REPORT OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL TO THE MEMBERS OF THE BUREAU THE PRELIMINARY DRAFT ESTIMATES OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 2009

Transcription

1 The Secretary-General Ref.: D(2008) March 2008 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY-GERAL TO THE MEMBERS OF THE BUREAU ON THE PRELIMINARY DRAFT ESTIMATES OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMT FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 2009 (Rules 22 and 73 of the Rules of Procedure) TABLE OF CONTTS SUMMARY PART I : APPROPRIATIONS PART II : ESTABLISHMT PLAN Annex I : Preliminary draft estimates Annex II : Analytical budgets Annex III : Proposed amendments to the budget nomenclature Annex IV : Presentation of the budget by directorate-general/activities Annex V : Summary of the establishment plan measures Annex VI : Establishment plan by DG/service NT\ doc PE /BUR/NT/CORR.2

2 Summary This report is being submitted to the members of the Bureau pursuant to Rules 22 and 73 of the Rules of Procedure with a view to the adoption of Parliament s preliminary draft estimates for the financial year At its meeting of 18 February 2008 the Bureau adopted the main guidelines for the 2009 budget procedure. The Secretary-General s report has been drawn up in accordance with those guidelines. The preliminary draft estimates are based on the following proposals: (a) to set the preliminary draft estimates at , a figure which represents an increase of 4.8% over the 2008 budget and corresponds to 19.57% of heading V of the multiannual financial framework; (b) to assign the resources needed to realise the priority objectives, in particular: 1. to equip Parliament to shoulder the new responsibilities resulting from applying the Treaty of Lisbon - making Parliament a better and more effective legislator, in particular through increased assistance for Members; 2. to continue the strategy to explain Europe to citizens and continue the major projects in this connection; 3. to prepare Parliament for the new tasks and for the obligations specific to the changeover from one parliamentary term to the next, such as: defraying the additional costs of implementing the Statute for Members; meeting the exceptional expenditure specific to an election year and to the changeover from one parliamentary term to the next; preparing the next enlargement; (c) to confirm continuation of property policy, on the basis of the new strategic plan, geared first and foremost to the purchase of the buildings occupied permanently in the three places of work and the possible purchase of Europe Houses (external offices) on the basis of joint ownership with the Commission, by entering a sum of 30 m against Chapter 105 (Provisional appropriation for buildings); (d) to continue the staff policy strategy embarked on in 2008; however, in view of the need for further discussion of needs as a result of the Treaty of Lisbon, proposals for redeployment and for creation of posts may be modified at first reading of the budget; (e) to bring the nomenclature into line with the changes to the legal bases for some items of expenditure. The Bureau is being asked to adopt Parliament s preliminary draft estimates for 2009, established on this basis, and to instruct the President to forward them to the Committee on Budgets. PE /BUR/NT 2/15 NT\ doc

3 I - INTRODUCTION Tentative timetable for the 2009 estimates procedure 1. The projected timetable is as follows: DATES AUTHORITY STAGES Stages completed Committee on Budgets Exchange of views on 2009 budget guidelines Bureau Consideration of broad guidelines Committee on Budgets Exchange of views on 2009 budget guidelines Forthcoming stages start of March Secretary-General and Staff Committee Consultations with Staff Committee Bureau Consideration of Secretary-General's report on preliminary draft estimates Bureau Possible conciliation / adoption of preliminary draft estimates 6.5. Committee on Budgets Adoption of draft estimates Plenary Adoption of estimates Format of report 2. The report is divided into three sections and six annexes: this summary explaining the broad thrust of the budget being drawn up, in particular the resources required to achieve the objectives already set by the Bureau; Part I, 'Appropriations', sets out information of significance in terms of the amounts allocated to the various spending areas and movements in appropriations; Part II, 'Establishment plan', sets out proposals for changes to the list of posts a number of annexes round off the report: I: the preliminary draft estimates themselves; II: analytical budgets (including an analysis of the costs of the external offices, plus an analytical budget concerning environmental policies and the EMAS); III: the proposed amendments to the budget nomenclature; IV: a presentation of the budget by directorate-general/activities; V. a summary of the establishment plan measures; VI. the establishment plan by DG/service. NT\ doc 3/15 PE /BUR/NT

