Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Added88. Notes that in 2023, EASA significantly strengthened its cooperation with military organisations within the scope provided by the EU Action plan on military mobility 2.0 and is now invited to all NATO Aviation Committee meetings; takes notice of the endorsement of the Agency’s Civil Military Cooperation strategy – its long-time priority – supporting its involvement in certification tasks for military aircraft deriving from civilian ones based on the “as civil as possible as military as necessary” concept;

Added89. Notes that in 2023, EMSA continued providing highly effective assistance in helping to reduce the impact of the maritime transport sector on the environment, including through its involvement in the numerous initiatives related to European Green Deal; takes particular notice of the technical expertise it provided in the context of the review of the Maritime Safety Package; commends the Agency’s support to the Commission and the Member States in the final adoption of the proposals made as a part of the Fit for 55 package, notably on the extension of the Emission Trading System (ETS) to maritime transport and the FuelEU Maritime Regulation; in this context, appreciates its ongoing research into the potential of various alternative fuels and the associated safety considerations arising from the uptake and deployment of sustainable alternative sources of power for ships; welcomes the adaptation of THETIS-MRV to the requirements of the ETS legislation;

Added90. Welcomes the five agencies’ (EUROFOUND, CEDEFOP. ETF, EU OSHA, ELA) continued and growing cooperation and sharing of resources among them and with other institutions, including other EU agencies, the Commission and the Parliament;

Added91. Calls on the Commission to ensure better use of the Agencies’ (EUROFOUND, CEDEFOP. ETF, EU OSHA, ELA) expertise in relevant policy areas regarding for example, elaboration of reports and studies, conducting research and surveys, which can allow for more efficient utilisation of existing Union budget resources compared to alternative solutions; appreciates the five agencies’ efforts to further develop their digital and online communication in order to increase their visibility and raise awareness of their high-impact work; stresses, in this regard, the unused potential in providing for specific, relevant information and the same quality products as external consultants, when the agencies’ mandates allow it;

Added92. Welcomes the agencies’ efforts (EUROFOUND, CEDEFOP. ETF, EU OSHA, ELA) to implement policies on diversity and inclusiveness, particularly when it comes to persons with disabilities; encourages the agencies to enhance comparable data collection on the employment of persons with disabilities; recognises the progress made within the Agencies towards gender balance within their staff: calls for further efforts to ensure gender balance also at the senior management level and to mainstream gender in all their activities;

Added93. Notes that budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2023 resulted in a budget implementation rate of current year commitment appropriations averaging above 97 %, with the exceptions of CdT and ELA, which had rates of 89,55 % and 93,72 % respectively; notes that the agencies exhibiting the lowest execution rate of current year payment appropriations are as follows, listed in ascending order along with their respective percentages: ESA at 47,61 %, Frontex at 55,37 %, EU-OSHA at 68,83 %, ACER at 70,69 % and ECDC at 71,79 %;

Added94. Notes the increase in the EUAA’s budget in 2023 from EUR 168 million to EUR 170 million (+0,77 %) and its staff from 519 to 529 (+2 %); reiterates the important role of the European Union Asylum Agency in supporting Member States with the implementation of the Common European Asylum System and monitoring its correct implementation; recalls that in its 2022 European Union Agency for Asylum discharge report, the discharge authority highlighted concerns about the internal management and procedures of the Agency, noting that OLAF had initiated an investigation, which has now been concluded, allegedly involving nepotism and other issues affecting its financial management; regrets that the Agency's executive director avoided to provide answers during the discharge preparatory hearing in CONT Committee; is alarmed that the Board of the Agency refuses to disclose the contents and recommendation of the said OLAF report to the discharge authority; calls on the Agency to make findings of the report available immediately;

Added95. Considers that the OLAF Final Report (OC-2022-0717) on the EUAA comes to very concerning conclusions on established facts, which put at risk the stability, governance and reputation of the Agency, forcing the decision to postpone discharge to the Agency in relation to the 2023 financial year; recalls, moreover, that OLAF established and quantified a financial impact that cannot be recovered which corroborates the negative impact on the sound financial management of the resources of the agency; requests, therefore, a comprehensive follow-up by the Management Board detailing all measures taken in order to correct the weaknesses detected;

Added96. Reiterates its call from last year that the EUAA should keep Parliament regularly updated on all OLAF investigations;

