PURPOSE: to grant discharge to the European Banking Authority for the financial year 2013.

NON LEGISLATIVE ACT: Decision (EU) 2015/1647 of the European Parliament on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Banking Authority for the financial year 2013.

CONTENT: with the present decision, the European Parliament grants discharge to the Executive Director of the European Banking Authority for the implementation of its budget for the financial year 2013.

This decision is in line with the European Parliament's resolution adopted on 29 April 2015 and comprises a series of observations that form an integral part of the discharge decision (please refer to the summary of the opinion of 29 April 2015).

Amongst Parliament’s main observations was a request that the Authority coordinate with the European Central Bank, in its banking supervisory function, in order to avoid overlap and the build-up of excessive capacity.

The European Parliament adopted by 554 votes to 133, with 7 abstentions, a decision to grant discharge to Executive Director of the European Banking Authority (EBA) for the financial year 2013. 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 Authority for the financial year 2013 are reliable, and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular, Parliament adopted by 561 votes to 107, with 13 abstentions, a resolution containing a number of recommendations that form an integral part of the discharge decision and as well as the general recommendations that appear in the resolution on performance, financial management and control of EU agencies :

Authority’s financial statements : Parliament noted that the final budget of the Authority for the financial year 2013 was year 2013 was EUR 25 967 360, representing an increase of 25.16% compared to 2012, due to the Authority’s recently established nature of which the initial contribution of the Union to the Authority’s budget for 2013 amounted to EUR 10 386 944. Carry-overs : Parliament noted that the Authority managed to significantly reduce the overall level of committed appropriations carried over from EUR 6 547 808 in 2012 (36%) to EUR 3 876 564 in 2013 (17%). It noted with concern that the levels of carry-overs (36%) were relatively high, mainly due to the planned procurement of IT infrastructure and IT services, and the related services provided in 2014.

Parliament also made a series of observations on transfers, the prevention and management of conflicts of interests, recruitment, procurement procedures and internal control.

It noted that the Authority closely cooperates with the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority and the European Securities and Markets Authority across all support functions in order to reduce administrative costs where possible, to leverage synergies and to share best practices. It looked forward to further efforts from the Authority to enhance cooperation with other decentralised agencies.

Lastly, Parliament stressed that given its limited resources, the Authority must stick to the tasks assigned to it by Parliament and the Council. The Authority should carry out those assignments in full but that it must not seek to go beyond its mandate.

The Committee on Budgetary Control adopted the report by Ryszard CZARNECKI (ECR, PL) on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Banking Authority (EBA) for the financial year 2013.

It called on the European Parliament to grant the Executive Director of the Authority discharge in respect of the implementation of the Authority’s budget for the financial year 2013.

Noting that the Court of Auditors stated that it has obtained reasonable assurances that the annual accounts of the Authority for the financial year 2013 are reliable, and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular, Members called on the Parliament to approve the closure of the Authority’s accounts. They made, however, a number of recommendations that needed 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.

Authority’s financial statements : Members noted that the final budget of the Authority for the financial year 2013 was year 2013 was EUR 25 967 360, representing an increase of 25.16% compared to 2012, due to the Authority’s recently established nature of which the initial contribution of the Union to the Authority’s budget for 2013 amounted to EUR 10 386 944. Carry-overs : Members noted that the Authority managed to significantly reduce the overall level of committed appropriations carried over from EUR 6 547 808 in 2012 (36%) to EUR 3 876 564 in 2013 (17%). They noted with concern that the levels of carry-overs (36%) were relatively high, mainly due to the planned procurement of IT infrastructure and IT services, and the related services provided in 2014.

Members also made a series of observations on transfers, the prevention and management of conflicts of interests, recruitment, procurement procedures and internal control.

Lastly, Members noted that the Authority closely cooperates with the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority and the European Securities and Markets Authority across all support functions in order to reduce administrative costs where possible, to leverage synergies and to share best practices. They look forward to further efforts from the Authority to enhance cooperation with other decentralised agencies.

Having examined the revenue and expenditure accounts for the financial year 2013 and the balance sheet at 31 December 2013 of the European Banking Authority (EBA), as well as the Court of Auditors' report on the annual accounts of the Authority for the financial year 2013, accompanied by the Authority's replies to the Court's observations, the Council recommends the European Parliament to give a discharge to the Executive Director of the Authority in respect of the implementation of the budget for the financial year 2013.

Overall, the Council welcomes the Court's opinion that, in all material respects, the Authority's annual accounts fairly present the financial position as at 31 December 2013 and the results of operations and cash flows for the year then ended, in accordance with the provisions of the Authority's Financial Regulation, and that the underlying transactions for that financial year are legal and regular.