4 II - THE 2009 OBJECTIVES AND THEIR BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS will be a year of major changes. Parliament will be acting, firstly, within an institutional environment modified by the Treaty of Lisbon, which will give it increased responsibilities, establishing its role as co-legislator. In addition, application of the Statute for Members from the start of the new term will bring about a significant transfer of costs from Member States' budgets to Parliament's budget, while, in tandem with this, the exceptional costs specific to an election year will have to be absorbed. Lastly, the prospect of enlargement in the near future will make it necessary, as in the past, to make appropriate preparations. A - Equipping Parliament to shoulder the new responsibilities resulting from applying the Treaty of Lisbon - making Parliament a better and more effective legislator, in particular through increased assistance for Members Coping with the immediate new responsibilities in As from 2009, the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon will require a number of immediate adjustments to cope with Parliament's increased responsibilities. The scope of codecision will be appreciably extended. Parliament will become co-legislator on an equal footing with the Council for 95% of European legislation, while the scope of Community action will be widened, in particular to include the areas of freedom, security and justice. Furthermore, the new budget procedure will ensure complete equality between Parliament and the Council as regards approval of the budget and of the multiannual financial framework. Lastly, the enhanced cooperation procedure should be used more frequently, and Parliament will have to give its consent. 5. Under the circumstances, support for Members' work to cope with these increased responsibilities is of course a priority for That support will be provided through, in particular, appropriate assistance within the parliamentary committees most affected by the changes referred to. For that reason, the Secretary-General will be proposing that a significant proportion of redeployment measures and posts to be created in 2009 should be given over to this area. 6. By the same token, the initiatives launched in 2008 for new personalised services for Members, such as individual interpretation and the analytical service within the Library, will need to be continued in For that purpose, an allocation of 4 m has been incorporated into Item 1402 (Conference interpreters), while the staffing structure set up in 2008 in the Library will need to be added to in Embarking on a substantial adjustment in resources and structures 7. The entry into force of the Treaty demands immediate measures in areas affected by changes in procedures and powers. However, it will be no less necessary to continue and step up efforts to make Parliament a significant player in other areas, notable cases in point being the Union's external relations and exercising democratic oversight over the common PE /BUR/NT 4/15 NT\ doc

5 foreign and security policy. Likewise, enhanced cooperation with national parliaments on home affairs remains a priority. 8. More generally, the fact that the co-legislator role has been enshrined plus the extended responsibilities stemming from the Treaty of Lisbon prompt questions as to whether the structures for supporting parliamentary work are appropriate, whether in terms of departmental functionality or work space or environment. Accordingly, the Secretary- General intends to set up a working party tasked with carrying out an in-depth analysis of human and financial resource requirements. He will also be submitting a strategic property policy plan. The initial outcome of those discussions could be reflected in adjustments at first reading of the 2009 budget. B - Explaining Europe to citizens - Towards the 2009 European elections 9. The three major information projects launched in 2006 ought to be fully up and running in The new Visitors Centre 10. The new Visitors Centre in the D4 building should be completed in early 2009 and give Parliament a potential reception capacity, with professional facilities, of upwards of visitors a year. Under the present funding schedule, there will be a final budget tranche of 3.9 m in 2009, which is entered against Item 3243 (Visitors Centre). That amount could be updated during the budget procedure in line with the progress of the works under way this year. 11. The human resources required for routine operation of the Centre also need to be earmarked. A total of 17 posts one AD9, one AD5 and 15 AST1 will be needed for ongoing operation of the Centre, including at weekends. Details as to how these requirements are to be covered by creating posts or by outsourcing will be provided in the analysis of staffing requirements for Audiovisual facilities 12. At the end of 2007, the Committee on Budgets authorised mobilisation of the second tranche of appropriations ( 13 m) for the new audiovisual centre in the D5 building. Funding for the project should be covered by the appropriations entered in the budget in 2008, and it will be completed a few months after the D5 building is delivered. At the end of 2008 or in early 2009, Parliament will then have high-definition-standard audiovisual facilities capable of meeting the very high media demand. 2009, accordingly, will see the completion of a cycle of extensive investment in this area. The appropriations needed in 2009 relate solely to routine operating expenditure. WebTV NT\ doc 5/15 PE /BUR/NT

6 13. The prototype for the WebTV project was submitted to the political authorities at the start of the year. At its meeting of 18 February 2008, the Bureau validated the project; and it should go on-line during the second quarter of the year will therefore be the first full operating year, with a budget of 9 m entered against Item 3246 (Parliamentary television channel (WebTV)). Continuing the neutral information campaign on the elections 14. At its meeting of 22 October 2007, the Bureau approved the strategy and action plan for the 2009 European elections, taking account of the proposals made by the members of the Bureau and in particular the proposals that: special attention be paid to information actions to be carried out in Member States where voter turnout was particularly low in 2004; Parliament's institutional representatives be involved in the election strategy; on election night, a presentation of the emerging results by political group be given as quickly and clearly as possible, so as to provide a Europe-wide picture of the results and the composition of the newly elected Parliament. 15. On the basis of that decision, 10.3 m was entered in the 2008 budget to fund the first phase of the information campaign, the bulk of which is scheduled for the second half of The strategy embarked on should now be continued with the second phase of the information campaign, which will commence at the start of 2009 and run until a few weeks before the elections, with due regard for electoral law. This phase will be centred more on the elections as such and on their implications. The objective of phase 2 of the campaign is to present the European elections in the context of the issues facing the new Parliament. It will highlight the European dimension of those issues, the choices to be made and the fact that Parliament is the best placed democratic legislative body to tackle them. 17. Lastly, phases 3 and 4 will cover, respectively, the period from the end of May until 10 June 2009 and 'election night' on 14 June 2009, winding up the information campaign. The objective of phase 3 is to inform as many voters as possible that the elections are being held, and on what date, while the aim on election night will be to circulate and publish the results of the elections and the composition of the new Parliament. 18. The proposed 2009 budget allocation for phases 2 to 4 totals 6.5 m: 1 m against Item 3242 (Expenditure on publication, information and participation in public events), 4 m against Item 3248 (Expenditure on audiovisual information), and 1.5 m on related miscellaneous expenditure. Support for the Sakharov Foundation 19. At its meeting of 18 February 2008, the Bureau considered the conclusions of the working party which had travelled to Moscow to assess the appropriateness and feasibility of financial support for the Sakharov Foundation. The Bureau decided to allocate in support in 2008 and to earmark a second, and final, support payment of in This action falls within Parliament's communication policy and activities to defend human rights; it also stems from the references made, at the annual ceremony to award the PE /BUR/NT 6/15 NT\ doc