AddedProcurement

Added97. Notes with concern that public procurement weaknesses remain the largest source of irregular payments; highlights that the Court made 38 observations on public procurement weaknesses in 2023 (compared to 41 in 2022 and 28 in 2021); urges agencies to introduce measures to ensure strict adherence to procurement regulations and the principles of transparency, competition and cost-effectiveness; reminds the need for regular training programs for staff on financial management, procurement rules and fraud prevention; calls for stricter accountability measures ensuring that any persistent deficiencies lead to targeted corrective actions and consequences for repeated non-compliance;

Added98. Notes that, according to the Court, 13 of the observations on weaknesses leading to irregular payments in 2023 refer to irregularities detected and mentioned in previous audits; notes that for the remaining 25 observations, nine impacted payments and the other 16 did not lead to irregular payments in 2023; notes that the observations of the year that did not affect payments relate to the agencies ACER, EBA, eu-LISA, ESMA, EMSA, ENISA, ERA, EIGE, ECDC, EEA, EUDA, EUAA and CEPOL; takes note of the Agencies replies and calls on them to take measures to correct the weaknesses detected and report back to the discharge authority on the actions taken to address them;

Added99. Draws attention to the nine observations of the year made by the Court that affect payments; notes that in the case of ENISA, eu-LISA, as well as for ELA, the irregularities detected, along with those identified in previous audits that resulted in payments in 2023 (only for eu-LISA and ELA), form the basis for a qualified opinion by the Court and have been described under heading “Overview of the audit results” of this resolution;

Added100. Observes that the remaining observations of the year affecting payments refer to CdT, EIGE, EFCA, ERA and EU-OSHA with one observation per agency, with the exception of the latter agency which has two; notes that the reason for the observation as well as the agencies’ reply for the Court’s observation have the following breakdown:

Added– In the case of CdT the observation refers to the incorrect use of direct award procedure instead of the launch of competitive procedure based on an estimate of future costs, resulting in irregular payments under these contracts totalling EUR 25 800 in 2023; takes note of CdT’s reply that it will organize simplified competitive procedures for maintenance services exceeding EUR 1 000;

Added– In the case of ERA the observation is related to the signature of a specific contract without a reopening of competition as required by the framework contract which led to a total of EUR 254 400 of payments in connection with this contract; notes ERA’s reply that as from 2024, the agency has started to apply its own reopening of competition for the services in scope;

Added– EIGE’s observation refers to incorrect application of ex ante checks, exceeding the ceiling of the framework contract, and incorrect application of daily rates which resulted in EUR 76 500 in irregular payments; notes that EIGE will ensure proper implementation of interinstitutional framework contracts with attention to HR-related contracts;

Added– EFCA used an interinstitutional framework contract for the provision of travel arrangements beyond its scope for acquiring event organisation services and the associated 2023 payments of EUR 257 300 were irregular; notes that according to EFCA, the agency encountered unexpected situations leading to procedural delays and will develop as corrective action, a contingency plan to mitigate the impact of unexpected events;

Added– EU-OSHA has two observations:

Added1) Irregularities in awarding three negotiated procedures with a single economic operator, without the publication of a contract notice that according to the Court did not meet the conditions set out in point 11.1(c) of Annex I to the Financial Regulation and led to EUR 67 100 in irregular payments in 2023; takes note of EU-OSHA’s reply that it was in a situation of extreme urgency and had no other viable options to ensure business continuity;

Added2) Two directly awarded contracts resulted in irregular payments of EUR 29 700; notes that these contracts should have been combined into a single competitive procedure since they were for nearly identical services, contravening Article 160 of the financial regulation, which prohibits the splitting of contracts; notes that EU-OSHA will improve the documentation of its market prospections and explore alternative procurement tools;

Added101. Echoes the Court’s recommendation that, when implementing framework contracts, the agencies concerned should only use specific contracts to procure goods or services covered by the associated framework contract; further echoes the Court’s recommendation that the agencies concerned should also ensure that they comply with the rules given in the Financial Regulation for modifying existing contracts, that specific contracts define the prices quantities and delivery times and that contract implementation is subject to adequate checks relating to these key elements;

Added102. Recalls the importance for all procurement procedures to ensure quality goods and services, fair competition between tenderers and to procure the most economically advantageous goods and services, respecting the principles of transparency, proportionality, equal treatment and non-discrimination;

Added103. Insists on the need to strengthen procurement cooperation between EUAN and the European Commission;

Added104. Emphasises the importance of enhancing digitalisation within the agencies, both for internal operations and management, as well as for accelerating procedural digitalisation; highlights the need to remain proactive; supports in this regard further investments in digital tools and innovation to improve procedural tasks as well as to prevent a digital gap between agencies;

