditions of eligibility of the operations as well as forms of support and rules and conditions of reimbursement.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 27

(27) Union budget commitments should be effected annually. In order to ensure effective programme management, it is necessary to lay down simple common rules for interim payment requests, the payment of the annual balance and the final balance.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 32

(32) In order to ensure that expenditure financed by the Union budget in any given financial year is used in accordance with the applicable rules, an appropriate and simple framework should be created for the annual examination and acceptance of accounts. Under this framework, the designated bodies should submit to the Commission, in respect of the operational programme, a management declaration accompanied by the certified annual accounts, an annual summary of the final audit reports and of controls carried out and an independent audit opinion and control report.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 35

(35) The frequency of audits on operations should be proportionate to the extent of the Union's support from the Fund. In particular, the number of audits carried out should be reduced where the total eligible expenditure for an operation does not exceed EUR 100 000. Nevertheless, it should be possible to carry out audits at any time where there is evidence of an irregularity or fraud, or as part of an audit sample. In order that the level of auditing by the Commission is proportionate to the risk, the Commission should be able to reduce its audit work in relation to operational programmes where there are no significant deficiencies or where the audit authority can be relied on. In addition, the scope of audits should take fully into account the objective and the features of the target populations of the Fund, as well as the voluntary nature of the beneficiary bodies.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 41

(41) This Regulation respects fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised in particular by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, including respect for human dignity and for private and family life, the right to the protection of personal data, the rights of the child, the right to social assistance and to housing, the rights of the elderly, equality between men and women, and the prohibition of discrimination. This Regulation must be applied according to these rights and principles.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1

1. This Regulation establishes the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (hereinafter ‘the Fund’) for the period from 1 January 2014 to 31 December 2020 and determines the objectives of the Fund, the scope of its support, the financial resources available and the criteria for their allocation and lays down the rules necessary to ensure th~~e effectiveness of the Fund~~at the Fund is effective and easy to implement.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – point 1

(1) 'most deprived persons' means physical persons, whether individuals, families, households or groups composed of such persons, whose need for assistance has been established according to the objective criteria ~~adopt~~defined by the national competent authorities~~, or defined by~~ in cooperation with the partner organisations ~~and which are approved by those competent authorities~~, in particular national, regional or local organisations which are already working to hand out food to the most deprived, or which are providing assistance to homeless persons and people affected by poverty or social exclusion;

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – point 6

(6) '‘beneficiary'’ means a public ~~or private body~~body or a not-for-profit organisation responsible for initiating or initiating and implementing operations;

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – point 9

(9) '‘intermediate body'’ means any public ~~or private body~~body or not-for-profit organisation which acts under the responsibility of a managing or certifying authority, or which carries out duties on behalf of such an authority in relation to beneficiaries' implementing operations;

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1

1. The Fund shall support national schystemes whereby food products and basic consumer goods for the personal use of homeless persons or of children are distributed to the most deprived persons through partner organisations selected by Member Statesfor distributing healthy food products to the most deprived as well as basic consumer goods for their personal use.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 2

2. The Fund, via the partner organisations, may support accompanying measures, complementing the provision of food and goods, contributing to the social inclusion ~~of the most deprived persons~~and improving the quality of life of the most deprived persons and/or seeking to protect their human dignity.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 9

(9) The Commission and the Member States shall ~~carry out their respective roles in relati~~take action to guarantee the effectiveness of the Fund, in particular through mon ito ~~the Fund with the aim of reducing the administrative burden for~~ring, reporting and evaluation. They shall also ensure that the Fund is easy for the partner organisations and beneficiaries to implement.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 12

(12) Member States and beneficiaries shall choose the food products and the goods on the basis of objective criteria. Priority shall be given, under the selection criteria for the food products, to products of European origin. The selection criteria for the food products shall be set with a view to helping the end recipients achieve a healthy and balanced diet. The selection criteria for the food products, and where appropriate for goods, shall also take into consideration climatic and environmental aspects, in particular with a view to reduction of food waste.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1

1. The global resources available for budgetary commitment from the Fund for the period 2014-2020 shall be at least EUR ~~2 5~~5 000 000 000 at 2011 prices, in accordance with the annual breakdown set out in Annex II.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 3 – point -a (new)

