Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Added138. Calls on the agencies to promptly and systematically implement the Court’s observations and take concrete corrective measures to address identified weaknesses in internal control framework; urges the establishment of stricter accountability measures, ensuring that any persistent deficiencies lead to targeted corrective actions and consequences for repeated non-compliance;

AddedCybersecurity, ethics and transparency

Added139. Draws attention to the need to take all necessary security measures to safeguard the online integrity of processed information, insists on increasing agencies’ resilience to cyberattacks or infiltration attempts particularly originating from Russia or any other third country; underlines that joint procurement in this field between agencies could result in reduced financial costs and improved results;

Added140. Welcomes FRA’s cooperation with the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) on safeguarding privacy and data protection throughout the development and implementation of cybersecurity initiatives and with eu-LISA on guaranteeing that the design and use of IT systems adheres to fundamental rights standards;

Added141. Notes that decentralised agencies of the European Union have established various mechanisms to address transparency and lobbying activities in their respective policy fields; underlines, however, that, according to the Court, agencies are not always successful in achieving the satisfactory levels of transparency and value for money in tenders with complex procurement rules and procedures; notes with concern the remaining issues with transparency which in turn affect coherency, effectiveness and above all, accountability;

Added142. Highlights the positive progress in implementing Fundamental Rights targets, including the ongoing execution of the Fundamental Rights Action Plan and the independent evaluation of the Agency’s compliance with the Fundamental Rights Framework, in line with the EBCG Regulation; welcomes the proactive follow-up by Frontex on complaints related to fundamental rights, with the majority being dismissed for non-admissibility; welcomes Frontex’s reinforced commitment to transparency and accountability;

Added143. Emphasises that, for the sake of full clarity and transparency and in line with Court’s observation, agencies that collect own revenue should disclose that same information in an easy-to-understand way in their final annual accounts, consolidated annual activity reports and single programming documents, since these reports serve different purposes;

Added144. Notes, furthermore, that in 2023 Frontex refused to grant public access to a report by its Fundamental Rights Officer concerning a Frontex operation in Albania (case 652/2023/VB), leading to an Ombudsman inquiry; the Ombudsman considered that Frontex should have given access to some parts of the report and welcomes that Frontex accepted the Ombudsman’s proposal for a solution;

Added145. Regrets that the application of the Transparency Register to outside contacts is not mandatory for the decentralised agencies; notes, however, that according to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 20 May 2021 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on a mandatory transparency register, the agencies have the possibility to use the Transparency Register on a voluntary basis;

Added146. Encourages all agencies to make use of this voluntary possibility and follow the example of eu-LISA and Frontex which are the only two agencies that are requiring third parties’ outside contacts to register in the Transparency Register;

Added147. Highlights that the use of the Transparency Register is promoted and encouraged by the signatories of the Interinstitutional Agreement; recalls the strong call for all decentralised agencies to make full use of the register;

Added148. Notes that eu-LISA focused on cybersecurity and combating threats in the cyber domain, in particular making necessary preparations for obligations stemming from the new Union Regulations on information security and cybersecurity; highlights that eu-LISA operates and maintains a security monitoring platform, cybersecurity incident plan, response playbooks and 24/7 stand-by duty arrangements to ensure timely identification of and response to cyber threats; welcomes the role of eu-LISA in supporting inter-agency cybersecurity exercises in cooperation with the JHA Agencies Network (JHAAN); underlines the importance of decentralised agencies having the full capability to defend themselves against cyberattacks; encourages closer cooperation between eu-LISA and the other agencies to build a more resilient, collective response against cybercrime; stresses, in this regard, the importance of strengthening cybersecurity measures across all agencies, in light of the increasing risks of cyber threats and data breaches; calls for additional investments in secure IT infrastructure and cybersecurity training for the agency’s personnel; urges agencies to submit an annual cybersecurity risk assessment report to the Parliament and the Court ;

Added149. Welcomes the fact that eu-LISA also focused on cybersecurity and combating threats in the cyber domain, in particular making necessary preparations for obligations stemming from the new Union regulations on information security and cybersecurity; highlights the fact that eu-LISA operates and maintains a security monitoring platform, cybersecurity incident plan, response playbooks and 24/7 stand-by duty arrangements to ensure timely identification of and response to cyber threats; welcomes the role of eu-LISA in supporting inter-agency cybersecurity exercises in cooperation with the JHA Agencies Network (JHAAN);