Nevertheless, one observation was made by the Council concerning:

carry-overs : the Council welcomes that in 2013 the overall level of carry-overs decreased significantly in comparison to the previous year. However, it is still concerned about the amount of carry-overs of committed appropriations recorded in 2013 and calls on the Authority to continue improving its financial programming and monitoring of the budget implementation in order to reduce the level of commitments carried over to the next financial year to the strict minimum.

PURPOSE: presentation by the Commission of the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union for the financial year 2013, as part of the 2013 discharge procedure.

Analysis of the accounts of the European Banking Authority (EBA).

CONTENT: this Commission document sets out the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union for the financial year 2013 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 Banking Authority (EBA).

The document contains the figures on which the discharge procedure is based.

Discharge procedure of the EU agencies : the EU Budget finances a wide range of policies and programmes throughout the EU. In accordance with the priorities set by the European Parliament and the Council in the multi-annual financial framework (MFF), the European Commission carries out specific programmes, activities and projects in the field with the technical support of some specialised agencies.

The consolidated annual accounts of the EU provide information on the activities of the institutions, agencies and other bodies of the EU from a budgetary and accrual accounting perspective.

The consolidated reports on the implementation of the general budget of the EU include the budget implementation of all Institutions. Agencies do not have a separate budget inside the EU budget ; and they are partially financed by a Commission budget subsidy.

Each agency is subject to its own discharge procedure.

EBA : in 2013, the tasks and budget of this agency were as follows:

description of the EBA’s tasks : the Authority, which is located in London, was established by Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council and has the aim of protecting the public interest and contributing to the stability and efficiency of the banking system in the short, medium and long term for the economy of the European Union, its citizens and its businesses; the EBA’s budget for the 2013 financial year : the EBA’s budget for 2013, as presented in the Commission document on the consolidated annual accounts of the European Union, gives the following figures:

§ Commitment appropriations :

- committed : EUR 26 million;

- paid : EUR 23 million;

- carried-over : 0.

§ Payment appropriations :

- committed : EUR 33 million;

- paid : EUR 25 million;

- carried-over : EUR 4 million.

Please refer also to the final accounts of the European Banking Authority .

PURPOSE: presentation of the EU Court of Auditors’ report on the annual accounts of the European Banking Authority (EBA) for the year 2013, together with the EBA’s reply.

CONTENT: in accordance with the tasks conferred on the Court of Auditors by the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the Court presents to the European Parliament and to the Council, in the context of the discharge procedure, a Statement of Assurance as to the reliability of the annual accounts of each institution, body or agency of the EU, and the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying them, on the basis of an independent external audit.

This audit concerned, amongst others, the annual accounts of the European Banking Authority (EBA).

Statement of assurance : pursuant to the provisions of Article 287 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), the Court has audited:

the annual accounts of the Authority, which comprise the financial statements and the reports on the implementation of the budget for the financial year ended 31 December 2013; the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying those accounts.

Opinion on the reliability of the accounts : in the Court’s opinion, the Authority’s annual accounts present fairly, in all material respects, its financial position as at 31 December 2013 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, in accordance with the provisions of its Financial Regulation and the accounting rules adopted by the Commission’s accounting officer.

Opinion on the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying the accounts : in the Court’s opinion, the transactions underlying the annual accounts for the year ended 31 December 2013 are legal and regular in all material respects.

The report also makes a series of observations on the budgetary and financial management of the Authority, accompanied by the latter’s response. The main observations may be summarised as follows:

The Court’s observations :

budgetary management : the Court noted that in 2013, the overall level of committed appropriations was 90%. Overall, carry-overs of committed appropriations remained relatively high for administrative expenses at 35% and operational expenses 36%. These carry-overs mainly result from the planned procurement of IT infrastructure and IT services, for which the contracts were concluded as planned in December 2013 and the related services will be provided in 2014.

The Authority’s reply :

budgetary management : the EBA acknowledged that, while there has been a significant decrease in the overall level of carry-overs, there is still room for further improvement. Given that the bulk of the carry-overs arises due to the timing of various annually renewable IT contracts, the EBA intends within the calendar year to pursue options to amend supplier contracts so as to change renewal periods and so reduce the level of carry-over.

Lastly, the Court of Auditors’ report contains a summary of the Authority’s activities in 2013 . This is focused on the following:

Budget : EUR 26 million including a European Union subsidy of EUR 10.4 million.

Activities :

submission of draft Regulatory Technical Standards and draft Implementing Technical Standards to the European Commission for final endorsement; issuance of guidelines on banking issues and recommendations to national competent authorities; esablishment of the Single Rulebook Questions and Answers tool on EBA website; issuance of an extensive number of thematic reports in various areas of EBA expertise; performance of risk analysis, assessment and monitoring of key risks in the EU banking sector; execution of the EU-wide transparency exercise providing information on EU banks that were part of the recapitalization exercise in 2012; preparation for the 2014 stress testing of EU banks (work on development of methodologies, scenarios and key assumptions of the stress testing).