(-a) the population suffering from food poverty;

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – introductory part

Each Member State shall submit to the Commission one operational programme ~~cover~~withing th~~e period between 1 January 2014 and 31 December 2020~~ree months of the entry into force of this Regulation that has been prepared in cooperation within th~~ree months of the entry into force of this Regulation,~~e local authorities and the organisations fighting poverty and social exclusion, including organisations formerly in receipt of MDP funding. The operational programme shall cover the period between 1 January 2014 and 31 December 2020 and shall contain~~ing~~ the following items:

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1

The Commission shall set up a Union level platform to facilitate the exchange of experience, know-how, capacity building ~~and networking~~, networking, the deployment of distribution networks throughout Europe, particularly in those areas within each Member State where levels of poverty and exclusion are highest, and the development of transnational and cross-border activities, as well as dissemination of relevant and innovative outcomes in the area of ~~non- financial assistance to the most deprived persons~~food and goods distribution to the most deprived persons. It shall integrate and link on the platform the organisations that represent the partner organisations at Union level as well as the partner organisations and beneficiaries in each Member State. It shall set up and manage a public website specifically for the platform. The site will include a presentation of the various partner organisations, their activities and where they operate Europe- wide, including in the outermost regions. It will also present all documents and information relevant to the running of the platform and to its work.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 2

In addition, the Commission shall consult, at least once a year, the organisations which represent the partner organisations at Union level ~~on the implementation of support from the Fund~~and the main partner organisations in each Member State on the implementation, and ease of implementation, of support from the Fund. It shall publish reports on such consultation, and its results, on the platform website.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 14

Article 14 Ex ante evaluation 1. Member States shall carry out an ex ante evaluation of the operational programme. 2. The ex ante evaluation shall be carried out under the responsibility of the authority responsible for preparing the operational programmes. It shall be submitted to the Commission at the same time as the operational programme, together with an executive summary. 3. Ex ante evaluations shall appraise the following elements: (a) the contribution to the Union objective of at least 20 million fewer people at risk of poverty and social exclusion by 2020, having regard to the selected type of material deprivation to be addressed, taking into account national circumstances in terms of poverty and social exclusion and material deprivation; (b) the internal coherence of the proposed operational programme and its relation with other relevant financial instruments; (c) the consistency of the allocation of budgetary resources with the objectives of the operational programme; (d) contribution of the expected outputs to the results; (e) the suitability of the procedures for monitoring the operational programme and for collecting the data necessary to carry out evaluations.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 15

Article 15 Evaluation during the programming period 1. During the programming period, the managing authority may carry out evaluations for assessing the effectiveness and efficiency of the operational programme. 2. The managing authority shall carry out a structured survey on end recipients in 2017 and 2021, in accordance with the template provided by the Commission. The Commission shall adopt the template by means of an implementing act. This implementing act shall be adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 60(2). 3. The Commission may carry out, at its own initiative, evaluation of operational programmes.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 16

At its own initiative and in close cooperation with the Member States, the Commission shall carry out, with the assistance of external experts, an ex-post evaluation, to assess the ~~effectiveness and sustainability of results obtained~~simplicity of the management system for the programmes, the effectiveness and sustainability of results obtained and the needs indicated by the partner organisations, as well as to measure the added value of the Fund. This ex post evaluation shall be completed by 31 December 2023.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 – paragraph 1

1. The Commission and Member States shall provide information on and promote the actions supported by the Fund. The information shall be addressed to the most deprived persons, the media and the wider public. It shall highlight the role of the Union and ensure that the contribution from the Fund, the partner organisations and their volunteers is visible.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1

During the implementation of an operation, the beneficiaries and partner organisations shall inform the public about the support obtained from the Fund by placing either at least one poster with information about the operation (minimum size A3), including about the financial support from the Union, at a location readily visible to the public, at each place of provision of the food, goods and any accompanying measure or a European flag, and in such a way as not to stigmatise end recipients, except if this is not possible due to the circumstances of the distribution.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 18 – title

~~Co-f~~Financing

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 18 – paragraph 1

1. The ~~co-~~financing rate at the level of the operational programme shall ~~not be higher than 85~~be 100% of the public eligible expenditure.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 21 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1

The food and the goods for ~~homeless persons or for children~~the final beneficiaries of the Fund may be purchased by the partner organisations themselves.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 21 – paragraph 4

4. That food and/or material assistance shall as a rule be distributed free of charge to the most deprived persons. Where the aims of providing such food and/or material assistance to the most deprived persons include furthering their integration or social rehabilitation, final beneficiaries may be charged a symbolic price not exceeding 10% of the market price.