7 Sakharov Prize, to the heritage, moral legacy and world renown of the late Mr Andrei Sakharov. This appropriation is included in Item 3245 (Organisation of seminars, symposia and cultural activities). Longer-term projects will also see the House of European History project move into a more operational phase; the project was adopted by the Bureau in 2007 in the firm belief that Europe has to be explained to citizens as an historical process, too. Once the concept has been approved by the Parliament bodies responsible, the resources needed for the first operational phase will be found in the budget. C - Preparing Parliament for the new tasks and for the obligations specific to the changeover from one parliamentary term to the next Introduction of the new Statute for Members will be the first financial year in which the new Statute for Members is applied (between July and December). Parliament will then fund Members' monthly salaries previously paid for by Member States, except in the case of the opt-outs provided for by the Statute. Accordingly, that option leaves a degree of uncertainty as to the amount of appropriations to be earmarked. Applying the Statute or opting-out 22. The Statute regulates the financial aspects of the exercise of Members' mandates. As regards the opting-out issue, a distinction should be made between reimbursement of expenses incurred, where provisions apply to all Members, and individual remuneration, in respect of which opting out is possible. 23. Opting out from being remunerated at European level is possible: either through the individual choice of a Member (Article 25 of the Statute) if he or she is already a Member of the European Parliament prior to July 2009 and is re-elected in July 2009; this decision must be notified to the President of Parliament within 30 days from the start of the new term; it is subsequently irrevocable for the duration of the term of office and any subsequent term of office; or by decision of a Member State (Article 29 of the Statute) if it does not want its elected representatives to receive the remuneration stipulated in the Statute; this option is limited to no more than two parliamentary terms. Overview of how costs are to be defrayed 24. The apportionment of costs between Member States and Parliament depends on the type of expenditure and any opting-out decisions taken. It can be summed up as follows: NT\ doc 7/15 PE /BUR/NT

8 Individual remuneration: Monthly remuneration Pension scheme Transitional allowance Reimbursement of expenses: General expenses Travel and subsistence Assistants Aid for disabled Members Health care expenses Accidents, losses and theft Services and equipment + Acquired pension rights Cost to be borne by a Member State of election for: newly elected Members in respect of whom that Member State opts out; re-elected Members in respect of whom the Member State or the Members themselves choose to opt out. Cost to be borne by Parliament for: newly elected Members whose Member State of election takes no opt-out decision; re-elected Members in respect of whom no optout decision is taken by the Member State of election OR the Members themselves. Costs to be borne by Parliament for: all Members elected or re-elected in July Impact on appropriations for Members 25. At present, as the 2009 budget is being drawn up, there is still considerable uncertainty surrounding the extent to which the opt-out will be used either by Member States or by reelected Members. The position of Member States, which have been asked by Parliament to indicate their choice, might not be communicated before the budget is finally adopted. Under the circumstances, the volume of appropriations has been estimated on the assumption that opting out will affect 207 Members, or 50% of the estimated number of re-elected Members (on the basis of a 55% re-election rate). Because of this considerable uncertainty, 6 m in provisional appropriations needs to be entered against Item 109. (Provisional appropriation to cover the allowances of Members of the Institution), which can be made available by transfer in The new, significant costs of applying the Statute for Members essentially relate to monthly salaries (remuneration) and the increase in travel expenses. The implementing measures for the Statute provide for travel costs to be reimbursed on the basis of genuinely incurred expenses and a new reimbursement arrangement for travel within the Member State of election. Accordingly, Item 1000 (Salaries) has an allocation of 25.2 m, while 6 m has been entered against Item 1005 (Other travel expenses). 27. The new Statute will also bring about savings: discontinuing the life assurance scheme and the reduction in the number of members of the voluntary pension scheme will produce reductions of 0.5 m and 4.7 m respectively against the budget headings concerned. 28. In total, over the six months in which the Statute will be applied in 2009, the net effect will be an increase in appropriations put at 34.4 m, including the 6 m in provisional appropriations. PE /BUR/NT 8/15 NT\ doc

