PURPOSE: to grant discharge to the European Training Foundation (ETF) for the financial year 2012.

NON-LEGISLATIVE ACT: Decision 2014/603/EU of the European Parliament on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Training Foundation for the financial year 2012.

CONTENT: with the present decision, the European Parliament grants discharge to ETF’s Director for the implementation of its budget for the financial year 2012.

This decision is in line with the European Parliament's resolution adopted on 3 April 2014 and comprises a series of observations that form an integral part of the discharge decision (please refer to the summary of the opinion of 3 April 2014).

Amongst the main observations made, Parliament highlighted called on the Foundation to communicate the results and impact its work has on European citizens in an accessible way, mainly through its website.

The European Parliament adopted a decision concerning the discharge to be granted to the Director of the Foundation discharge in respect of the implementation of the Foundation's budget for the financial year 2012. The vote on the discharge decision approved the closure of the accounts (in accordance with Annex VI, Article 5(1) of the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament.

Noting that the Court of Auditors stated that it had obtained reasonable assurances that the annual accounts of the Foundation for the financial year 2012 are reliable, and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular, Parliament adopted by 490 votes to 73, with 17 abstentions, a resolution containing a series of recommendations that form an integral part of the discharge decision and as well as the general recommendations that appear in the draft resolution on performance, financial management and control of EU agencies.

These recommendations are summarised as follows:

Role and activities of the Foundation : Parliament welcomed the achievement of the objectives of the work programme in 2012 and acknowledged the emphasis placed by the Foundation’s activity on the important issues of youth employment and the renewed focus on vocational education and training, the skills dimension of small and medium-sized enterprises and migration processes. It noted with regret from the Foundation’s annual accounts that the issue of the Foundation’s premises remained unsolved in 2012, despite the preventive and mitigation actions put in place. It welcomed the fact that an agreement was concluded with the regional authorities in 2013, which ensures the continuation of the Foundation's activities for the 2013-2015 period. Financing, budget and financial management : Parliament recalled that the budget of the Foundation for the financial year 2012 was EUR 20.20 million, and that budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2012 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 99.9%. Rate of implementation and carryovers : Parliament noted that the level of committed appropriations carried over to 2013 was high but appreciated that the main reasons were the late receipt of invoices for building-related services delivered in 2012. Performance : it requested that the Foundation communicate the results and impact its work has on the European citizens in an accessible way, mainly through its website.

Parliament also made a series of observations on transfers, procurement and recruitment procedures as well as comments on internal controls.

Lastly, it welcomed the adoption of guidelines on preventing and managing conflicts of interests in June 2013 and called on the Foundation to make those guidelines available on its website.

The Committee on Budgetary Control adopted the report by Petri SARVAMAA (EPP, FI) on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Training Foundation for the financial year 2012, and called on the European Parliament to grant the Director of the Foundation discharge in respect of the implementation of the Foundation's budget for the financial year 2012 .

Noting that the Court of Auditors stated that it had obtained reasonable assurances that the annual accounts of the Foundation for the financial year 2012 are reliable, and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular, Members approved the closure of the Foundation’s accounts. They made, however, a number of recommendations that needed to be taken into account when the discharge is granted, in addition to the general recommendations that appear in the draft resolution on performance, financial management and control of EU agencies.

· Financing, budget and financial management : Members recalled that the budget of the Foundation for the financial year 2012 was EUR 20.20 million, and that budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2012 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 99.91 %.

· Rate of implementation and carryovers : they noted that the level of committed appropriations carried over to 2013 was high but appreciated that the main reasons were the late receipt of invoices for building-related services delivered in 2012.

Members also made a series of observations on t ransfers , p rocurement and recruitment procedures as well as comments on internal controls .

Lastly, they asked the Foundation to strengthen transparency and prevent conflicts of interests, as well as make publicly available the Declarations of Interests of certain members.

Having examined the revenue and expenditure accounts for the financial year 2012 and the balance sheet at 31 December 2012 of the European Training Foundation, as well as

the Court of Auditors' report on the annual accounts of the Foundation for the financial year 2012, accompanied by the Foundation's replies to the Court's observations, the Council recommends the European Parliament to give a discharge to the Director of the Foundation in respect of the implementation of the budget for the financial year 2012.

The observations in the Court of Auditors' report call for certain comments by the Council which can be summarised as follows:

in general, the Council welcomes the Court's opinion that, in all material respects, the Foundation's annual accounts present fairly its financial position as at 31 December 2012 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, in accordance with the provisions of the Foundation's Financial Regulation and that the underlying transactions for that financial year are legal and regular. Carry-overs of appropriations : notwithstanding this favourable finding, while noting improvements in carry-overs, the Council notes, however, that a high level of commitment appropriations was still carried over to 2013. The Council recalls that, in line with the budgetary principle of annuality, excessive carry-overs should be strictly limited.

PURPOSE: presentation of the EU Court of Auditors’ report on the annual accounts of the European Training Foundation (ETF) for the financial year 2012, together with the Foundation’s reply.

CONTENT: in accordance with the tasks conferred on the Court of Auditors by the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the Court presents to the European Parliament and to the Council, in the context of the discharge procedure, a Statement of Assurance as to the reliability of the annual accounts of each institution, body or agency of the EU, and the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying them, on the basis of an independent external audit.

This audit concerned, amongst others, the annual accounts of the European Training Foundation (ETF).

In the Court’s opinion, the Foundation’s Annual Accounts fairly present, in all material respects, its financial position as of 31 December 2012 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, in accordance with the provisions of its financial rules and the accounting rules adopted by the Commission’s accounting officer.

The Court also considers that the transactions underlying the annual accounts of the Foundation for the financial year ended 31 December 2012 are, in all material respects, legal and regular .

The report confirms that the Foundation’s 2012 budget amounted to EUR 20.1 million.

The report also makes a series of observations on the budgetary and financial management of the Foundation, accompanied by the latter’s response. The main observations may be summarised as follows:

The Court’s observations :

budgetary management: in 2012 the overall level of committed appropriations was 99,9 %, indicating that commitments were made in a timely manner. The level of committed appropriations carried over to 2013 however was high for title II (administrative expenditure) at EUR 600 000 (36,8 %). The main reasons were the late receipt of invoices for building-related services delivered in 2012 and a number of IT hardware and software purchases ordered as planned during the last months of 2012 but not delivered until 2013.

The Foundation’s replies :

budgetary management: the Foundation states that of the EUR 590 000 in commitments carried forward for administrative expenses, some EUR 300 000 related to activities completed in 2012 but paid only in 2013 owing to invoicing and payment processing times. ETF will continue to pay great attention to the principle of annuality of the budget while ensuring sound management of the financial resources entrusted to it.

Lastly, the Court of Auditors’ report contains a summary of the Foundation’s activities in 2012 . This is focused on the following:

improvement of human capital development in 30 partner countries; regional policy learning conferences that enabled stakeholders to share cross- countries experience on policy developments. Two Corporate conferences were organised in 2012 – one in May on the topic of Multi-level Governance in the field of Vocational Education and Training and another one in November on the topic of Entrepreneurship; supporting the EU policies and project cycle of external relations instruments for the partner countries; capacity building of partner countries; policy analysis; dissemination and networking; responses to the Commission on the management of training in third countries.