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 24 – paragraph 1 – point a

(a) the costs of purchasing food and basic consumer goods for the personal use of ~~homeless persons or of children~~the final beneficiaries;

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 24 – paragraph 1 – point b

(b) where a public body purchases the food or basic consumer goods for the personal use of ~~homeless persons or of children~~the final beneficiaries and provides them to partner organisations, the costs of transporting of food or goods to the storage depots of the partner organisations at a flat rate of 1 % of the costs referred to in point (a);

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 27

Article 27 Responsibilities of Member States 1. Member States shall fulfil the management, control and audit obligations and assume the resulting responsibilities laid down in the rules on shared management set out in the Financial Regulation and this Regulation. In accordance with the principle of shared management, Member States shall be responsible for the management and control of operational programmes. 2. Member States shall prevent, detect and correct irregularities and shall recover amounts unduly paid, together with any interest on late payments. They shall notify these irregularities to the Commission and shall keep the Commission informed of the progress of related administrative and legal proceedings. When amounts unduly paid to a beneficiary cannot be recovered and this is as a result of fault or negligence on the part of a Member State, the Member State shall be responsible for reimbursing the amounts concerned to the general budget of the Union. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 59 laying down detailed rules concerning the obligations of the Member States specified in this paragraph. 3. Member States shall establish and implement a procedure for the independent examination and resolution of complaints concerning the selection or implementation of operations co-financed by the Fund. Member States shall report the results of such examinations to the Commission upon request. 4. All official exchanges of information between the Member State and the Commission shall be carried out using an electronic data exchange system established in compliance with the terms and conditions laid down by the Commission by means of implementing acts. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 60(3).deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 28

Article 28 Designation and organisation of management and control bodies 1. The Member State shall designate a national public authority or body as managing authority. 2. The Member State shall designate a national public authority or body as a certifying authority, without prejudice to paragraph 3. 3. The Member State may designate a managing authority which carries out in addition the functions of the certifying authority. 4. The Member State shall designate a national public authority or body, functionally independent from the managing authority and the certifying authority, as audit authority. 5. Provided that the principle of separation of functions is respected, the managing authority, the certifying authority, where applicable, and the audit authority may be part of the same public authority or body. 6. The Member State may designate one or more intermediate bodies to carry out certain tasks of the managing or the certifying authority under the responsibility of that authority. The relevant arrangements between the managing authority or certifying authority and the intermediate bodies shall be formally recorded in writing. 7. The Member State or the managing authority may entrust the management of part of the operational programme to an intermediate body by way of an agreement in writing between the intermediate body and the Member State or managing authority. The intermediate body shall provide guarantees of its solvency and competence in the domain concerned, as well as its administrative and financial management. 8. The Member State shall lay down in writing rules governing its relations with the managing authority, certifying authority and audit authority, the relations between such authorities, and the relations of such authorities with the Commission.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 29

