The European Parliament adopted a decision concerning the discharge to be granted to the Director of the European Police Office (Europol) in respect of the implementation of the Office's budget for the financial year 2012. The vote on the discharge decision approved the closure of the accounts (in accordance with Annex VI, Article 5(1) of the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament.

Noting that the Court of Auditors stated that it has obtained reasonable assurances that the annual accounts of the Office for the financial year 2012 are reliable and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular, Parliament adopted by 480 votes to 69, with 20 abstentions, a resolution containing a series of recommendations that form an integral part of the discharge decision and as well as the general recommendations that appear in the draft resolution on performance, financial management and control of EU agencies.

These recommendations are summarised as follows:

• Financing, budget and financial management: Parliament recalled that the Office's overall budget for 2012 amounted to EUR 84.15 million. It also noted that budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2012 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 98.8 % and that the payment appropriations execution rate was 79.7 %.
• Implementation rate of appropriations: Parliament observed that the Office carried over EUR 1.2 million which were mostly related to the new task assigned to the Office in June 2012 of running the European Cybercrime Centre, as well as EUR 100 000 related to the introduction of a new human resources system. It regretted that commitments amounting to EUR 2.6 million (out of EUR 15 million) carried over from 2011 had to be cancelled in 2012. Parliament made a series of observations as regards the accounting system, procurement and recruitment procedures of this Agency.
• Performance: Parliament asked that the Office communicated the results and impact its work had on the European citizens in an accessible way, mainly through its website.

Lastly, Parliament stressed the need to strengthen transparency and prevent conflicts of interests. It called on EUROPOL to make publicly available the Declarations of Interests of certain members.

The Committee on Budgetary Control adopted the report by Petri SARVAMAA (EPP, FI) on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Police Office for the financial year 2012.

Noting that the Court of Auditors stated that it has obtained reasonable assurances that the annual accounts of the Authority for the financial year 2012 are reliable and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular, Members approve the closure of the Office’s accounts. However, they made a number of recommendations that need to be taken into account when the discharge is granted, in addition to the general recommendations that appear in the draft resolution on performance, financial management and control of EU agencies:

·        Financing, budget and financial management: Members recall that the Office's overall budget for 2012 amounted to EUR 84.15 million. They also note that budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2012 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 98.8 % and that the payment appropriations execution rate was 79.7 %.

·        Implementation rate of appropriations: the report observes that the Office carried over EUR1.2 million which were mostly related to the new task assigned to the Office in June 2012 of running the European Cybercrime Centre, as well as EUR 100 000 related to the introduction of a new human resources system. They regretted that commitments amounting to EUR 2 600 000 (out of EUR 15 000 000) carried over from 2011 had to be cancelled in 2012.

Members made a series of observations as regards the accounting system, procurement and recruitment procedures of this Agency. They asked that the Office communicated the results and impact its work had on the European citizens in an accessible way, mainly through its website.

Lastly, Members stressed the need to strengthen transparency and prevent conflicts of interests. They called on EUROPOL to make publicly available the Declarations of Interests of certain members.

PURPOSE: presentation by the Commission of the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union for the financial year 2012, as part of the 2012 discharge procedure.

Analysis of the accounts of the European Police Office (EUROPOL).

CONTENT: this Commission document sets out the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union for the financial year 2012 as prepared on the basis of the information presented by the institutions, organisations and bodies of the EU, in accordance with Article 129 (2) of the Financial Regulation applicable to the EU's General Budget, including the European Police Office (EUROPOL).

In 2012, the tasks and budget of this agency were as follows:

description of EUROPOL's tasks: the European Police Office (the Office), which is located in The Hague, was established by Council Decision 2009/371/JHA. The objective of the Office is to support and strengthen action by the competent authorities of the Member States and their mutual cooperation in preventing and combating organised crime, terrorism and other forms of serious crime affecting two or more Member States;

EUROPOL’s budget for the 2012 financial year: EUROPOL’s budget for 2012, as presented in the Commission document on the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union, gives the following figures:

§         Commitment appropriations :

- committed : EUR 85 million;

- paid : EUR 84 million;

- carried-over : EUR 1 million.

§         Payment appropriations :

- committed : EUR 100 million;

- paid : EUR 79 million;

- carried-over : EUR 17 million.

Please refer also to the final accounts of EUROPOL.