Following the failure of the conciliation negotiations on 15 November 2010 on the first version of the 2011 draft budget, and considering the very short time remaining in the 2010 financial year, the Budgets Committee decided that this dossier had become obsolete and should therefore lapse.

PURPOSE: to present the Draft Amending Budget (DAB) N° 2 for the year 2010 to take account of the impacts related to the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty for the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), and the Committee of Regions (CoR).

CONTENT: Draft Amending Budget (DAB) No 2 for the year 2010 covers the following elements:

impact related to the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty for the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), and the Committee of Regions (CoR), as adopted in their respective draft statement of estimates; modifications to the establishment plan of BEREC (Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications) Office, without additional financial provisions.

European Economic and Social Committee : the European Economic and Social Committee has undertaken detailed analyses of the implications and consequences of the full implementation of the Lisbon Treaty. In undertaking these analyses and discussions, the Committee has in particular considered:

new (energy, European research area, sport) or extended policy areas in the Treaty which will necessarily result in more formal consultations of the Committee; the Committee's potential role as the platform, at EU level, for structured dialogue between the EU's institutions and organised civil society; the Committee's possible role with regard to the implementation of the citizens' right of initiative; the Committee's potential monitoring role in verifying that the horizontal social clause in the new Treaty is respected and that social requirements are taken into account in the Union's policies; the need for the Committee to adapt its structures and procedures so as to be able to deliver its opinions to the European Parliament in a timely way, given the obligation now incumbent upon the European Parliament to consult the Committee where the Treaty so provides.

As a result of its reflections and calculations, the Committee requests following additional resources to fully implement the provisions of the Lisbon Treaty: EUR 4.14 million over a period of 6 months, including 22 new posts and the conversion of other posts which does not require any additional appropriations.

Committee of the Regions : the increase in competences attributed by the Lisbon Treaty to the Committee of Regions implies a substantial increase in its activities and its workload:

it strengthens significantly the EU's local and regional dimension through the definition of territorial cohesion as a new objective and the recognition of the new role of Local and Regional Authorities in the pre-legislative phase and in legislative impact assessment. These areas will become part of the core business of the CoR in its day to day activities; it makes explicit reference to the regional and local dimension of the subsidiarity principle with, "as a corollary" the CoR's right to take an action to the European Court of Justice. The evaluation of the territorial impact of any EU legislation in all policy areas which could potentially impact on territories together with the impact assessment of EU initiatives implies the need to reinforce the legal analysis of the EU legislative acts during the different phases of their adoption procedure and a permanent follow up of the CoR opinions; it adds one new area (Energy) on which the CoR must be consulted and extends/deepens further 5 of the 10 existing ones. A proper implementation of these new competences and tasks implies a significant increase in the activities of the CoR. To fulfil properly the extended tasks and responsibilities, additional financial and human resources are required.

It is estimated an additional EUR 6.4 million (an increase of 8 % on the current 2010 budget) and 37 new additional posts.

THE BEREC OFFICE: for 2010 , the budgetary authority allocated an amount of EUR 3.47 million for the Office providing professional and administrative support services to BEREC. Given the uncertainty surrounding the legal basis when presenting the Preliminary Draft Budget 2010, and pending agreement with the European regulators, the establishment plan adopted in the final 2010 budget only included the total number of staff by function groups but no breakdown by grades. To enable the Commission to set up the BEREC Office and hire the staff necessary to support its work, it is therefore necessary to amend the 2010 establishment plan in order to include the detailed establishment plan by grades, and allow the BEREC Office to fulfil all the conditions to become autonomous and carry out its mission in accordance with the adopted legal basis. The proposed modification does not require any additional spending.

Conclusion : the net financial impact of this amending budget is EUR 10.5 million in additional commitments and payments appropriations under heading 5 of the multiannual financial framework.

COM(2010)0108
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