Article 29 Functions of the managing authority 1. The managing authority shall be responsible for managing the operational programme in accordance with the principle of sound financial management. 2. As regards the management of the operational programme, the managing authority shall: (a) draw up and submit to the Commission annual and final implementation reports; (b) make available to intermediate bodies and beneficiaries information that is relevant to the execution of their tasks and the implementation of operations respectively; (c) establish a system to record and store in computerised form data necessary for monitoring, evaluation, financial management, verification and audit; (d) ensure that the data referred to in point (c) is collected, entered and stored in the system, in compliance with the provisions Directive 95/46/CE. 3. As regards the selection of operations, the managing authority shall: (a) Draw up and apply appropriate selection procedures and criteria that are non-discriminatory and transparent; (b) ensure that the selected operation: (i) falls within the scope of the Fund and the operational programme; (ii) fulfils the criteria set out in the operational programme and in Articles 20, 21 and 24; (iii) takes into account the principles set out in Article 5(10), (11) and (12). (c) provide to the beneficiary a document setting out the conditions for support of each operation including the specific requirements concerning the products or services to be delivered under the operation, the financing plan, and the time-limit for execution; (d) satisfy itself that the beneficiary has the administrative, financial and operational capacity to fulfil the conditions defined in point (c) before approval of the operation; (e) satisfy itself that, where the operation has started before the submission of an application for funding to the managing authority, Union and national rules relevant for the operation have been complied with; (f) determine the type of material assistance to which the expenditure of an operation shall be attributed. 4. As regards the financial management and control of the operational programme, the managing authority shall: (a) verify that the co-financed products and services have been delivered and that expenditure declared by the beneficiaries has been paid by them and that it complies with applicable Union and national law, the operational programme and the conditions for support of the operation; (b) ensure that beneficiaries involved in the implementation of operations reimbursed pursuant to Article 23(1)(a) maintain either a separate accounting system or an adequate accounting code for all transactions relating to an operation; (c) put in place effective and proportionate anti-fraud measures taking into account the risks identified; (d) set up procedures to ensure that all documents regarding expenditure and audits required to ensure an adequate audit trail are held in accordance with the requirements of Article 26(g); (e) draw up the management declaration and annual summary referred to in Article 56 (5) (a) and (b) of the Financial Regulation. 5. Verifications pursuant to paragraph 4(a) shall include the following procedures: (a) administrative verifications in respect of each application for reimbursement by beneficiaries; (b) on-the-spot verifications of operations. The frequency and coverage of the on- the-spot verifications shall be proportionate to the amount of public support to an operation and the level of risk identified by these verifications and audits by the audit authority for the management and control system as a whole. 6. On-the-spot verifications of individual operations pursuant to paragraph (5)(b) may be carried out on a sample basis. 7. Where the managing authority is also a beneficiary under the operational programme, arrangements for the verifications referred to in paragraph 4(a) shall ensure adequate separation of functions. 8. The Commission shall adopt delegated acts, in accordance with Article 59, laying down the modalities of the exchange of information in paragraph 2(c). 9. The Commission shall adopt delegated acts, in accordance with Article 59, laying down rules concerning arrangements for the audit trail referred to in paragraph 4(d). 10. The Commission shall adopt, by means of implementing acts, the template for the management declaration referred to in paragraph 4(e). Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 60(2).deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 30

Article 30 Functions of the certifying authority The certifying authority shall be responsible in particular for the following: 1. drawing up and submitting to the Commission payment applications and certifying that these result from reliable accounting systems, are based on verifiable supporting documents and have been subject to verifications by the managing authority; 2. drawing up the annual accounts referred to in Article 56 (5) (a) of the Financial Regulation; 3. certifying the completeness, accuracy and veracity of the annual accounts and that the expenditure entered in the accounts complies with applicable Union and national rules and has been incurred in respect of operations selected for funding in accordance to the criteria applicable to the operational programme and complying with Union and national rules; 4. ensuring that there is a system which records and stores, in computerised form, accounting records for each operation, and which supports all the data required for drawing up payment applications and annual accounts, including records of amounts recoverable, amounts recovered and amounts withdrawn following cancellation of all or part of the contribution for an operation or the operational programme; 5. ensuring for the purposes of drawing up and submission of payment applications that it has received adequate information from the managing authority on the procedures and verifications carried out in relation to expenditure; 6. taking into account when drawing up and submitting payment applications the results of all audits carried out by or under the responsibility of the audit authority; 7. maintaining accounting records in a computerised form of expenditure declared to the Commission and the corresponding public contribution paid to the beneficiaries; 8. keeping an account of amounts recoverable and of amounts withdrawn following cancellation of all or part of the contribution for an operation. Amounts recovered shall be repaid to the general budget of the Union prior to the closure of the operational programme by deducting them from the next statement of expenditure.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 31

