Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Change 2

AddedBUDGETARY ASSESSMENT OF THE COMMITTEE ON BUDGETS

Addedfor the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy

Addedon the proposal for a Council regulation establishing the Instrument for Nuclear Safety Cooperation and Decommissioning for the period 2028-2034 and repealing Regulations (Euratom) 2021/100 and (Euratom) 2021/948

Added(COM(2025)0598 – C10-0262/2025 – 2025/0265(CNS))

AddedRapporteur for budgetary assessment: Rasmus Andresen

AddedThe Committee on Budgets has carried out a budgetary assessment of the proposal under Rule 58 of the Rules of Procedure and has reached the following conclusions:

AddedThe Committee on Budgets,

AddedA. whereas the Instrument for Nuclear Safety Cooperation and Decommissioning (INSCD) has been proposed to contribute to a high level of nuclear safety, radiation protection, the safe management of spent fuel and radioactive waste, decommissioning, and the application of efficient and effective safeguards concerning nuclear materials, thereby merging into one programme activities relating to the promotion of international nuclear safety cooperation, as well as activities concerning the decommissioning and management of radioactive waste; whereas this merger should not undermine the full traceability of resources nor the clear identifiability, in the programming and budgetary documents, of expenditure on international nuclear safety cooperation, on the one hand, and expenditure on decommissioning and radioactive waste management activities, on the other;

AddedB. whereas nuclear safety is a public good, and past programmes have demonstrated the added value of collecting and disseminating knowledge linked to nuclear safety and decommissioning;

AddedC. whereas several nuclear power plants in central and eastern Europe still depend on Russian technology;

AddedD. whereas the continuity of decommissioning and radioactive waste management activities requires stable, predictable and adequately funded multiannual programming in order to avoid delays, cost increases and the loss of strategic expertise;

AddedE. whereas high levels of nuclear safety limit the risks associated with the management of nuclear facilities;

Added1. Agrees that the programme envelope should be set at EUR 0.97 billion in current prices (EUR 0.85 billion in 2025 prices) in order to fulfil the programme’s objectives; stresses that the programme envelope should ensure sufficient and predictable resources for both nuclear safety cooperation actions and for activities related to decommissioning and the safe management of radioactive waste;

Added2. Considers that sufficient human and technical resources must be available from the outset and throughout the entire programming period of the 2028-2034 multiannual financial framework (MFF) to ensure that the INSCD is implemented effectively and the necessary technical expertise is maintained; calls, therefore, on the Commission to estimate costs, including management costs, upfront;

Added3. Insists that sufficiently detailed and sound legislation, with an appropriate level of governance, is a condition for proper budgetary decision-making and adequate parliamentary oversight, and that this must be maintained by ensuring transparency in the implementation of the INSCD and keeping the European Parliament informed on a regular basis; stresses, in particular, the need for the programme structure to make it possible to clearly identify, in the programming and budgetary documents, the distribution of resources among the different components of the instrument;

Added4. Stresses that the Joint Research Centre’s decommissioning activities meet long-term legal and technical obligations; considers, therefore, that stable and predictable financial programming is a condition for sound budgetary management, allowing for timely contractual renegotiations and implementation, ensuring maximum impact of the EU budget;

Added5. Recalls that the proposal includes the possibility of using a budgetary guarantee; stresses that the budgetary implications of borrowing and lending operations under the INSCD must be clearly identified, transparently presented and carefully monitored throughout the 2028-2034 MFF period; underlines, in particular, that their potential impact on the MFF’s budgetary headroom or other guarantees must be fully assessed and duly taken into account; insists that all decisions related to such operations must fully respect the powers of the co-legislators and the prerogatives of the budgetary authority; underlines that such instruments should be used strategically to maximise the impact, efficiency and sustainability of EU funding, while ensuring full transparency, sound risk management and respect for the prerogatives of the budgetary authority;

Added6. Takes note of the suggested complementarity between the INSCD and other programmes, such as Global Europe; stresses that enhanced complementarity between instruments must not come at the expense of expenditure traceability or the prerogatives of the budgetary authority; underlines that the contribution of the INSCD to operations financed jointly with other instruments must be explicitly identifiable at all stages of the budgetary cycle; stresses, in this regard, that any such contribution must be duly reflected in the INSCD’s programme performance statement; insists that the budgetary authority retain full control over how resources are combined across instruments and over the effective contribution of each programme to EU priorities, specifically through detailed budgetary nomenclature; stresses that enhanced complementarity between programmes must not lead to disproportionate complexity for beneficiaries; calls for EU funding to be clearer, more accessible and more coherent in order to facilitate uptake and maximise the impact of investments;

Added7. Stresses that the use of external assigned revenue under the INSCD must be clearly defined, transparent and subject to effective parliamentary scrutiny; takes note, in that regard, of the provisions relating to additional financial contributions from any participating non-EU country and other donors; underlines that, should the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy consider amending provisions relating to external assigned revenue, this should be done in coordination with the Committee on Budgets and the other committees in order to ensure a consistent approach; reiterates that the use of this revenue should in no way circumvent the annual budgetary procedure or weaken parliamentary scrutiny over the implementation of the programme;

Added8. Stresses that there is a need to ensure and emphasise synergies and complementarity with other EU policies and programmes, such as the Euratom Research and Training Programme;

Added9. Recalls the proposal for a regulation establishing a budget expenditure tracking and performance framework and other horizontal rules for the Union programmes and activities (performance regulation), which establishes a single streamlined list of performance indicators and monitoring and evaluation provisions, some of which are relevant to the INSCD; underlines that any change to the architecture, objectives and eligible actions under the programme will need to be appropriately reflected in Annex I of the performance regulation, as part of the process of amending and negotiating that regulation; points out that while sectoral legislation can supplement the performance regulation, for instance as regards programme evaluations, it should remain consistent with the provisions of that regulation;

Added10. Points out that the Commission should establish mitigating conditions to minimise delays and cost overruns during the implementation of actions relating to the INSCD; considers, in this regard, that all costs, management costs included, should be estimated upfront and that the estimated costs and the availability of sufficient pledges from other donors be taken into account before decisions on financing actions are taken; underlines that contractual arrangements with implementing partners under the indirect management mode include performance incentives that promote the delivery of outputs on time and on budget;

Added11. Recalls that under Article 6(2) and (3) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509 (Financial Regulation), a general regime of conditionality in cases of breaches to the rule of law applies to the establishment and implementation of the budget; underlines, furthermore, that the Member States and the Commission must, in the implementation of the budget, ensure compliance with the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and respect the values on which the EU is founded, as enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union.