PURPOSE: to grant discharge to the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) for the financial year 2014.

NON LEGISLATIVE ACT: Decision (EU) 2016/1564 of the European Parliament on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions for the financial year 2014.

CONTENT: with the present decision, the European Parliament grants discharge to the Director of Eurofound for the implementation of the latter’s budget for the financial year 2014.

This decision is in line with the European Parliament's resolution adopted on 28 April 2016 and comprises a series of observations that form an integral part of the discharge decision (please refer to the summary of the opinion of 28 April 2016).

Amongst Parliament’s main observations in the resolution accompanying the discharge decision, the latter noted that Eurofound had not yet signed a headquarters agreement with the host Member State . It noted with satisfaction that negotiations with the host Member State, which started in February 2014, were completed and that the signing of the Foundation’s seat agreement took place on 10 November 2015.

The European Parliament decided to grant discharge to the Director of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) in respect of the implementation of its budget for the financial year 2014. The vote on the decision on discharge covers the closure of the accounts (in accordance with Annex V, Article 5 (1)(a) to Parliament’s Rules of Procedure.

Noting that the Court of Auditors has stated that it has obtained reasonable assurances that the Foundation’s annual accounts for the financial year 2014 are reliable and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular, Parliament adopted by 507 votes to 115 with 8 abstentions, a resolution containing a series of recommendations, which form an integral part of the decision on discharge and which add to the general recommendations set out in the resolution on performance, financial management and control of EU agencies:

Foundation’s financial statements : Parliament noted the final budget of the Foundation for the financial year 2014 was EUR 20 774 000, representing an increase of 0.73 % compared to 2013. Budget and financial management : Parliament noted that the Foundation’s budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2014 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 99.66 %. It also noted that the level of committed appropriations carried over to 2015 was 53.7 % for operational expenditure and acknowledge that those carry-overs related mainly to multiannual projects.

Parliament also made a series of observations regarding commitments and carryovers, the prevention and management of conflicts of interest, as well as on payments, contract award, recruitment and internal audit procedures.

Parliament noted, in particular, that although the Foundation became operational in 1975, a comprehensive headquarters agreement between the Foundation and the host Member State was not signed during 2014. It noted with satisfaction that negotiations with the host Member State, which started in February 2014, were completed and that the signing of the Foundation’s seat agreement took place on 10 November 2015.

Lastly, Parliament acknowledged that the Foundation remained an essential contributor to policy development, the use of its expertise in key Union policy documents remained significant. It welcomed the fact that the key performance indicators suggest a high visibility and recognition of the scientific value of the Foundation’s research . It appreciated the research provided by the Foundation and the valuable comparative information and their key importance for ensuring evidence-based discussions on social and work-related policies.

The Committee on Budgetary Control adopted the report by Derek VAUGHAN (S&D, UK) on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) for the financial year 2014.

The parliamentary committee calls 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 2014.

Noting that the Court of Auditors issued a statement of assurance as to the reliability of the accounts and the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions for the financial year 2014, Members call on Parliament to approve 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 :

· Foundation’s financial statements: Members note the final budget of the Foundation for the financial year 2014 was EUR 20 774 000, representing an increase of 0.73 % compared to 2013.

· Budget and financial management: Members note that the Foundation’s budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2014 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 99.66 %. They also note that the level of committed appropriations carried over to 2015 was 53.7 % for operational expenditure and acknowledge that those carry-overs related mainly to multiannual projects.

Members also made a series of observations regarding commitments and carryovers, the prevention and management of conflicts of interest, as well as on payments, contract award, recruitment and internal audit procedures.

Members note, in particular, that although the Foundation became operational in 1975, a comprehensive headquarters agreement between the Foundation and the host Member State was not signed during 2014. They note with satisfaction that negotiations with the host Member State, which started in February 2014, were completed and that the signing of the Foundation’s seat agreement took place on 10 November 2015.

Lastly, Members acknowledge that the Foundation remained an essential contributor to policy development, the use of its expertise in key Union policy documents remained significant. They welcome the fact that the key performance indicators suggest a high visibility and recognition of the scientific value of the Foundation’s research.