Article 31 Functions of the audit authority 1. The audit authority shall ensure that audits are carried out on the management and control systems, on an appropriate sample of operations and on the annual accounts. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 59 to set out the conditions which those audits shall fulfil. 2. Where audits are carried out by a body other than the audit authority, the audit authority shall ensure that any such body has the necessary functional independence. 3. The audit authority shall ensure that audit work takes account of internationally accepted audit standards. 4. The audit authority shall, within six months of adoption of the operational programme, prepare an audit strategy for performance of audits. The audit strategy shall set out the audit methodology, the sampling method for audits on operations and the planning of audits in relation to the current accounting year and the two subsequent accounting years. The audit strategy shall be updated annually from 2016 until and including 2022. The audit authority shall submit the audit strategy to the Commission upon request. 5. The audit authority shall draw up the following: (a) an audit opinion in accordance with Article 56 (5) of the Financial Regulation; (s) (b) an annual control report setting out the findings of the audits carried out during the preceding accounting year. The report under point (b) shall set out any deficiencies found in the management and control system and any corrective measures taken or proposed to be taken. 6. The Commission shall adopt, by means of implementing acts, models for the audit strategy, the audit opinion and the annual control report, as well as the methodology for the sampling method referred to in paragraph 4. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 60(3). 7. Implementing rules concerning the use of data collected during audits carried out by Commission officials or authorised Commission representatives shall be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 60(3).deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 32

Article 32 Procedure for designation of the managing and the certifying authorities 1. Member states shall notify to the Commission the date and form of the designation of the managing authority and, where appropriate the certifying authority, within six months of the adoption of decision adopting the operational programme. 2. The designation referred to in paragraph 1 shall be based on a report and an opinion of an independent audit body that assesses the management and control system, including the role of intermediate bodies therein, and its compliance with Articles 26, 27, 29 and 30, in accordance with criteria on internal environment, control activities, information and communication, and monitoring established by the Commission by means of delegated act in accordance with Article 59. 3. The independent body shall carry out its work in accordance with internationally accepted audit standards. 4. Member States may decide that a managing authority or a certifying authority which has been designated in relation to an ESF co-financed operational programme pursuant to Regulation (EU) No [CPR] is deemed to be designated for the purposes of this Regulation. The Commission may request, within two months of receipt of the notification referred to in paragraph 1, the report and the opinion of the independent audit body and the description of the management and control system. The Commission may make observations within two months of receipt of those documents. 5. The Member State shall supervise the designated body and withdraw its designation by formal decision if one or more of the criteria referred to in paragraph 2 are no longer met, unless the body takes the necessary remedial actions within a period of probation to be determined by the Member State according to the severity of the problem. The Member State shall notify the Commission immediately of the setting of any probation period for a designated body and of any withdrawal decision.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 33

Article 33 Commission powers and responsibilities 1. The Commission shall satisfy itself on the basis of available information, including the information on the designation of the managing authority and the certifying authority, annual management declaration, annual control reports, annual audit opinion, annual implementation report and audits carried out by national and Union bodies, that the Member States have set up management and control systems that comply with this Regulation and that these systems function effectively during the implementation of operational programme. 2. Without prejudice to audits carried out by Member States, Commission officials or authorised Commission representatives may carry out on-the-spot audits or checks upon giving adequate prior notice. The scope of such audits or checks may include, in particular, verification of the effective functioning of management and control systems in an operational programme or a part thereof, operations and assessment of the sound financial management of operations or operational programme. Officials or authorised representatives of the Member State may take part in such audits. Commission officials or authorised Commission representatives, duly empowered to carry out on-the-spot audits, shall have access to all records, documents and metadata, irrespective of the medium in which they are stored, relating to operations supported by the Fund or to management and control systems. Member States shall provide copies of such records, documents and metadata to the Commission upon request. The powers set out in this paragraph shall not affect the application of national provisions which reserve certain acts for agents specifically designated by national legislation. Commission officials and authorised representatives shall not take part, inter alia, in home visits or the formal questioning of persons within the framework of national legislation. However, they shall have access to the information thus obtained. 3. The Commission may require a Member State to take the actions necessary to ensure the effective functioning of their management and control systems or the correctness of expenditure in accordance with this Regulation. 4. The Commission may require a Member State to examine a complaint submitted to the Commission concerning the implementation of operations co- financed by the Fund or the functioning of the management and control system.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 34

Article 34 Cooperation with audit authority 1. The Commission shall cooperate with audit authorities to coordinate their audit plans and methods and shall immediately exchange the results of audits carried out on management and control systems. 2. The Commission and the audit authority shall meet on a regular basis and at least once a year, unless otherwise agreed, to examine the annual control report, the opinion and the audit strategy, and to exchange views on issues relating to improvement of the management and control systems.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 43