9 The impact on the 2009 budget of the elections and the changeover from one parliamentary term to the next 29. A number of specific savings and specific items of expenditure are distinctive features of a European election year. Accordingly, a lower degree of parliamentary activity (11 partsessions instead of 12) will bring about savings in expenditure directly relating to that activity. However, the savings do not cover the additional spending generated by the neutral information campaign and by the end-of-service arrangements for Members who are not reelected. In total, the election effect will result in a specific net additional cost put at 11 m for the 2009 budget. 30. In budget terms, the changeover has a number of consequences. In the pre-election period, parliamentary activity is more intensive because of the demands of the legislative programme; subsequently, in general, a major scaling back of business is observed. After the vote, the number of new Members elected will determine the volume of appropriations for allowances. 31. The budget forecasts have been made in accordance with the rules in force; they are based on the experience gained from the last elections, in 2004, and on the assumption that there will be a 55% re-election rate. The Rules on the payment of expenses and allowances to Members (PEAM Rules) provide, in specific circumstances and for a specific period, for Members who have not been re-elected to be paid half the general expenditure allowance 1 and the entire parliamentary assistance allowance for their assistants 2. The rules also provide for payment, after a minimum term of office of three years, of a transitional end-ofservice allowance for a minimum period of three months and a maximum period of two years. At the request of the Member concerned, the allowance can be paid in the form of a capital sum at the end of the period in respect of which the allowance is payable. That provision adds a degree of uncertainty to budget forecasting. Lastly, when their term of office comes to an end, a number of former Members may be prompted to apply for the retirement pension. 32. As a result of all these provisions, the gross volume of additional appropriations required against the relevant headings, by comparison with a non-election year, is put at 28.5 m. 33. Savings in an election year stem from a temporary scaling-back of parliamentary business and, hence, a reduction in related direct and indirect costs. Accordingly, savings in connection with Members' travel expenses, interpretation, translation and other ancillary meeting costs are put at 24 m. 1 Cf. Article 13(3) of the PEAM Rules with regard to the general expenditure allowance: 'One half of the said allowance shall also be payable for a period of three months following the month in which a Member's term of office comes to an end, provided that the Member has served for a period of at least six months and that he or she is not re-elected to the subsequent Parliament.'. 2 Cf. Article 15(3) of the PEAM Rules with regard to the parliamentary assistance allowance: 'Expenses shall be eligible for reimbursement for a period of three months following the month in which a Member's term of office comes to an end, unless (a) the Member is immediately re-elected to the subsequent parliament; (b) the Member has served for less than six months before the end of the current parliamentary term; (c) the assistant concerned is in receipt of other remuneration from any Community institution, or (d) the assistant is employed by another Member during the period in question.'. NT\ doc 9/15 PE /BUR/NT

10 Preparing the next enlargement 34. The negotiations on enlargement to include Croatia have entered an intense phase. Current timing projections point to the possibility of accession during If, therefore, as with previous enlargements, the political authorities decided to invite Observers about 12 months prior to actual accession, Parliament might have to bear the costs relating to those Observers for the last quarter of A provisional appropriation of 0.5 m has been entered against budget Chapter 103 (Enlargement reserve). At the appropriate time, these appropriations will make it possible, by means of a transfer, to endow the actual spending items, such as those for reimbursement of travel and subsistence expenses for the Observers, recruitment of contract staff, outsourced translation work or infrastructure changes (office facilities) in order to accommodate the Observers. 35. There is also the question of creating posts for recruiting Croatian officials. For the EU-10 and the EU-2 enlargements, the Bureau strictly applied the policy it had self-imposed when preparing for the EU-10 enlargement, as laid down in the Podestà report (PE /BUR) adopted on 4 April It sets the number of posts per country/additional language at 113. It should be pointed out that 70% of those posts are language-related (translators, interpreters, press attachés, lawyers and lawyer-linguists). However, the Secretary-General is of the opinion that it is too early to propose, at this stage, that the establishment plan posts needed be created; he thinks it preferable to wait for the outcome of accession negotiations, meaning that the process of creating posts will affect only the 2010 budget. D - Property policy in 2009 and in the medium term Plan to upgrade and extend the KAD Building in Luxembourg 36. After the Luxembourg authorities gave up the plan for commercial premises in the public section of the KAD Building extension, Parliament concluded an agreement on making exclusive use of the areas which had become available. At its meetings of 9 July and 24 September 2007, the Bureau accepted the proposed options, including the project's energy solution. It directed the departments responsible to draw up a fresh preliminary draft building brief, which, together with funding plan, ought to be submitted to the budgetary authorities in March-April After approval, an invitation to tender ought to be issued to appoint the company to be in charge of the project and the funding thereof, as a result of which it should be possible to draw up the final brief by the end of On the basis of this timetable, funding required for 2009 remains relatively limited. At this stage, only 12.5 m is needed for expenditure directly relating to construction: 3.8 m against Item 2005 (Construction of buildings) for preparatory site work and for geothermal test-drilling, and 8.7 m against Item 2008 (Other expenditure on buildings) for experts' and architects' fees. Other indirect costs are chargeable to the project, in particular the rental of a stop-gap building, totalling 4.7 m. The cost of the entire KAD renovation and extension project is put at 330 m. Property requirements in Brussels PE /BUR/NT 10/15 NT\ doc

