Having examined the revenue and expenditure accounts
for the financial year 2010 and the balance sheet at 31 December
2010 of the ENIAC Joint Undertaking, and the report by the Court of
Auditors on the annual accounts of the Joint Undertaking for the
financial year 2010, accompanied by the Joint Undertaking's replies
to the Court's observations, the Council recommends the European
Parliament to give a discharge to the Executive Director of the
Joint Undertaking in respect of the implementation of the budget
for the financial year 2010.
However, the Council considers that observations made
in the Court of Auditor's report call for a certain number of
remarks:
- the Council welcomes the Court's opinion that, with
one exception, the Joint Undertaking's annual accounts fairly
present, in all material respects, the financial position as at 31
December 2010 and the results of operations and cash flows for the
year then ended, in accordance with the provisions of the Joint
Undertaking's Financial Rules, and that the underlying transactions
for that financial year are legal and regular;
- the Council regrets the Court's qualified opinion as
regards the presentation of budget information in the Joint
Undertaking's annual accounts. It urges the Joint Undertaking to
include the Budgetary Outturn Account and its reconciliation to the
Economic Outturn Account in its final accounts;
- it calls on the Joint Undertaking to comply with the
budgetary principle of annuality: due attention should be paid to
the proper implementation of commitment and payment
appropriations, thus avoiding under-spending, excessive
carry-overs and high cash balances;
- it asks the Joint Undertaking to fully implement
and further strengthen its accounting and internal control
systems to ensure the legality and regularity of declared
expenditure;
- lastly, the Council urges the Joint Undertaking to
complete its Financial Rules in order to ensure that the
operational role of the Commission's Internal Auditor is clearly
defined.