Having examined the revenue and expenditure accounts
for the financial year 2012 and the balance sheet at 31 December
2012 of the European Asylum Support Office (EASO, as well as the
Court of Auditors' report on the annual accounts of the Institute
for the financial year 2012, accompanied by the Institute's replies
to the Court's observations, the Council recommends the European
Parliament to give a discharge to the Director of the Office in
respect of the implementation of the budget for the financial year
2012.
The observations in the Court of Auditors' report in
relation to the financial year 2012 call for some comments by the
Council, which may be summarised as follows:
- in general, the Council welcomes the Court's opinion
that, in all material respects, the Office's annual accounts
present fairly its financial position as at 31 December 2012 and
the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then
ended, in accordance with the provisions of the Office's Financial
Regulation and the accounting rules adopted by the Commission's
accounting officer, and that the underlying transactions for that
financial year are legal and regular.
- Carry-overs: the Council
regrets that the Office's accounting system has not yet been
validated by the Accounting Officer and that certain appropriations
carried over to the next year are not covered by a legal
commitment. It calls on the Office to remedy the situation in
compliance with the Financial Regulation.
- Inventory: the Council
also calls on the Office to set up a physical inventory, to fully
implement the internal control standards and to respect the
deadlines of payments as set in the Financial
Regulation.
- Budget transfers:
furthermore, the Council urges the Office to improve its financial
programming and monitoring of the budget implementation, with the
aim to improve budget execution and to reduce budgetary transfers
and amounts carried over to the next financial year, in line with
the budgetary principles of specification and
annuality.
- Justification of expenses: the Council also invites the Office to monitor the
expenses paid to external experts and to verify whether the
flat-rate reimbursements correspond to the costs incurred. It also
invites the Office in cooperation with the Commission and the host
Member State to clarify the situation relating to the financing of
the renovation of the building offered to the Office.
- Recruitment: lastly, the
Council encourages the Office to pursue efforts in order to address
the shortcomings detected by the Court regarding its staff
recruitment procedures.