AddedStaffing policy, gender equality, inclusion, conflict of interest and fraud prevention

Added105. Notes that, in 2023, the 33 decentralised agencies reported that they employ a total of 10 580 members of staff (compared to 10 146 in 2022), comprising officials, temporary agents, contract agents and seconded national experts (SNEs), representing an increase of 4,27 % compared to 2022;

Added106. Notes that cases of burnout (in total 25) were registered in six agencies, namely EASA (five cases), EEA (four cases), EFCA (one case), EFSA (two cases), EMA (ten cases) and Europol (three cases); notes however, that not all agencies, including ECDC, ECHA, EMSA, ENISA, ERA, FRA, Frontex, collect data related to cases of burnout due to data protection; expresses its concern about medical data not being collected as these are important in order to follow the mental well-being of the agencies’ staff; urges the agencies to take immediate action to address the rising number of burnout cases among staff; notes that overtime was taken by several employees in 19 agencies in 2022 (13 in 2021); notes in particular that a high number of employees have taken overtime in EFSA (81 % of staff) and Eurofound (97 % of staff); recalls in this regard the importance of developing a long-term human resources policy, including mental health support structures, ensuring a comprehensive approach to work-life balance, including provisions for teleworking and career development; stresses, moreover, the importance of safeguarding mental health and well-being of staff;

Added107. Notes that the EIT Director, speaking on behalf of the EU Agencies Network, agreed on 4 December 2024, during the Committee on Budgetary Control, to conduct research on the types of contracts for cleaning personnel working at the decentralised agencies; asks the EU Agencies Network to inform the discharge authority on the types of contracts of the cleaning personnel working at the decentralised agencies, including the proportion of long-term and short-term contracts;

Added108. Supports Frontex’s continued efforts to strengthen its FRO, noting the employment of 46 Fundamental Rights Monitors (FRM) in 2023; stresses the importance of ensuring that all FRMs are recruited in AD grade, to further enhance their capacity and independence; recognises that Frontex has taken significant steps in responding to the opinions of the FRO, particularly on issues such as gender mainstreaming and human trafficking;

Added109. Notes that, in 2023, the staff turnover rate was more than 5 % in 18 out of 33 agencies (namely Cedefop, CEPOL, EBA, EFCA, EIGE, EIOPA, EIT, ELA, EUDA, ETF, EUAA, eu-LISA, Eurofound, Eurojust, Europol, EUSPA) and that three of them exceeded the 10 % rate (namely BEREC Office, CdT, Eurojust); commends the agencies that have taken targeted measures to prevent high staff turnover rates; highlights the importance for all agencies to implement measures with a view to improving talent management and retention; counts on EUAN to be a forum for its member agencies with regard to exchanging good practices and, where possible, joining forces in this regard; calls on the Commission to actively support agencies in recruiting the necessary expertise to fulfil their mandates, encouraging closer cooperation with universities and other relevant institutions;

Added110. Highlights that geographical balance is still a challenge for several agencies for which considerable percentages of their overall staff are nationals of the Member State where the agencies are located;

Added111. Acknowledges that attracting talent and ensuring a geographically diverse work force are linked to agencies’ individual specificities (e.g. location, infrastructure, schooling, policy area), as well as to external limiting factors (e.g. competition with the private sector, job uncertainty due to short term contracts, low correction coefficients); notes with appreciation from the EUAN’s follow-up report to the discharge for 2021, the actions taken by the EUAN to remedy the lack of attractiveness and improve the representativeness of the agencies’ staff in terms of age, gender and geographical origin;

Added112. Recalls that the agencies located in countries with relatively low correction coefficient are facing continuous challenges in attracting skilled and geographically diverse staff; calls on the Commission to analyse together with the respective Member State this matter and consider the use of economic incentives to help mitigate the problem; recalls, moreover, that the correction coefficient puts the general principle of equal treatment into practice;

Added113. Highlights that some Agencies make extensive use of external consultants, mainly in the ICT area but also in the areas of their core business, which make up significant parts of their operational budget (e.g. ACER, ETF, ELA, etc.); calls on all the agencies to prioritise permanent staff over external consultants and contractual staff in order to guarantee high quality working conditions and to prevent the loss of knowledge and experience; calls, moreover, on the agencies to prevent job uncertainty due to short term contracts and prioritise long-term employment; appeals, in this regard, for flexibility for agencies to convert seconded national expert (SNE) posts into temporary agent posts, ensuring expertise retention, operational functionality and business continuity; further insists on avoiding the externalisation of tasks to consultancies when know-how is available in-house;