Article 43 Interruption of the time limit payment 1. The time limit for the payment of an interim payment claim may be interrupted by the authorising officer by delegation within the meaning of the Financial Regulation for a maximum period of nine months when the following conditions are met: (a) on the basis of the information provided by a national or Union audit body, there is evidence to suggest a significant deficiency in the functioning of the management and control system; (b) the authorising officer by delegation has to carry out additional verifications following information coming to his attention alerting him that expenditure in a request for payment is linked to an irregularity having serious financial consequences; (c) there is a failure to submit one of the documents required under Article 45(1). 2. The authorising officer by delegation may limit the interruption to the part of the expenditure covered by the payment claim affected by the elements referred to in paragraph 1. The authorising officer by delegation shall inform the Member State and the managing authority immediately of the reason for interruption and shall ask them to remedy the situation. The interruption shall be ended by the authorising officer by delegation as soon as the necessary measures have been taken.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 44

Article 44 Suspension of payments 1. All or part of the interim payments may be suspended by the Commission where: (a) there is a serious deficiency in the management and control system of the operational programme for which corrective measures have not been taken; (b) expenditure in a statement of expenditure is linked to an irregularity having serious financial consequences which has not been corrected; (c) the Member State has failed to take the necessary action to remedy the situation giving rise to an interruption under Article 43; (d) (cc) there is a serious deficiency in the quality and reliability of the monitoring system or of the data on indicators. 2. The Commission may decide, by means of implementing acts, to suspend all or part of interim payments, after having given the Member State the opportunity to present its observations. 3. The Commission shall end suspension of all or part of interim payments where the Member State has taken the necessary measures to enable the suspension to be lifted.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 48

Article 48 Availability of documents 1. The managing authority shall ensure that all supporting documents on operations are made available to the Commission and the European Court of Auditors upon request for a period of three years. This three year period shall run from 31 December of the year of the decision on acceptance of accounts by the Commission pursuant to Article 47 or, at the latest, from the date of payment of the final balance. This three year period shall be interrupted either in the case of legal or administrative proceedings or by a duly justified request of the Commission. 2. The documents shall be kept either in the form of the originals, or certified true copies of the originals, or on commonly accepted data carriers including electronic versions of original documents or documents existing in electronic version only. 3. The documents shall be kept in a form which permits identification of data subjects for no longer than is necessary for the purposes for which the data were collected or for which they are further processed. 4. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 59 to set out which data carriers can be considered as commonly accepted. 5. The procedure for certification of conformity of documents held on commonly accepted data carriers with the original document shall be laid down by the national authorities and shall ensure that the versions held comply with national legal requirements and can be relied on for audit purposes. 6. Where documents exist in electronic version only, the computer systems used must meet accepted security standards that ensure that the documents held comply with national legal requirements and can be relied on for audit purposes.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 50 – paragraph 2

2. The Member State shall make the financial corrections required in connection with individual or systemic irregularities detected in operations or the operational programme. Financial corrections shall consist of cancelling all or part of the public contribution to an operation or the operational programme. The Member State shall take into account the nature and gravity of the irregularities and the financial loss to the Fund and shall apply a proportionate correction. Financial corrections shall be recorded in the annual accounts by the managing authority for the accounting year in which the cancellation is decided.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 50 – paragraph 3

~~3. The contribution from the Fund cancelled in accordance with paragraph 2 may be reused by the Member State within the operational programme concerned, subject to paragraph 4.~~deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 50 – paragraph 4

4. The contribution cancelled in accordance with paragraph 2 may not be reused for any operation that was the subject of the correction or, where a financial correction is made for a systemic irregularity, for any operation affected by the systemic irregularity.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 50 – paragraph 5

~~5. A financial correction by the Commission shall not prejudice the Member State's obligation to pursue recoveries under the present Article.~~deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 51

Article 51 Financial corrections by the Commission 1. The Commission shall make financial corrections, by means of implementing act, by cancelling all or part of the Union contribution to an operational programme and effecting recovery from the Member State in order to exclude from Union financing expenditure which is in breach of applicable Union and national law, including in relation to deficiencies in the management and control systems of Member States which have been detected by the Commission or the European Court of Auditors. 2. A breach of applicable Union or national law shall lead to a financial correction only when one of the following conditions is met: (pp) the breach has or could have affected the selection of an operation by the managing authority for support by the Fund; (qq) the breach has or could have affected the amount of expenditure declared for reimbursement by the Union budget.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 52