11 38. When the D5 building has been handed over, Parliament's property infrastructure requirements resulting from the enlargements can be considered to have been met overall. However, when the Bureau considered the strategy note on property policy up until the next parliamentary term, on 18 February 2008, it emerged that an in-depth study would be necessary into the new requirements resulting from prospective enlargements and changes in Parliament's working methods, over the next few years, in particular as a result of the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon. 39. These questions should be studied in-depth by the Vice-President with responsibility for property questions, with the Secretary-General s support. The Bureau could be consulted on the various options before the end of the first half of the year, and any decisions it took would be incorporated into the 2009 budget. 40. Under the circumstances, it is proposed that 30 m be entered in Chapter 105 (Provisional appropriation for buildings). That amount is equivalent to 2% of the total budget. It will give Parliament leeway immediately at the start of the next parliamentary term. Update on EMAS 41. The decision to establish an environmental management system in Parliament was taken by the Bureau on 13 December That move reflects great willingness, voiced in a number of legislative texts, including Parliament s resolution on the EMAS regulation itself, to be a model of environmental performance excellence. 42. The European Council, meeting on 8 and 9 March 2007, laid down objectives on greenhouse gas emissions. That decision made it necessary, after a year of EMAS measures within Parliament, to strengthen and redefine the EMAS objectives, which were adopted by the Bureau on 18 June Lastly, on 30 January 2008, the Bureau was consulted on recent developments in the various environmental policy processes under way. Accordingly, the Bureau noted: the action plan; the 'European Parliament Environmental Policy signed by the President and the Secretary-General; the issuing of an invitation to tender for assessing the CO 2 burden caused by Parliament; the ISO 14001:2004 Environmental Management System Certificate awarded by the Certification Commission; and the EMAS Validation Certificate dated 17 December 2007 and applications for registration with the bodies responsible in Belgium, Luxembourg and France. 43. From a strictly budgetary perspective, there will now be a specific analysis of Parliament s efforts; it will be an integral part of the Secretary-General s annual report on the preliminary draft estimates. For 2009, accordingly, expenditure as a result of pursuing EMAS objectives is put at 5.2 m. Annex II to this report sets out an analytical breakdown of that expenditure. NT\ doc 11/15 PE /BUR/NT

12 III - ESTABLISHMT PLAN Continuing the strategy launched in In 2007 the Secretary-General proposed a staff consolidation plan (PE /BUR) to the Bureau, which adopted it, with the aim of applying redeployment measures in a more strategic and more systematic fashion and reassigning human resources to meet Parliament s needs and priorities over the next few years. This move, which, for 2008, has made it possible to reassign 58 posts to priority areas, will of course have to be continued in For the 2009 budget, accordingly, the Secretary-General is proposing the following priorities: main priority for legislative work, in particular implementation of the Treaty of Lisbon; proportionately greater increase in staffing levels for departments directly involved in providing assistance for Members (DG PRES, DG EXPO, DG COMM and the Legal Service) than for the support DGs; continuing the multiannual plans started in 2008 (Legislative Acts and DIT); overall control over staffing levels for all directorates-general. Establishment plan measures 46. The establishment plan measures are itemised in Part II of this report. Adjustments to the proposals for redeployment and for creating posts for 2009 could be submitted to the Bureau before summer, once the conclusions of the working party tasked with carrying out an in-depth analysis of human resource requirements as a result of the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon are known (cf para. 8). 47. The Bureau s establishment plan decisions will then be incorporated into the first-reading letter of amendment for the 2009 budget in September. 48. At this stage, the cost of creating the new posts is IV - OVERVIEW IN FIGURES The traditional budget balance to be put to the test by the changes 49. Since 1988, on the recommendation 1 of the political group chairmen, Parliament has used 20% of heading V (administrative expenditure), producing a slight surplus each year over what it has needed for strictly operational purposes. The margin has been successfully used for property policy purposes so as to purchase premises at the permanent working places. This acquisition policy is now bearing fruit: if there had been no advance financing 1 The political group chairmen recommended that Parliament s budget be set at a level representing 20% of the appropriations earmarked for heading V. This self-imposed ceiling of 20% was supposed to be taken to exclude property expenditure, expenditure to cover the cost of the Statute for Members and, since 2004, funding for European political parties. PE /BUR/NT 12/15 NT\ doc

13 operations or if purchases had not been made in the past, the additional budget cost of lease payments in 2009 would be about 100 m. Furthermore, the funding of European political parties and foundations and the cost of the last two enlargements have been met without exceeding the 20% ceiling. 50. During the last three financial years, however, while continuing to encourage acquisitions policy, the budgetary authority has sought to reduce the margin used by Parliament to finance it. Accordingly, Parliament s budget represented only 19.70% of heading V in 2006 and 19.65% in 2007, and represents 19.48% in 2008, the unused margins totalling 21 m, 25.5 m and 38.9 m in 2006, 2007 and 2008 respectively. The same desire to produce a budget which is as realistic as possible also applies to Accordingly, the 2009 preliminary draft estimates total , or 19.57% of heading V, leaving at this stage an unused margin of 32.7 m. 51. From 2010 onwards, financing the additional costs resulting from the Statute for Members could jeopardise the traditional budget balance. While the effect will be limited to 34.3 m in 2009, 2010 will be the first full year for financing the Statute and the overall cost of the Statute could then total as much as 75 m, depending on opting-out decisions made by reelected Members or Member States. Such additional expenditure would likely force Parliament to use the entire 20% of heading V; it would then have only the traditional yearend mopping-up transfer with which to cope with any property policy developments. 52. In this new situation, any additional initiative beyond a particular scale would come up against limited funding capacity if the self-imposed 20% limit were maintained. It can already be seen that any action to go beyond the 20% ceiling in coming years must take account of the fact that available resources within heading V will be increasingly scarce, since expenditure on European civil service pensions will increase from about m in 2008 to m in The increase in this cost is unlikely to be fully covered by the overall increase in heading V and will eat all the more into resources available to cover the institutions administrative expenditure. Changes in the breakdown between the main costs centres 53. In 2009, in the breakdown between the three main cost centres in Parliament s budget, the property share will continue to fall, while expenditure for Members will rise, illustrating once more the benefit of the property policy conducted to date, which now makes it possible to reallocate resources for new, additional spending, such as on the Statute for Members. Changes in main cost centres' share of the initial budget 60% 40% 20% 0% 42% 36% 19% 25% 22% 13% Staff Members Property % 19% 22% % 25% 13% NT\ doc 13/15 PE /BUR/NT

