The European Parliament adopted by 541 votes to 33, with 14 abstentions, a legislative resolution on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a Programme to support the further development of an Integrated Maritime Policy.
Parliament adopted its position at first reading, under the ordinary legislative procedure. The amendments adopted in plenary are the result of a compromise negotiated between the European Parliament and the Council. They amend the Commission proposal as follows:
Subject matter: the amended text states that the Union's Integrated Maritime Policy (‘IMP’) shall foster coordinated and coherent decision making to maximise the sustainable development, economic growth and social cohesion of Member States, in particular with regard to coastal, insular and outermost regions in the Union, as well as maritime sectors, through coherent maritime-related policies and relevant international cooperation. The Programme shall support the sustainable use of the seas and oceans, and the expansion of scientific knowledge.
Further objectives include:
For each general objective, operational objectives are set out in delail.
Eligible actions and beneficiaries: the Programme may provide financial assistance for the following types of actions: (i) projects, including test projects; studies; research and operational cooperative programmes, including education, professional training and retraining programmes; (ii) public information and sharing best practice, awareness raising and associated communication and dissemination activities, including publicity campaigns and events, and the development and maintenance of websites and relevant social networks and databases; (iii) pooling, monitoring and visualisation of, and ensuring public access to, a significant amount of data, best practices and databases on Union-funded regional projects, including where appropriate through a secretariat established for one or more of these purposes which will facilitate the adoption of common uniform standards for data collection and processing.
Principles for implementation: actions financed under the Programme shall not be eligible to receive assistance from other financial instruments of the Union. Synergies and complementarity shall be sought with other instruments of the Union. Actions under the Programme shall be complementary to the implementation of relevant sectoral policies.
The actions supported by the Programme shall stimulate and reinforce dialogue, cooperation and coordination with and among Member States, EU regions, stakeholders, citizens, civil society organisations and the social partners, while guaranteeing full transparency.
Budgetary resources: the financial envelope for the implementation of the Programme shall be set at EUR 40 000 000 for the period from 1 January 2011 to 31 December 2013.
The distribution of funds among the general objectives is as follows:
(a) Development and implementation of integrated governance of maritime and coastal affairs and visibility of the IMP: at least 4%;
(b) Development of cross-sectoral tools: at least 60%;
(c) Protection of the marine environment and sustainable use of marine and coastal resources: at least 8%;
(d) Development and implementation of sea-basin strategies: at least 8%;
(e) External cooperation and coordination of the international dimension of the IMP: maximum 1%;
(f) Sustainable economic growth, employment, innovation and new technologies: at least 4%.
Up to 1% of the financial envelope may also cover necessary expenditure relating to any preparatory action, monitoring, control, audit or evaluation directly necessary in order to implement eligible actions under this Regulation effectively and efficiently and to achieve its objectives.
By a Joint Statement by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission state that the financial envelope for the implementation of the Programme to support the further development of the IMP for 2011-13 is EUR 40 000 000. This envelope is to be composed of EUR 23 140 000 drawn from the 2011 budget without calling on the available margin of heading 2 of the multi annual financial framework, an amount of EUR 16 660 000, including an allocation for technical assistance, entered in the draft budget and accepted by Council during its reading of the 2012 budget and a further amount of EUR 200 000 for technical assistance to be entered in the 2013 budget.
Towards this end, the 2011 budget would need to be amended to create the necessary nomenclature and enter the appropriations in the reserve. The adopted budgets for 2012 and 2013 would need to include the relevant amounts for those years.
Reporting, evaluation and extension: the amended text provides that the Commission shall: (i) regularly and promptly inform the European Parliament and the Council about its work; (ii) submit to the European Parliament and the Council: (a) a progress report no later than 31 December 2012; the progress report shall include an evaluation of the Programme's impact on other Union policies; (b) an ex-post evaluation report no later than 31 December 2014.
If appropriate, the Commission shall submit a legislative proposal on the extension of the Programme beyond 2013 with an appropriate financial envelope.
Committee procedure: the Commission shall be assisted by a committee. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission's exercise of implementing powers.
The European Parliament and the Council do not exclude the possibility of providing for delegated acts in future Programmes beyond 2013 on the basis of relevant Commission proposals.