Article 52 Criteria for financial correction by the Commission 1. The Commission shall make financial corrections after carrying out the necessary examination, it concludes that: (rr) there is a serious deficiency in the management and control system of the operational programme which has put at risk the Union contribution already paid to the operational programme; (ss) the Member State has not complied with its obligations under Article 50 prior to the opening of the correction procedure under this paragraph; (tt) expenditure contained in a payment application is irregular and has not been corrected by the Member State prior to the opening of the correction procedure under this paragraph. The Commission shall base its financial corrections on individual cases of irregularity identified and shall take account of whether an irregularity is systemic. When it is not possible to quantify precisely the amount of irregular expenditure charged to the Fund, the Commission shall apply a flat rate or extrapolated financial correction. 2. The Commission shall, when deciding the amount of a correction under paragraph 1, take account of the nature and gravity of the irregularity and the extent and financial implications of the deficiencies in management and control systems found in the operational programme. 3. Where the Commission bases its position on reports of auditors other than those of its own services, it shall draw its own conclusions regarding the financial consequences after examining the measures taken by the Member State concerned under Article 50(2), the notifications sent under Article 27(2), and any replies from the Member State. 4. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 59 establishing the criteria for establishing the level of financial correction to be applied.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 53

Article 53 Procedure for financial corrections by the Commission 1. Before taking a decision on a financial correction, the Commission shall launch the procedure by informing the Member State of the provisional conclusions of its examination and requesting the Member State to submit its comments within two months. 2. Where the Commission proposes a financial correction on the basis of extrapolation or a flat rate, the Member State shall be given the opportunity to demonstrate, through an examination of the documentation concerned, that the actual extent of irregularity is less than the Commission's assessment. In agreement with the Commission, the Member State may limit the scope of this examination to an appropriate proportion or sample of the documentation concerned. Except in duly justified cases, the time allowed for this examination shall not exceed a further period of two months after the two-month period referred to in paragraph 1. 3. The Commission shall take account of any evidence supplied by the Member State within the time limits set out in paragraphs 1 and 2. 4. Where the Member State does not accept the provisional conclusions of the Commission, the Member State shall be invited to a hearing by the Commission, in order to ensure that all relevant information and observations are available as a basis for conclusions by the Commission on the application of the financial correction. 5. In order to apply financial corrections the Commission shall take a decision, by means of implementing acts, within six months of the date of the hearing, or of the date of receipt of additional information where the Member State agrees to submit such additional information following the hearing. The Commission shall take account of all information and observations submitted during the course of the procedure. If no hearing takes place, the six month period shall begin to run two months after the date of the letter of invitation to the hearing sent by the Commission. 6. Where irregularities affecting annual accounts sent to the Commission are detected by the Commission or by the European Court of Auditors, the resulting financial correction shall reduce support from the Fund to the operational programme.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 54

Article 54 Repayments to the Union Budget - Recoveries 1. Any repayment due to be made to the general budget of the Union shall be effected before the due date indicated in the order for recovery drawn up in accordance with Article 77 of the Financial Regulation. The due date shall be the last day of the second month following the issuing of the order. 2. Any delay in effecting repayment shall give rise to interest on account of late payment, starting on the due date and ending on the date of actual payment. The rate of such interest shall be one-and-a- half percentage points above the rate applied by the European Central Bank in its main refinancing operations on the first working day of the month in which the due date falls.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 55