14 V - ADJUSTING A NUMBER OF NOMCLATURE ITEMS 54. The nomenclature amendments proposed in Annex III are essentially technical in nature and reflect the changes in legal bases for some items of expenditure. This is the case with regard to expenditure on Members, for which the Statute and its implementing measures will be the main legal bases from the start of the new parliamentary term. Other changes update or simplify the nomenclature in the light of decisions already taken by the bodies responsible. VI - CONCLUSIONS 55. The Bureau is being asked to adopt Parliament s preliminary draft estimates for 2009 on the basis of the following proposals: (a) to set the preliminary draft estimates at , a figure which represents an increase of 4.8% over the 2008 budget and corresponds to 19.57% of heading V of the multiannual financial framework; (b) to assign the resources needed to realise the priority objectives, in particular: 1. to equip Parliament to shoulder the immediate responsibilities resulting from applying the Treaty of Lisbon - making Parliament a better and more effective legislator, in particular through increased assistance for Members; 2. to continue the strategy to explain Europe to citizens and continue the major projects in this connection; 3. to prepare Parliament for the new tasks and for the obligations specific to the changeover from one parliamentary term to the next, such as: defraying the additional costs of implementing the Statute for Members; meeting the exceptional expenditure specific to an election year and to the changeover from one parliamentary term to the next; preparing the next enlargement; (c) to confirm continuation of property policy, on the basis of the new strategic plan, geared first and foremost to the purchase of the buildings occupied permanently in the three places of work and the possible purchase of Europe Houses (external offices) on the basis of joint ownership with the Commission, by entering a sum of 30 m against Chapter 105 (Provisional appropriation for buildings); (d) to continue the staff policy strategy embarked on in 2008; however, in view of the need for further discussion of needs as a result of the Treaty of Lisbon, proposals for redeployment and for creation of posts may be adjusted at first reading of the budget; (e) to bring the nomenclature into line with the changes to the legal bases for some items of expenditure. PE /BUR/NT 14/15 NT\ doc

15 The Bureau is being asked to adopt Parliament s preliminary draft estimates for 2009, established on this basis, and to instruct the President to forward them to the Committee on Budgets. Harald RØMER Annexes 1 to 6 NT\ doc 15/15 PE /BUR/NT

16 PART I: APPROPRIATIONS A - How large a budget for Parliament in 2009? 1. The amount proposed is m. This amount corresponds to a 4.8% increase over the budget for the financial year 2008, with 19.57% of heading V of the multiannual financial framework being utilised. This leaves an unused margin of 32.7 m below the 20% ceiling. 2. Since 2002, Parliament's budget has increased as follows: Total Overall général volume du of budget the initial budget ( Mio) ( m) Pourcentage Annual percentage d'augmentation increase annuel 4,80% 4,93% 13,35% 3,33% 3,90% 5,74% 3,94% 4,81% En As a % de of la heading rubrique VV 20,00% 20,16% 20,00% 20,00% 19,69% 19,64% 19,48% 19,57% dont including réserve the "investissements budget reserve for immobiliers" property comprise investment dans (*) le budget (*) 101,90 58,20 44,90 54,70 15,00 50,00 20,00 30,00 Pourcentage Annual % increase d'augmentation excluding annuel reserve hors for réserve property "investissements investment immobiliers" 0,21% 10,15% 15,40% 2,63% 7,37% 3,13% 6,31% 4,17% (*) including appropriations against the heading for the acquisition of immovable property Changes in size of initial budget ( m) NT\ doc PE /BUR/PART 1

17 B - How does the m break down? 3. The overall budget breaks down as follows: Overall budget = m Basic budget = m Members' Statute implementation costs (6 months) = 34.4 m Electoral year: net impact = 11 m Neutral election information campaign = 6.5 m Saving from lower volume of parliamentary business = - 24 m Changeover to new parl. term: cost = 28.5 m Approps. for Visitors' Centre and WebTV = 12.9 m Translation of Verbatim Report (CRE) into 23 languages = 17.7 m Expenditure relating to refurbishment / extension of KAD Building = 17.2 m Property policy reserve = 30 m Contingency reserve = 10 m Enlargement reserve (Croatian Observers) = 0.5 m NT\ doc 2/9 PE /BUR/PART 1