Added114. Recognises the progress made within the agencies towards gender balance among their staff; calls for intensified efforts to ensure gender balance at the senior management level and to integrate gender equality systematically into all agency policies, procedures and activities;

Added115. Notes that gender distribution has improved in 2023 compared to 2022 at the level of senior and middle management and amongst the management board members; notes that the gender balance reported for staff overall did not change; encourages ACER, BEREC Office, Cedefop, ECDC, ECHA, EFSA, EIOPA, EMCDDA, EMSA, ENISA, ERA, eu-LISA, ELA, Europol, EUAA, EUSPA and Frontex to support women in applying for management positions; reiterates its calls on the Commission and Member States to observe gender balance when nominating and appointing members of the management or administrative boards; recalls the ambition of the agencies to align with the Commission to reach a gender balance of 50 % at all levels of its management by the end of 2025; calls on the agencies to keep taking these aspects into consideration with regard to all future recruitment of staff and to work towards the further improvement of gender balance at senior management level;

Added116. Urges decentralised agencies to strengthen gender equality policies at all levels, ensuring equal opportunities in recruitment, career progression and working conditions for all staff; encourages all agencies to adopt and implement robust diversity and inclusion strategies that promote fairness and balance, ensuring equal opportunities and representation of women and minorities in leadership positions; calls on agencies to develop comprehensive strategies to assess progress and identify areas for improvement; recalls that the Parliament will assess compliance with these principles in the annual discharge process;

Added117. Notes that all agencies have put in place measures to improve staff’s well-being at work and work-life balance; notes that the number and impact of such measures varies significantly from one agency to another and that no common framework of reference across agencies appears to exist; calls on the EUAN to coordinate efforts for the development of a common framework of reference in this this regard; notes with satisfaction that a large majority of agencies have put measures for integration of persons with disabilities in place; encourages the agencies to maintain good practices of staff well-being, inclusion and integration of persons with disabilities and to continue to address work-life balance, as well as lifelong learning and career development; stresses the importance of intensifying efforts to achieve gender and geographical balance among institutional staff and in senior management positions; underlines the useful role that exchanges of best practice can play in the field of staff management; invites the agencies to provide relevant and regular training to their staff;

Added118. Encourages all agencies to implement a policy for safeguarding personal dignity and preventing psychological and sexual harassment and to participate in the interagency task force of confidential counsellors; calls, in this regard, for the introduction of compulsory preventive anti-harassment training to be followed by employees of EU agencies; notes, with concern that, according to the replies to the standard questionnaire, ENISA communicated to the discharge authority that two administrative inquiries related to alleged harassment were open in 2023; it informed, moreover, that one of them was closed in 2024 after receiving a final report from OLAF; expects the Agency to thoroughly follow up on the ongoing cases, as well as to introduce strong measures to prevent any future similar cases; calls on the agencies to carry out regular reporting, via the follow-up report, on progress in this area;

Added119. Notes that a perceived conflict of interest can constitute a reputational risk to the agency and should be addressed even if it turns out to be unsubstantiated;

Added120. Underlines the importance of safeguarding the independence of EU agencies from undue industry influence to maintain public trust in their decision-making; expresses concern over regulatory shortcomings and potential conflicts of interest within certain agencies; highlights issues related to close ties to industry and reports of undue influence, particularly through revolving doors between public institutions and private companies; stresses the need for greater transparency, stronger oversight mechanisms and a firm commitment to prioritising public health and safety over financial interests;

Added121. Notes that, for 2023, no major cases of conflict of interest were reported by the Court with the exception of Frontex and EMCDDA;

Added122. Considers that currently, most agencies have robust and comprehensive procedures in place to raise awareness and prevent conflicts of interest, giving the required assurance of the independence of their staff members to stakeholders and the public;

Added123. Notes with satisfaction the strong collaboration with the Justice and Home Affairs Agencies, notably the conclusion of a new working arrangement with European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the opening of 15 new cases where Eurojust supported European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) as well as the cooperation on 42 cases with European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) stresses that Eurojust and Europol launched a pilot project for the systematic and structural exchange of data for link detection purposes, which will be reviewed in the first half of 2024; welcomes the Eurojust-OLAF Action Plan 2022-2023 to fight crimes affecting the European Union’s financial interests;

