Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council. Programming of human and financial resources for decentralised agencies 2014-2020

Decentralised agencies are an inherent element in the functioning of the Union. They contribute to the implementation of various Union policies, support the decision-making process by pooling specialist expertise and also add to the visibility of the Union across EU Member States. Over a period of 35 years, 32 decentralised agencies have been created to perform a wide range of tasks. The overall number of staff and the EU subsidy to the agencies have considerably increased over time, as a result of the creation of new agencies and the extension of tasks of existing ones.

Agencies have been established on a case by case basis, and the process had not been accompanied with an overall strategic vision of their role and place in the Union. Following the reflection initiated by the Commission Communication European Agencies: the way forward, thorough inter-institutional discussions between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission have taken place.

That reflection resulted in July 2012 in endorsement of a Common Approach on decentralised agencies, notably with a view to addressing a series of governance issues surrounding the growing number of agencies, at a time when streamlining of activities and improved performance are expected to contribute to efficiency gains. The Common Approach has been translated into a dedicated Roadmap, on which the Commission will regularly inform the European Parliament and the Council.

In order to complete this comprehensive approach towards decentralised agencies, this Communication sets out a programming of the staffing and subsidy levels of each decentralised agency under the new multiannual financial framework (MFF) 2014-2020. This programming has to be compatible with the expenditure ceilings of the MFF as well as with the 5% staff reduction over five years applicable to all institutions, bodies and agencies included in the draft Interinstitutional Agreement on budgetary discipline, cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management, on which the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission have reached an agreement.

On this basis, the Commission intends to arrive at a common understanding with the European Parliament and the Council on the medium-term resources needs of decentralised agencies.

This Communication sets the frame for the evolution of both expenditure and human resources of decentralised agencies in line with the MFF, while also addressing the needs of recently created agencies and those stemming from new tasks given to agencies by the legislative authority.

EUR-Lex: COM(2013)519: Follow the progress of this communication through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2013:519:FIN

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