18 C - The parameters used in drawing up the 2009 estimates 4. The main parameters and changes over the previous financial year are as follows: Parameters 2008 financial year 2009 estimates Number of parliamentary meeting weeks Including ordinary part-sessions additional part-sessions 6 4 constituency weeks 4 7 The parameters for working weeks and part-sessions are different in 2009 owing to the European elections and the introduction of turquoise weeks. Number of Members Number of Observers 0 0 Estimated number of Members opting out 207 The number of Members will fall to 751 at the start of the new parliamentary term (July 2009). Adjustment of Members' allowances 2,7% 3,2% Adjustment of salaries 1,4% 3,2% Based on inflation forecasts. Standard abatement - other than for enlargement 7% 7% - for enlargement in % 7% - for enlargement in % 10% Abatement reduced on account of efforts to fill enlargement posts. New posts - other than for enlargement - Parliament's Secretariat 23 - Political groups Posts abolished 16 Posts redeployed 48 Upgradings - Parliament's Secretariat Political groups 74 Establishment plan measures will be dealt with in the letter of amendment at first reading of the draft budget. NT\ doc 3/9 PE /BUR/PART 1

19 D - How do the main cost centres in the 2009 budget break down? 5. The budget focuses to a very substantial extent on three sectors - Members, staff and buildings - which account for roughly 74% of total appropriations. Information: 76 Others: 64 Breakdown of cost centres - m - Political groups and parties: 71 Contingency reserve: 10 Other expenditure on staff covered by the Staff Regulations and external staff: 54 IT & telecomms: 89 Staff covered by the Staff Regulations:495 Contract staff and external language services: 93 Buildings: 195 Members: Between the financial years 2000 and 2009, with regard to the initial budget, the following trends have been recorded in the three main sectors: Changes in main cost centres' share of the initial budget 42% 45% 40% 36% 35% 30% 25% 22% 25% 19% 20% 13% 15% 10% 5% 0% Staff Members Buildings % 19% 22% % 25% 13% NT\ doc 4/9 PE /BUR/PART 1

20 E - The main changes by comparison with the initial 2008 budget 7. The following table sets out the main changes between the 2009 estimates and the 2008 budget and the fundamental reasons for those changes budget 1.452,5 + 25,24 Implementation of Statute for Members (salaries, allowances and pensions) + 6,00 Travel expenses in Member State of election (new) - 1,80 Members' travel expenses + 3,56 Increase in temporary allowances for Members not re-elected during 2009 elections + 6,00 Provisional appropriation for Members' allowances + 25,20 Adjustment to parliamentary assistance expenditure following non-re-election of Members + 8,71 Adjustment to expenditure on staff - 12,16 Reduction in expenditure on interpretation as a result of the lower volume of parliamentary business during the election year C h a n g e s + 11,67 Resumption of translation of Verbatim Report of Proceedings into 23 languages + 3,43 Lease payments on the Montoyer 75 building - 11,13 Construction of buildings + 6,68 Increase in appropriations for alterations to an upkeep of buildings owned by Parliament + 1,76 Increase in IT expenditure - 14,02 Completion of audiovisual systems for D5 Building - 1,19 Reduction of staff mission expenditure as a result of only 11 part-sessions being held in ,94 Decrease in expertise bought in during the election year + 1,72 Expected increase in OJ publications as a result of the extension of the codecision procedure under the Lisbon Treaty - 6,53 Expenditure on publication, information and participation in public events - 2,94 Completion of investments in Visitors' Centre - 1,00 Reduction in expenditure on visitor group reception and grants owing to the reduction in the number of Members from 785 to 751 after the elections + 1,40 Expenditure on audiovisual information + 3,24 Increase in contributions to European parties and European political foundations and in current administrative expenditure + 10,00 Increase in provisional appropriations for buildings + 5,50 Increase in the contingency reserve and the enlargement reserve (Croatia) + 3,43 Miscellaneous 2009 estimates 1.522,3 NT\ doc 5/9 PE /BUR/PART 1

21 F - Allocation of resources to directorates-general 8. Resources are allocated as follows: DG 2009 estimates 2008 budget % change 09/ outturn % change 09/07 PRES 49,83 47,20 6% 43,93 13% IPOL 5,69 8,18-30% 5,38 6% EXPO 2,11 2,62-20% 1,46 45% COMM 81,42 105,67-23% 67,53 21% PERS 569,92 562,64 1% 518,09 10% INLO 180,63 169,53 7% 217,50-17% TRAD 22,92 10,82 112% 32,09-29% INTE 50,47 62,65-19% 53,41-6% FINS 449,50 382,43 18% 352,14 28% ITEC 98,94 95,49 4% 90,80 9% Legal Service 0,37 0,31 21% 0,28 32% Chap ,02 5,00 100% - Chap 103 0, Total 1522, ,52 4,80% 1382,60 10,10% G - Appropriations earmarked for priority projects (a) Projected impact of implementation of Statute for Members (first six months) Budget line Heading IMPACT ON APPROPS Salaries and allowances Travel and subsistence allowances, attendance at meetings and associated expenditure: parliamentary and institutional delegation meetings in the framework of the ACP-EU Convention and the Euro-Mediterranean Forum Special travel expenses in the exercise of the Parliamentary mandate Special travel expenses in the exercise of the Parliamentary mandate Accident and sickness insurance and other social security charges: accident insurance Accident and sickness insurance and other social security charges: sickness insurance Accident and sickness insurance and other social security charges: life assurance Accident and sickness insurance and other social security charges: loss and theft insurance covering personal effects and IT equipment Optional pension scheme for Members Provisional appropriation to cover the allowances of Members of the institution Outside assistance for the operation, production and maintenance of software and systems: production of new applications and further development of existing applications (feasibility studies, analyses, programming, debugging) TOTAL Total - Implementation of Statute for Members (six months) NT\ doc 6/9 PE /BUR/PART 1