AddedInternal control

Added124. Notes with concern the Court’s findings in the area of management and control systems affecting 9 agencies, namely EMA, Europol, EUSPA, Eurofound, EIT, Eurojust ACER, ENISA and EEA;

Added125. Highlights that in the case of Europol and EIT, two out of three observations resulted in irregular payments in 2023;

Added126. Recalls that the Court found in 2022 that Europol had irregularly reimbursed VAT through grants to public authorities by considering it eligible cost and that in 2023 reimbursement for this concept totalled EUR 279 900; welcomes Europol's decision to no longer consider VAT as an eligible cost for new operational grants;

Added127. Notes that in the case of EIT, one of the observations forms the basis for a qualified opinion on the legality and regularity of the payments underlying the accounts which has been described under heading “Overview of the audit results” of this resolution;

Added128. Is concerned that the Court's second observation on the EIT refers to the agency's move to a multi-annual grant agreement structure, but procedures and guidelines for ex post checks of grant payments have not been updated to account for the implications; welcomes that EIT is already in the process of updating its ex-post control mechanism to address these implications;

Added129. Is aware that during the first quarter of 2023, EMA carried out a data migration but did not respect the deadlines for 48 veterinary inspections, resulting in significant invoice delays not reported in the register of exceptions and wrongly booked revenue; notes that this contravenes EMA's financial regulation and reveals a weakness in its management and control systems; takes note of EMA’s aim to improve the process in the context of implementing the New Fee Regulation;

Added130. Notes that Eurofound made a payment of EUR 38 600, linked to a contract for assessing the quality of survey data, without collecting some key supporting documents relating to the contractual deliverables;

Added131. Notes that, in 2023, Eurojust observed an increase in non-standard transactions classified as exceptions or non-compliance events, with the number growing from 43 to 71 and the total amount concerned rising from EUR 294 000 to EUR 566 400 compared with 2022; acknowledges the Eurojust response to the observation attributing the majority of the total non-compliance events in 2023 to a single event for a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) grant; takes note that according to Agency, the increase is primarily due to insufficient human resources and internal process inefficiencies and welcomes that Eurojust has addressed the issue by revising the current procedure for registering and reporting non-compliance events in 2024;

Added132. Notes that EUSPA's executive director had confirmed an early start to monitoring activities before the signing of a grant agreement, resulting in activities carried out without a budgetary commitment; highlights that this was not reported in the exceptions register or annual activity report, which contravenes the Financial Regulation; notes that EUSPA argue that there was no need to register the early start of activities without a budgetary commitment in the Exceptions Register but they acknowledge that the case was not reported in the annual activity report as required;

Added133. Takes note of ACER’s appointment of a new accounting officer, who was also the team leader of the budget, finance and procurement department, in violation of ACER's financial regulation requiring a segregation of duties for authorising officers and accounting officers; is aware that as from 1 May 2024 a reorganisation took place and that the team leader of the Budget, Finance and Procurement team has been released from her team leadership duties;

Added134. Notes that in September 2023, ENISA’s Executive Director allowed 15 interim staff to assume roles in the financial circuit without prior approval, contravening regulations; is aware that according to the agency reply, ENISA has been using interim agents and SNEs due to business needs and resource shortages and will seek to derogate from financial rules if the resource shortage persists;

Added135. Notes furthermore that ENISA’s Accounting Officer was also appointed as the Internal Control Coordinator, contrary to regulations stipulating segregation of duties; takes note of ENISA’s acknowledgement of the observation, but considers the roles of Internal Control Coordinator and Accounting Officer not necessarily incompatible since the Authorising Officer had not delegated any powers to the Internal Control Coordinator; welcomes that ENISA will clarify the roles and responsibilities of the Internal Control Coordinator in its internal processes; calls for informing the European Parliament on the progress in question before 30 June 2025;

Added136. Observes that EEA approved lump-sum grant payments without being able to show how the amount was calculated, posing a risk that it was not commensurate with the services provided; takes note that the EEA considers the written decision on the lump-sum payment to be fully compliant with the relevant clauses of the Financial Regulation; stresses that the Agency will ensure that lump sum amounts are properly determined and documented for cases where costs are declared by one-person company/self-employed partner in the ETCs (European Topic Centres);

Added137. Takes note that EEA outsourced ex ante financial checks to an external contractor and that the Court found shortcomings in the control arrangements; notes that in response, the EEA acknowledged the Court's observation and will update the procedures for ex-ante checks to ensure that this risk is addressed;