17-12-2008 EN Debates of the European Parliament 1 WEDNESDAY, 17 DECEMBER 2008 IN THE CHAIR: MRS ROURE Vice-President 1. Opening of the sitting (The sitting was opened at 9 a.m.) 2. Verification of credentials: see Minutes 3. Draft general budget 2009 as modified by the Council (all sections) (debate) President. – The next item is the report (A6-0486/2008) by Mrs Haug and Mr Lewandowski, on behalf of the Committee on Budgets, on the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2009 as modified by the Council (all sections) (16257/2008 – C6 0457/2008 – 2008/2026(BUD)). Jutta Haug, rapporteur. – (DE) Madam President, Commissioner, it seems the President-in-Office of the Council is not quite here yet. In any event, the second reading of the European budget is on tomorrow’s agenda. In all probability, the vote will not take much time. The fact that few things remain to be put to the vote and even fewer are in dispute is thanks to the constructive cooperation among all the Members involved – both in the specialist committees and in the Committee on Budgets – for which I should like to express my sincere thanks. I am all the more pleased since I know that this cannot be taken for granted. This also goes for the groundwork done by the entire team on the Committee on Budgets, the work of all the group staff and the support of the personal assistants, so thank you! I should also like to extend my thanks to the Commission for its willingness to cooperate. Its communications with us may not always have pleased everyone concerned, but it was always helpful and, above all, it spoke to me at the various levels, which cannot be said of the Council Presidency. Thus far, the French Council Presidency has not managed to speak to me, the general rapporteur, on a single occasion. Not one single time! I have not even received a response as yet to a letter I wrote before the trialogue on 13 November – which is very strange, very disconcerting. What was not at all strange or disconcerting, however, was how the Council team behaved at the conciliation meeting. Its behaviour and attitudes were what we have come to expect. Firstly, there must be no revision, however small, under any circumstances. Secondly, the payments are to be reduced in any event, even if the gap between payments and commitments becomes a ravine. Thirdly, the unspent appropriations from the current financial year should preferably be handed over immediately. In any case, approximately EUR 4.9 billion will be channelled back to the coffers of the national Finance Ministers. We in Parliament are delighted to have been able to persuade the Commission to promise a carry-over of EUR 700 million for rural development. We also think that the binding joint declarations on simplifying the procedure and on accelerating the implementation of the Structural Funds programmes, and also the promise that more funds for payments would be proposed without delay if need be, will be helpful in managing the tasks of the coming financial year. These tasks will be not exactly trivial. The impact of the financial market crisis and its repercussions on the real economy will be felt in all our Member States. Therefore, Parliament is, by all means, prepared to free up funds for job creation or preservation, funds for providing economic momentum – in addition to the range of instruments already at the disposal of the European Union. We are prepared to do everything necessary at the maximum speed possible – not indiscriminately, of course, but if it is clear what projects the funds are to be provided for and how appropriate they are, not one of us will be left in the lurch. Parliament is also prepared for a revision of the medium-term financial programme. First of all, however, the Council needs a common position. We may be voting at second reading tomorrow, but I have the vague feeling that what we are voting on is just a budgetary framework. The additions to it will be demanded of us little by little over the year. 2 EN Debates of the European Parliament 17-12-2008 Janusz Lewandowski, rapporteur. − (PL) Madam President, the second reading of the budget of the European Institutions will, in principle, be a repeat of the first reading, and it remains for me to explain why this is so. In the case of the Council, we respect our gentlemen’s agreement and appreciate the Council’s restraint in terms of budgetary spending for 2009, whilst acknowledging the additional need for resources in relation to the Reflection Group. In the case of the other institutions, it is worth noting that the Court of Auditors’ increased need for funding is due to the downpayments on its new headquarters (in the final analysis, this method for funding the new headquarters will be cost-effective for European taxpayers) and, in the case of the European Court of Justice, it will need funding for its new urgency procedure, which requires funding in order to employ additional staff. As far as the European Parliament is concerned, we tested the pilot project this year. The pilot project has produced encouraging results, thanks to the excellent cooperation of Parliament’s administrative services, for which personal thanks must also go to the Secretary-General, Mr Rømer. The test was not insignificant, as this will be a special year for the European Parliament, due to the upcoming elections, the need to fund the election campaign and the completely new regulations concerning the status of MEPs, along with greater transparency in relation to the pension fund and new rules for employing and funding assistants. The fact that the issue of MEPs and their assistants is being addressed is good news in an election year. Of course, this will involve additional costs in terms of the European Parliament’s budget. In spite of this, we have made an effort and have achieved the goal which we had been working towards for a number of years, namely that of ensuring that, notwithstanding the specific needs of the European Parliament, its budget does not exceed 20% of the European Union’s administrative spending. Overall, it looks like the vote on Thursday will be brief, thanks to the good cooperation of the coordinators and the excellent cooperation of the European Parliament’s Secretariat – and here, I would particularly like to mention Marianna Pari and Richard Wester. These are people who should be mentioned on such an occasion. Dalia Grybauskaitė, Member of the Commission. − Madam President, I would like to stress that the 2009 budget negotiations have been very specific, very important and difficult as never before. The main focus in this budget is on growth and jobs. This year, the budget preparation has also focused on the funding of the food aid facility instrument for development countries. Together, we have been able to find a balanced agreement to secure this EUR 1 billion. Having a budget is not enough. We need to execute it properly and in timely fashion. In this respect, considering that cohesion is a key factor for stimulating economic growth, Parliament has stressed the importance of effective budget implementation and the need for improvement and simplification. We agreed with that during our negotiations. The Commission shares this objective and, on 26 November, presented proposals for accelerating implementation and simplification of management of the Structural Funds. Last week, the European Council fully endorsed this approach, and I hope now that the required changes in the relevant legal acts can be agreed smoothly altogether. Looking forward to the near future, we all have to recognise that we will shortly face other challenges in order to address the financial and economic crisis in Europe. The recovery plan for the European economy presented by the Commission includes elements which will have an impact on the Community budget next year. The European Council last week supported this recovery plan. The Commission therefore presented a proposal to revise the multiannual financial framework in accordance with the interinstitutional agreement. This has to be approved by both Parliament and the Council in the coming months and I count as usual on cooperation, especially on Parliament’s side. To conclude, I would like to recall that negotiation on the 2009 budget has required compromise on all sides. It has also shown that the best results can be achieved in a spirit of fair cooperation between the institutions. That would not have been possible without the constructive and responsible role of Parliament throughout the whole negotiation process. I also want to stress the crucial role of the presidency tackling the Member States’ position. Finally, let me express my gratitude to Parliament’s negotiating team and, in particular, the chairman, Mr Borg, the rapporteurs for 2009, Mrs Haug, with her innovative approach this year, and Mr Lewandowski, and also all the political coordinators of COBU, who gave the Commission and Parliament a lot of help. I wish us all a positive vote tomorrow, and I wish you all a better than expected New Year. 17-12-2008 EN Debates of the European Parliament 3 László Surján, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group. – (HU) We have heard about the difficulties that had to be faced. I believe that, under the leadership of Jutta Haug, we have quite successfully resolved these difficulties. She deserves our thanks for her work and for the fact that each political group can feel that it has ownership of this budget. Drawing up a budget is politics expressed in figures.