22 (b) Assessment of direct and indirect cost of the election information campaign: Budget line Heading 2009 ESTIMATES: IMPACT Purchase, servicing and maintenance of hardware and software: purchase, servicing and maintenance of hardware and software for infrastructure Outside assistance for the operation, production and maintenance of software and systems: production of new applications and further development of existing applications (feasibility studies, analyses, programming, debugging) SIP (70) Telecommunications: Strasbourg Telecommunications: Brussels Postage on correspondence and delivery charges: mail in Luxembourg (charges for postage and delivery by a private delivery firm) Postage on correspondence and delivery charges: mail in Strasburg (charges for postage and delivery by a private delivery firm) Postage on correspondence and delivery charges: mail in Brussels (charges for postage and delivery by a private delivery firm) Postage on correspondence and delivery charges: packages, customs clearance Expenditure on publication, information and participation in public events: publications, information measures, public events Expenditure on publication, information and participation in public events: electronic information (Internet) Expenditure on audiovisual information: programme coproduction and transmission Total appropriations earmarked for neutral election information campaign (c) Assessment of cost of changeover to the new parliamentary term Budget line Heading 2009 ESTIMATES: IMPACT General expenditure allowance Temporary allowances Removals: handling and departmental removals Entertainment and representation expenses: purchase of representational items Parliamentary assistance Total costs stemming from changeover to new parl. term NT\ doc 7/9 PE /BUR/PART 1

23 (d) Savings from the lower volume of parliamentary business during the election year Budget line Heading Travel and subsistence allowances, attendance at meetings and associated expenditure: part-sessions, committees or their delegations, political groups and miscellaneous Travel and subsistence allowances, attendance at meetings and associated expenditure: parliamentary and institutional delegation meetings in the framework of the ACP-EU Convention and the Euro-Mediterranean Forum 2009 ESTIMATES: IMPACT Special travel expenses in the exercise of the Parliamentary mandate Conference interpreters: interpreters and conference technicians Outside services: translation of the Verbatim Report of Proceedings Outside services: other translation and typing work Cleaning and maintenance: Strasbourg Energy consumption: Strasbourg Vehicles: Members' transport (hire and use) Staff mission expenses: part-sessions, committees or their delegations, political groups and miscellaneous Staff mission expenses: parliamentary and institutional delegation meetings in the framework of the ACP-EU Convention and the Euro-Mediterranean Forum Meetings, congresses and conferences: committee and delegation (external policies) meetings Miscellaneous expenditure on the organisation of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO and other interparliamentary, ad hoc and WTO delegation meetings Acquisition of expertise: studies, experts and other persons, impact assessment (EU internal policies) Acquiisition of expertise: studies, experts and other persons (EU external policies) Total saving from lower volume of parliamentary business NT\ doc 8/9 PE /BUR/PART 1

24 (e) Continuation of projects to explain Europe to citizens: 9. Information appropriations are currently focused on three spending areas, namely the reception of Members' subsidised visitors groups, audiovisual and Internet and the two major priority projects (web TV and the Visitors' Centre) Information and communication policy ( m) Technical equipment and installations: audiovisual facilities 4,58 Web TV 9,00 Expenditure on audiovisual information 12,20 Visitors 31,49 Expenditure on publication, information and public events 15,19 Seminars and cultural activities 1,75 Documentation and library expenditure 1,00 Pre-election campaign expenditure 5,10 Information offices 1,11 Total 81,42 (f) Property policy: KAD Building extension costs 10. Starting work on the KAD Building extension requires total appropriations of 17.2 m for the construction site plus resources to cover all ancillary costs of renting a stopgap building. Budget line Heading Provisional appropriations Current operating expenditure for restaurants and canteens Rent: Luxembourg Construction of buildings Fitting-out of premises: Luxembourg Other property-related expenditure Cleaning and maintenance: Luxembourg Energy consumption: Luxembourg Purchase, servicing and maintenance of hardware and software: purchase, servicing and maintenance of hardware and software for infrastructure Outside assistance for the operation, production and maintenance of software and systems: infrastructure assistance Furniture: purchase and replacement of furniture Removals: handling and departmental removals Acquisition of expertise: experts for the Administration TOTAL NT\ doc 9/9 PE /BUR/PART 1