The Committee on Budgetary Control adopted the report by José Ignacio SALAFRANCA SÁNCHEZ-NEYRA (EPP, ES) on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the EU Anti-Fraud programme.
The proposed programme would have two general objectives: 1) to protect the financial interests of the European Union and 2) to support mutual assistance between the administrative authorities of the Member States and collaboration between these and the Commission to ensure the proper application of customs and agricultural legislation.
The committee responsible recommended that the European Parliament's position adopted at first reading under the ordinary legislative procedure should amend the Commission's proposal as follows:
Budget
Members proposed that the financial envelope for the implementation of the programme for the period 2021-2027 should be set at EUR 321 314 000 at 2018 prices (EUR 362 414 000 in current prices), compared with EUR 181 207 000 in current prices proposed by the European Commission.
This envelope would be distributed as follows:
- EUR 202 512 000 at 2018 prices (EUR 228 414 000 in current prices) to prevent and combat fraud, corruption and any other illegal activity affecting the Union's financial interests;
- EUR 12 412 000 at 2018 prices (EUR 14 000 000 in current prices) to encourage the reporting of irregularities, including fraud, with regard to shared management and pre-accession aid funds from the Union budget;
- EUR 106,390,000 at 2018 prices (EUR 120,000,000,000 at current prices) to provide tools for the exchange of information and support for operational activities in the field of mutual administrative assistance in customs and agricultural matters.
The Commission would be given the power to redistribute funds between the different objectives. In view of the need to protect the EU’s financial interests, the indicative breakdown should give due consideration to the fact that the programme is the only one specifically to protect the expenditure side of the EU budget.
Co-financing rates
The maximum rates for co-financing for grants under the Programme should not exceed 80 % of the eligible costs. In exceptional and duly justified cases, defined in the work programme, such as cases concerning Member States exposed to a high risk in relation to the financial interests of the Union, the maximum co-financing rate should be set at 90 % of eligible costs.
Synergies
When the supported action requires the acquisition of equipment, the Commission should ensure that the funded equipment contributes to the protection of the Union's financial interests. Members stressed the need to avoid duplication and establish synergies between the programme and other relevant programmes in areas such as Justice, Customs and Home Affairs when preparing work programmes.