Having examined the revenue and expenditure accounts for the financial year 2014 and the balance sheet as at 31 December 2014 of the European Foundation for the improvement of living and working conditions (Eurofound), as well as the Court of Auditors' report on the annual accounts of the Foundation for the financial year 2014, accompanied by the Foundation's replies to the Court's observations, the Council recommended 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 2014.

The Council welcomed the Court's opinion that, in all material respects, the Foundation's annual accounts present fairly its financial position as at 31 December 2014 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 2014 are legal and regular in all material respects.

Nevertheless, the Council has made some observations which may be summarised as follows:

financial programming : while acknowledging the multiannual nature of many of the Foundation's projects, the Council noted, that a high level of commitment appropriations was carried over to 2015. The Council invites the Foundation to continue improving its financial programming and monitoring of the budget implementation, in order to reduce the level of commitments carried over to the following financial year to the strict minimum, in line with the budgetary principle of annuality; staff remuneration : lastly, the Council noted the Court's observation that the Foundation has not complied with certain of the Staff Regulations' provisions on remuneration and welcomed the Foundation's corrective action in cooperation with the Office for the Administration and Payment of Individual Entitlements.

PURPOSE: presentation of the EU Court of Auditors’ report on the annual accounts of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (EUROFOUND) for the financial year 2014, 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 Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (EUROFOUND).

Statement of Assurance : pursuant to the provisions of Article 287 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), the Court has audited:

the annual accounts of the Foundation, which comprise the financial statements and the reports on the implementation of the budget for the financial year ended 31 December 2014; the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying those accounts.

Opinion on the reliability of the accounts : in the Court’s opinion, the Foundation’s annual accounts present fairly, in all material respects, its financial position as at 31 December 2014 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, in accordance with the provisions of its Financial Regulation and the accounting rules adopted by the Commission’s accounting officer.

Opinion on the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying the accounts : the Court considers that the transactions underlying the annual accounts for the year ended 31 December 2014 are legal and regular in all material respects.

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 : the Court notes that in 2014, the overall level of committed appropriations was high at 99.7 %, indicating that commitments were made in a timely manner. However, the level of committed appropriations carried over to 2015 was high for operational expenditure at 53.7 %. This relates mainly to multiannual projects; remuneration : the Court specifies that in 2005 new EU Staff Regulations entered into force, including provisions that future remunerations of officials recruited before 5 August 2005 should not be less than under the previous EU Staff Regulations. The Court’s audit revealed that this was not complied with and, in the case of 20 of the 75 officials employed at that time, this led to a total underpayment of EUR 1 28 735 for the period 2005 to 2014. The Foundation’s accounts include a provision for this amount.

The Foundation’s replies :

budgetary management : the Foundation appreciates the thorough analysis of the budget implementation and for mentioning the reasons for the carry-overs; remunerations : the Foundation indicates that the problem raised by the Court has now been resolved.

Lastly, the Court of Auditors’ report contains a summary of the Agency’s activities in 2014. This is focused on the following:

Budget: EUR 20.9 million .

Activities :

increasing labour market participation and combating unemployment by creating jobs, improving labour market functioning and promoting integration, including activities relating to the European Restructuring Monitor (ERM); improving working conditions and making work sustainable throughout the life course, including the establishment of the European Observatory of Working Life as an integrated observatory on industrial relations and working conditions in the EU and publication of reports on this topic; developing industrial relations to ensure equitable and productive solutions in a changing policy context, and publishing a report on industrial relations and working conditions developments in Europe 2013; improving standards of living and promoting social cohesion in the face of economic disparities and social inequalities with the publication of the third European Quality of Life Survey; communication and sharing ideas including 1 01 760 downloads of reports from Eurofound website, 125 publications in PDF, 328 EU policy documents quoting references to Eurofound findings and expertise, and 94 on-request contributions to events.

PURPOSE: presentation by the Commission of the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union for the financial year 2014, as part of the 2014 discharge procedure.

Analysis of the accounts of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (EUROFOUND) .

