Legal provisions of COM(2016)557 - Amendment of Regulation 99/2013 on the European statistical programme 2013-17, by extending it to 2018-2020

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dossier COM(2016)557 - Amendment of Regulation 99/2013 on the European statistical programme 2013-17, by extending it to 2018-2020.
document COM(2016)557 EN
date October 25, 2017


Article 1

Regulation (EU) No 99/2013 is amended as follows:

(1)in Article 1, the following paragraph is added:

‘The programme shall be extended to cover the period from 2018 to 2020.’;

(2)Article 3 is replaced by the following:

‘Article 3

Scope

This Regulation provides the programming framework for the development, production and dissemination of European statistics, the main fields and the objectives of the actions envisaged for the period from 2013 to 2020, in accordance with Articles 13 and 14 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009.’;

(3)in Article 7(1), the following subparagraph is added:

‘The financial envelope for the implementation of the programme for 2018 to 2020 shall be EUR 218,1 million, covered by the programming period 2014 to 2020.’;

(4)Article 9 is replaced by the following:

‘Article 9

Annual work programmes

In order to implement the programme, the Commission shall adopt annual work programmes which shall satisfy the requirements laid down in Article 17 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 and which shall set out the objectives pursued and the expected results, in accordance with the general and specific objectives referred to in Article 4(1) and (2) of this Regulation. The Commission shall ensure that an appropriate emphasis is placed on actions aimed at promoting compliance with the Code of Practice. Each annual work programme shall be communicated to the European Parliament for information purposes.’;

(5)Article 13 is replaced by the following:

‘Article 13

Protection of the financial interests of the Union

1. The Commission shall take appropriate measures to ensure that, when activities financed under this Regulation are implemented, the financial interests of the Union are protected by the application of preventive measures against fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities, by effective checks and, if irregularities are detected, by the recovery of the amounts wrongly paid and, where appropriate, by effective, proportionate and dissuasive administrative and financial penalties.

2. The Commission or its representatives and the Court of Auditors shall have the power of audit, on the basis of documents and of on-the-spot inspections, over all grant beneficiaries, contractors and subcontractors who have received Union funds under the programme.

3. The European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) may carry out investigations, including on-the-spot checks and inspections, in accordance with the provisions and procedures laid down in Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (*1) and Council Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 (*2), with a view to establishing whether there has been fraud, corruption or any other illegal activity affecting the financial interests of the Union in connection with a grant agreement or grant decision or a contract funded under the programme.

4. Without prejudice to paragraphs 1, 2 and 3, cooperation agreements with third countries and with international organisations, contracts, grant agreements and grant decisions resulting from the implementation of this Regulation shall contain provisions expressly empowering the Commission, the Court of Auditors and OLAF to conduct such audits and investigations, in accordance with their respective competence.

5. Without prejudice to paragraphs 1, 2 and 3, where the implementation of an action is outsourced or sub-delegated, in whole or in part, or where it requires the award of a procurement contract or financial support to be given to a third party, the contract, grant agreement or grant decision shall include the contractor's or beneficiary's obligation to impose on any third party involved the explicit acceptance of those powers of the Commission, the Court of Auditors and OLAF.

(*1)  Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 September 2013 concerning investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1073/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Regulation (Euratom) No 1074/1999 (OJ L 248, 18.9.2013, p. 1)."

(*2)  Council Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 of 11 November 1996 concerning on-the-spot checks and inspections carried out by the Commission in order to protect the European Communities' financial interests against fraud and other irregularities (OJ L 292, 15.11.1996, p. 2).’;"

(6)Article 15 is amended as follows:

(a)the following paragraph is inserted:

‘2a.   By 31 December 2019, the Commission (Eurostat) shall submit a progress report on the implementation of the programme to the ESSC. That report shall detail the Commission's (Eurostat) view on the outlook for the programme within the multiannual financial framework starting in 2021. That report shall also be submitted to the European Parliament and to the Council.’;

(b)paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:

‘3.   By 31 December 2021, the Commission shall, after consulting the ESSC and the European Statistical Advisory Committee, submit a final evaluation report on the implementation of the programme to the European Parliament and to the Council. The report shall in particular evaluate:

(a)the outcome of the reprioritisation and cost evaluation of statistical products;

(b)the actions taken by the ESS to reduce the implementation and production costs for Member States and to limit the overall burden stemming from the statistical projects and fields covered by the programme;

(c)the progress on rendering access to official statistics easier and more user-friendly, including the provision of data on the Eurostat website; and

(d)the progress on the improvement of data availability, including on social economy activities and on the Europe 2020 indicators.’;

(7)the Annex to Regulation (EU) No 99/2013 is amended in accordance with the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

It shall apply from 1 January 2018.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.