The European Parliament adopted by 438 votes to 194, with 7 abstentions, the joint text on the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2017 approved by the Conciliation Committee under the budgetary procedure.
Parliament approved the joint text agreed by the Conciliation Committee, which consists of the following documents taken together:
- list of budget lines not modified, compared to the draft budget or the Council's position;
- summary figures by financial framework headings;
- line by line figures on all budget items;
- a consolidated document showing the figures and final text of all lines modified during the conciliation.
Parliament noted that its level of staffing was one of the major issues of this conciliation. It recalled that based on the Gentlemen’s Agreement, each branch of the budgetary authority has sole competence for its own section of the budget. It also recalled its political decision to exempt the political groups from the 5 % staff reduction target.
Parliament will evaluate the consequences of budgetary decisions on the functioning of the institution.
Parliament confirmed the joint statements made by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission annexed to the resolution. They concern:
- the overall level of commitment appropriations in the 2017 budget is set at EUR 157 857.8 million. Overall, this leaves a margin below the MFF ceilings for 2017 of EUR 1 100.1 million in commitment appropriations;
- the overall level of payment appropriations in the 2017 budget is set at EUR 134 490.4 million;
- the Flexibility Instrument for 2017 is mobilised in commitment appropriations for an amount of EUR 530 million for heading 3 Security and Citizenship;
- the Global margin for commitments is mobilised at a level of EUR 1 439.1 million for heading 1a Competitiveness for Growth and Jobs;
- the Contingency margin is mobilised at a level of EUR 1 906.2 million for heading 3 and heading 4. It is offset for EUR 575 million against the unallocated margin under heading 2 Sustainable Growth: Natural Resources in 2017 and for EUR 507.3 million in 2017, EUR 570 million in 2018 and EUR 253.9 million in 2019 against the unallocated margins under heading 5 Administration;
- the 2017 payment appropriations related to the mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument in 2014, 2015 and 2016 are estimated by the Commission at EUR 981.1 million.
The joint conclusions adopted in the framework of the joint text confirm the adoption of:
- Draft Amending Budget 4/2016 and the accompanying mobilisation of the Contingency margin are accepted, as proposed by the Commission.
- Draft Amending Budget 5/2016 is accepted as proposed by the Commission.
- Draft Amending Budget 6/2016 and the related mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund are accepted as proposed by the Commission.
- Amending letter No 1 to the draft budget 2017.
The joint text also confirms certain horizontal issues relating to decentralised agencies and more specifically on the granting of posts to Europol, Eurojust, the European Banking Authority, the European Asylum Support Office and the European Medicines Agency. In addition, a number of actions and pilot projects were confirmed.
Further joint statements by Parliament, the Council and the Commission were adopted as regards:
- Youth Employment Initiative: the Council and the European Parliament invited the Commission to propose an amending budget in 2017 in order to provide EUR 500 million for the YEI in 2017 financed by the Global margin for commitments, as soon as the technical adjustment foreseen by article 6 of the MFF Regulation is adopted.
- Payment appropriations: Parliament and the Council called on the Commission to continue monitoring closely and actively the implementation of the 2014-2020 programmes and to present in a timely manner, updated figures concerning the state of implementation and estimates regarding payment appropriations requirements in 2017.
- 5 % staff reduction.
- European Fund for Sustainable Development (EFSD): the Commission proposed to endow the EFSD Guarantee Fund with EUR 750 million over the period 2017–2020, of which EUR 400 million from the European Development Fund (EDF) over the four years, EUR 100 million from the ENI over 2017–2020 (of which EUR 25 million in 2017), and EUR 250 million of commitment (and payment) appropriations in 2017. The Commission is called upon to request the necessary appropriations in an amending budget in 2017 in order to provide the financing of the EFSD from the EU budget as soon as the legal base is adopted.
- EU Trust Funds and the Facility for Refugees in Turkey: Parliament, the Council and the Commission agreed that the establishment of Trust Funds and of the Facility for Refugees in Turkey should be transparent and clear. The Commission is urged to present, as of 2017, a Working Document accompanying the Draft Budget for the following financial year.
- Agriculture: the budget 2017 includes a series of emergency measures to assist farmers in facing the market difficulties experienced recently. The Commission confirmed that the margin under heading 2 is sufficient to address possible unforeseen needs and it undertakes to monitor the market situation regularly.