CONTENT: this Commission document sets out the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union for the financial year 2014 as prepared on the basis of the information presented by the institutions, organisations and bodies of the EU, in accordance with Article 148(2) of the Financial Regulation applicable to the EU's General Budget, including the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (EUROFOUND).

The document contains the figures on which the discharge procedure is based.

On this basis, the Financial Controller of the European Commission ensures the certification of the consolidated accounts as declared by the institutions, agencies and bodies of the European Union.

Discharge procedure of the EU agencies : the EU Budget finances a wide range of policies and programmes throughout the EU. In accordance with the priorities set by the European Parliament and the Council in the multi-annual financial framework (MFF), the European Commission carries out specific programmes, activities and projects in the field with the technical support of some specialised agencies.

The consolidated annual accounts of the EU provide information on the activities of the institutions, agencies and other bodies of the EU from a budgetary and accrual accounting perspective.

The consolidated reports on the implementation of the general budget of the EU include the budget implementation of all Institutions. Agencies do not have a separate budget inside the EU budget ; and they are partially financed by a Commission budget subsidy.

This document sets out how the Agencies spent and implemented their budget in 2014. Each agency is subject to its own discharge procedure.

EUROFOUND : in 2014, the tasks and budget of this agency were as follows:

description of the Foundation's tasks : the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, which is located in Dublin, was set up by Council Regulation (EEC) No 1365/75 . Its aim is to contribute to the planning and establishment of better living and working conditions in the Union by increasing and disseminating knowledge which is relevant to this subject; the Foundation's budget for the 2014 financial year : the Foundation’s budget for 2014, as presented in the Commission document on the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union, gives the following figures:

Commitment appropriations :

- committed : EUR 22 million;

- paid : EUR 21 million;

- carried-over : 1 million.

Payment appropriations :

- committed : EUR 26 million;

- paid : EUR 21 million;

- carried-over : EUR 5 million.

Please refer also to the final accounts of the Foundation .

PURPOSE: presentation by the Commission of the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union for the financial year 2014, as part of the 2014 discharge procedure.

Analysis of the accounts of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (EUROFOUND) .

CONTENT: this Commission document sets out the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union for the financial year 2014 as prepared on the basis of the information presented by the institutions, organisations and bodies of the EU, in accordance with Article 148(2) of the Financial Regulation applicable to the EU's General Budget, including the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (EUROFOUND).

The document contains the figures on which the discharge procedure is based.

On this basis, the Financial Controller of the European Commission ensures the certification of the consolidated accounts as declared by the institutions, agencies and bodies of the European Union.

Discharge procedure of the EU agencies : the EU Budget finances a wide range of policies and programmes throughout the EU. In accordance with the priorities set by the European Parliament and the Council in the multi-annual financial framework (MFF), the European Commission carries out specific programmes, activities and projects in the field with the technical support of some specialised agencies.

The consolidated annual accounts of the EU provide information on the activities of the institutions, agencies and other bodies of the EU from a budgetary and accrual accounting perspective.

The consolidated reports on the implementation of the general budget of the EU include the budget implementation of all Institutions. Agencies do not have a separate budget inside the EU budget ; and they are partially financed by a Commission budget subsidy.

This document sets out how the Agencies spent and implemented their budget in 2014. Each agency is subject to its own discharge procedure.

EUROFOUND : in 2014, the tasks and budget of this agency were as follows:

description of the Foundation's tasks : the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, which is located in Dublin, was set up by Council Regulation (EEC) No 1365/75 . Its aim is to contribute to the planning and establishment of better living and working conditions in the Union by increasing and disseminating knowledge which is relevant to this subject; the Foundation's budget for the 2014 financial year : the Foundation’s budget for 2014, as presented in the Commission document on the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union, gives the following figures:

Commitment appropriations :

- committed : EUR 22 million;

- paid : EUR 21 million;

- carried-over : 1 million.

Payment appropriations :

- committed : EUR 26 million;

- paid : EUR 21 million;

- carried-over : EUR 5 million.

Please refer also to the final accounts of the Foundation .