The European Parliament adopted by 565 votes to 15, with 24 abstentions, a resolution on the Council position on Draft amending budget No 2/2022 of the European Union for the financial year 2022 – Entering the surplus of the financial year 2021.

Parliament approved the Council's position on the Commission's draft amending budget 2/2022, which is solely devoted to entering the surplus from 2021, amounting to EUR 3 227.1 million, in the budget, in accordance with the Financial Regulation.

Noting that the surplus for 2021 is particularly high, Members recalled that the Commission must respect the principles of sound financial management when implementing the budget. They also regretted that the EUR 183 million earmarked for the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines in 2021 had not been used as planned by the Commission or reallocated to other needs.

Parliament reiterated its view that all available EU budgetary instruments, including the budget surplus, should be mobilised to continue to provide the strongest possible economic and financial support to Ukraine and the frontline countries and to further strengthen the Union's solidarity capacities in order to address the social, energy, agricultural and economic consequences for the Union and its citizens of the Russian-led war in Ukraine. It invited the Commission to present, if necessary, amending budgets mobilising additional appropriations in order to respond to these challenges.

Member States, in this context, should devote the significant amount of expected reductions in their GNI-based contributions from the 2021 surplus to budget actions to address the consequences of the war on Ukraine.

According to the Commission, the fines imposed in the competition cases in 2021 amount to EUR 957 million. Members reiterated their view that the EU budget should be allowed to re-use any revenue from fines or late payments without a corresponding reduction in GNI contributions.

The Council adopted its position on the draft amending budget No 2 to the general budget for 2022: entering the surplus of the financial year 2021.

As a reminder, on 12 April 2022, the Commission submitted to the Council draft amending budget (DAB) No 2 to the general budget for 2022 concerning the budgeting of the surplus resulting from the implementation of the budget year 2021.

The implementation of the budget year 2021 shows a surplus of EUR 3 227.06 million resulting from:

(a) A positive outturn in the revenue part of the budget (+EUR 2 574.76 million) of which:

- Title 1 (Own resources): + EUR 1 638.78 million;

- Title 2 (Surpluses, balances and adjustments): + EUR 3.42 million;

- Title 3 (Administrative revenue): - EUR 143.45 million;

- Title 4 (Financial revenue, default interest and fines): + EUR 1 110.77 million;

- Title 6 (Revenue, contributions and refunds related to Union policies): - EUR 34.77 million.

(b) An under-implementation on the expenditure side of the budget (-EUR 652.30 million), notably of:

- appropriations authorised in the 2021 budget (Commission and other institutions): - EUR 198.97 million;

- cancellation of appropriations carried over from 2019 (Commission and other institutions): - EUR 327.47 million;

- exchange rate variations: - EUR 125.87 million.

The budgeting of this surplus will diminish accordingly in line with the global contribution of the Member States to the financing of the EU budget in 2022.

On 18 July 2022, the Council adopted its position on draft amending budget (DAB) No 2 to the general budget 2021 as set out in the technical annex to its explanatory memorandum.

PURPOSE: presentation of draft amending budget No 2/2022 to enter in the 2022 budget the surplus resting from the implementation of the budget year 2021.

CONTENT: draft amending budget (DAB) No 2/2022 is intended to enter in the 2022 budget the surplus resulting from the implementation of the budget year 2021.

The implementation of the budget year 2021 shows a surplus of EUR 3.2 billion , which is therefore entered as revenue in the 2022 budget.

Budgeting the surplus will reduce the total contribution of the Member States to the financing of the 2022 budget accordingly.

The combined net variations in Title 1 (Own Resources) and Title 2 (Surpluses, balances and adjustments) total EUR 1 642 million. This positive difference is predominantly driven by a higher than expected amount of customs duties made available to the EU budget in the last months of the year.

The variations in Title 4 (Financial revenue, default interest and fines) amount to EUR 1 111 million, which comprises competition fines and default interest, other penalty payments and interest linked to fines and penalty payments. This positive difference is predominantly driven by a higher than forecasted amount of competition fines (by EUR 957 million) finally cashed in the last months of the year.

The amount not implemented by all institutions combined was EUR 652 million.

The Commission implemented 99.95 % of the authorised payment appropriations.

The under implementation of the Commission concerned an amount of EUR 81 million of voted appropriations and EUR 250 million of appropriations carried over from 2020. Of this amount, EUR 183 million related to the Emergency Support Instrument, for which the purchase of the vaccine doses for low-income countries will be completed in 2022.

The under-implementation of the other institutions of EUR 117 million and cancellation of appropriations of EUR 77 million is similar to the levels of previous years.