Article 55 Proportional control of operational programmes 1. Operations for which the total eligible expenditure does not exceed EUR 100 000 shall not be subject to more than one audit by either the audit authority or the Commission prior to the examination of all the expenditure concerned under Article 47. Other operations shall not be subject to more than one audit per accounting year by the audit authority and the Commission prior to the examination of all the expenditure concerned under Article 47. Those provisions are without prejudice to paragraphs 5 and 6. 2. Audit of an operation may cover all stages of its implementation and all levels of the distribution chain, with the exception of control of the actual end recipients, unless a risk assessment establishes a specific risk of irregularity or fraud. 3. When the most recent audit opinion on the operational programme indicates that there are no significant deficiencies, the Commission may agree with the audit authority in the subsequent meeting referred to in Article 34(2) that the level of audit work required may be reduced so that it is proportionate to the risk established. In such cases, the Commission will not carry out its own on- the-spot audits unless there is evidence suggesting deficiencies in the management and control system affecting expenditure declared to the Commission in an accounting year for which the accounts have been accepted. 4. If the Commission concludes that it can rely on the opinion of the audit authority for the operational programme, it may agree with the audit authority to limit its own on the spot audits to audit the work of the audit authority unless there is evidence of deficiencies in the work of the audit authority work for an accounting year for which the accounts have been accepted. 5. The audit authority and the Commission may carry out audits of operations at any time where a risk assessment establishes a specific risk of irregularity or fraud, in case of evidence of serious deficiencies in the management and control system of the operational programme, and, during the 3 years following acceptance of all the expenditure of an operation under Article 47, as part of an audit sample. 6. The Commission may at any time carry out audits of operations for the purpose of assessing the work of an audit authority by re-performance of its audit activity.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 56

Article 56 Rules on decommitment 1. The Commission shall decommit any part of the amount calculated in accordance with the second subparagraph in an operational programme that has not been used for payment of the pre- financing, interim payments and annual balance by 31 December of the second financial year following the year of budget commitment under the operational programme or for which a payment application drawn up in accordance with Article 38 has not been sent in accordance with Article 42. For the purposes of the decommitment, the Commission shall calculate the amount by adding one sixth of the annual budget commitment related to the 2014 total annual contribution to each of the 2015 to 2020 budget commitments. 2. By way of derogation from the first subparagraph of paragraph 1, the deadlines for decommitment shall not apply to the annual budget commitment related to the 2014 total annual contribution. 3. If the first annual budget commitment is related to the 2015 total annual contribution, by way of derogation from paragraph 1, the deadlines for decommitment shall not apply to the annual budget commitment related to the total annual contribution of 2015. In such cases, the Commission shall calculate the amount under the first sub-paragraph of paragraph 1 by adding one fifth of the annual budget commitment related to the 2015 total amount contribution to each of the 2016 to 2020 budget commitments. 4. That part of commitments still open on 31 December 2022 shall be decommitted if any of the documents required under Article 47(2) has not been submitted to the Commission by 30 September 2023.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 57

Article 57 Exception to the decommitment 1. The amount concerned by decommitment shall be reduced by the amounts that the responsible body has not been able to declare to the Commission because of: (uu) operations suspended by a legal proceeding or by an administrative appeal having suspensory effect; or (vv) reasons of force majeure seriously affecting implementation of all or part of the operational programme. The national authorities claiming force majeure shall demonstrate the direct consequences of the force majeure on the implementation of all or part of the operational programme; (ww) The reduction may be requested once if the suspension or force majeure lasted up to one year, or several times corresponding to the duration of the force majeure or the number of years between the date of the legal or administrative decision suspending the implementation of the operation and the date of the final legal or administrative decision. 2. By 31 January, the Member State shall send to the Commission information on the exceptions referred to in paragraph 1 for the amount to be declared by the end of the preceding year.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Patrick LE HYARIC, Younous OMARJEE

Proposal for a regulation
Article 58

Article 58 Procedure for decommitments 1. The Commission shall inform the Member State and the managing authority in good time whenever there is a risk of application of decommitment under Article 56. 2. On the basis of the information it has on 31 January, the Commission shall inform the Member State and the managing authority of the amount of the decommitment resulting from the information in its possession. 3. The Member State shall have two months to agree to the amount to be decommitted or to submit its observations. 4. By 30 June, the Member State shall submit to the Commission a revised financing plan reflecting for the financial year concerned the reduced amount of support of the operational programme. Failing such submission, the Commission shall revise the financing plan by reducing the contribution from the Fund for the financial year concerned. 5. The Commission shall amend the decision adopting the operational programme, by means of implementing act, no later than 30 September.deleted

2013/03/01
Committee: AGRI

Activities of Patrick LE HYARIC related to 2012/0295(COD)

Plenary speeches (1)

Shadow reports (1)

Amendments (57)

ParlTrack - 2011-2024