Added150. Urges Frontex to ensure, without further delay, the full implementation of all the recommendations from European audit and scrutiny bodies, particularly OLAF and those from the European Parliament’s Frontex Scrutiny Working Group, the European Ombudsman, the Court and the Frontex Working Group on Fundamental Rights and Legal Operational Aspects of Operations (WG FRaLO);

Added151. Notes that all agencies have a whistle-blower policy in place; calls on all the agencies to ensure they have specific, safe and effective reporting channels in place in line with the relevant requirements of Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council on whistleblowing;

Added152. Advocates for the systematic inclusion of AI-specific risk assessments in internal audits of agencies, ensuring compliance with the Union’s ethical guidelines and cybersecurity standards; calls for an expended mandate of ENISA to include specific oversight of risks related to the use of artificial intelligence within EU agencies;

AddedSustainability, environmental impact and social inclusion

Added153. Notes that overall, 11 of the 33 EU agencies (33 %) have already implemented the EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS); takes positive note of the proactive steps being undertaken by several agencies in their pursuit of obtaining EMAS certification in the near future; notes that some of the agencies with a larger budget have not communicated their plans to implement EMAS in the short term; takes note that EASA is currently assessing instruments for systematic and continuous environmental performance improvements, including EMAS and will provide an update to the discharge authority later this year;

Added154. Recalls that the 2022 discharge (horizontal) report pointed to 14 agencies still not having the corporate sustainability plans in place; notes that for the 2023 financial year Court’s report did not provide updated figures on the issue; reiterates the importance of all agencies having the corporate sustainability plans in place; urges agencies to report to the Commission about the energy performance of their buildings;

Added155. Encourages the Court to update on a regular basis the figures on the corporate sustainable plans situation in the agencies;

Added156. Notes that in the financial year 2023 the agencies demonstrated a growing commitment to environmental and sustainability goals; notes that the European Environment Agency (EEA) played a pivotal role in monitoring and reporting on climate change and environmental performance across the Union; notes that agencies such as CINEA and EEA spearheaded the implementation of sustainability-related programs, contributing to EU-wide initiatives aimed at reducing carbon footprint and promoting renewable energy;

Added157. Notes with concern that, despite the general trend of progress, some agencies faced difficulties integrating sustainability into their corporate strategies due to procedural inefficiencies and insufficient resource allocation; stresses therefore the need for a more cohesive and actionable framework to ensure long-term sustainability in agency operations;

AddedFollow up of previous years’ observations raised by the Court

Added158. Notes that “observations” in the agencies’ specific annual reports are in fact “not timed recommendations” by the Court; notes that the Court annually follows-up on those observations by assessing their status as “open” or “closed”;

Added159. Notes that out of a total of 116 observations made by the Court corresponding to previous years of the agencies that are part of this resolution, a total of 58 have been closed during 2023, with a total of 53 still open and five partially closed; observes that the number of ongoing observations varies among the agencies, with some having no open observations, as is the case for BEREC Office, EBA, ECHA, EEA,EMSA, ENISA, EU-OSHA, EUSPA and Eurofound, while the highest number of open observations is for eu-LISA, Frontex and ELA with eight, seven and five observations respectively; requests these agencies to take proactive measures to resolve these open issues;

Added160. Takes note that six out of the 53 open observations refer to a high level of carryovers (ACER, ELA, EFCA, eu-LISA, FRA, Frontex); is concerned that in the case of Frontex, this observation remains open since 2018;

Added161. Notes that ERA has an open observation since 2018 regarding the collection of fees and charges for certification tasks, which began in 2019; notes that according to the regulation the specific needs of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) should be considered and ERA is expected to implement effective controls to verify whether applicants qualify as SMEs; calls on the agency to report back to the discharge authority on the current status of this issue and to provide reasons for its continued open status;

Added162. Notes that EASA has accumulated more than EUR 50 million surplus from industry-financed activities over the years, for which there is no provision in its founding regulation; asks the Commission to propose a solution at legislative level to address this issue;

Added163. Notes that ACER had been using interim workers performing long-term tasks to make up for a lack of directly employed staff members since 2019; calls on the Commission to provide additional statutorily staff posts;

°

° °

Change 9

Changed24. Refers,164. forInstructs otherits observations,President to itsforward this resolution ofto 7the Mayagencies 2025subject withto observationsthis formingdischarge anprocedure, integralthe partCouncil, the Commission and the Court of decisionsAuditors, onand dischargeto inarrange respectfor ofits publication in the budgetOfficial Journal of the European Union agencies.(L series).