5.12.2008   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 311/86

REPORT

on the annual accounts of the Executive Agency for the Public Health Programme for the financial year 2007 together with the Agency's replies

(2008/C 311/13)

CONTENTS

1-2

 INTRODUCTION

3-6

 STATEMENT OF ASSURANCE

7

 OBSERVATION

Tables 1 to 4

The Agency's replies

INTRODUCTION

1.

The Executive Agency for the Public Health Programme (hereinafter referred to as the Agency) was set up by Commission Decision 2004/858/EC (1). The Agency was established for a period beginning on 1 January 2005 and ending on 31 December 2010 for the management of Community actions in the field of public health. The Agency acquired its financial independence on 15 December 2006 for the implementation of the 2007 budget appropriations.

2.

Table 1 summarises the Agency's competences and activities. Key information taken from the financial statements drawn up by the Agency for the financial year 2007 are presented in Tables 2, 3 and 4.

STATEMENT OF ASSURANCE

3.

This Statement is addressed to the European Parliament and the Council in accordance with Article 14 of Council Regulation (EC) No 58/2003 of 19 December 2002 (2); it was drawn up following an examination of the Agency's accounts, as required by Article 248 of the Treaty establishing the European Community.

4.

The Agency's accounts for the financial year ended 31 December 2007 (3) were drawn up by its Director, pursuant to Article 14 of Council Regulation (EC) No 58/2003, and sent to the Court, which is required to give a Statement of Assurance on their reliability and on the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions.

5.

The Court conducted its audit in accordance with the IFAC and ISSAI (4) International Auditing Standards and Codes of Ethics, in so far as these are applicable in the European Community context. The audit was planned and performed to obtain reasonable assurance that the accounts are reliable and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular.

6.

The Court has thus obtained a reasonable basis for the Statement set out below:

Reliability of the accountsThe Agency's accounts for the financial year ended 31 December 2007 are, in all material respects, reliable.Legality and regularity of the underlying transactionsThe transactions underlying the Agency's annual accounts, taken as a whole, are legal and regular.The observation which follows does not call the Court's Statement into question.

OBSERVATION

7.

The Agency's final budget for 2007 amounted to 4,1 million euro. Almost all of the budget was committed: carry-overs amounted to 1,5 million euro. A significant proportion of the carry-overs for administrative expenditure was either not justified by legal obligations or concerned goods and services which, to a large extent, will be delivered in 2008. This situation was at odds with the principle of annuality.

This report was adopted by the Court of Auditors in Luxembourg at its meeting of 18 September 2008.

For the Court of Auditors

Vítor Manuel da SILVA CALDEIRA

President

(1)  OJ L 369, 15.12.2004, p. 73.

(2)  OJ L 11, 16.1.2003, p. 5.

(3)  These accounts were drawn up on 5 June 2008 and received by the Court on 27 June 2008.

(4)  International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAI).

 

Table 1

Public Health Executive Agency (PHEA) — Luxembourg

Areas of Community competence deriving from the Treaty

Competences of the Agency as defined in Commission decision (2004/858/EC) of 15 December 2004

Governance

Resources made available to the Agency in 2007

Products and services supplied in 2007

A high level of human health protection shall be ensured in the definition and implementation of all Community policies and activities.

Community action, which shall complement national policies, shall be directed towards improving public health, preventing human illness and diseases, and obviating sources of danger to human health. Such action shall cover the fight against the major health scourges, by promoting research into their causes, their transmission and their prevention, as well as health information and education.

The Community shall complement the Member States' action in reducing drugs-related health damage, including information and prevention.

(Article 152 of the Treaty)

Objectives

Under the Community programme in the field of public health established by Decision No 1786/2002/EC (framework Decision), the Agency is entrusted with implementing the tasks concerning Community aid under the programme, except for programme evaluation, monitoring of legislation, or any other action which could come under the exclusive competence of the Commission.

Tasks

(a)

managing all the phases in the lifetime of specific projects, in the context of implementing the programme on public health, on the basis of Decision No 1786/2002/EC and of the work plan provided for in that Decision and adopted by the Commission, and the necessary checks to that end, taking the relevant decisions where the Commission has empowered it to do so;

(b)

adopting the instruments of budget execution for revenue and expenditure and carrying out, where the Commission has empowered it to do so, all the operations necessary for the management of the Community programme and, in particular, those linked to the award of contracts and grants;

(c)

providing logistical, scientific and technical support, in particular by organising technical meetings (management of expert working groups), preparatory studies, seminars or conferences.

1.   Steering Committee

Comprises five members appointed by the European Commission. The members of the Steering Committee are appointed for two years. It adopts the Agency's annual work programme after approval by the European Commission. In addition, it adopts the administrative budget of the Agency and its annual activity report.

2.   Director

Appointed by the European Commission for four years.

3.   External audit

The European Court of Auditors.

4.   Discharge Authority

The European Parliament following a recommendation from the Council.

The Agency's administrative budget for 2007 amounted to 4,1 million euro.

On 31 December 2007, the Agency counted 28 statutory staff members, of which 8 temporary agents and 20 contract agents.

At 31.12.2007, 121 PHP Call 2005 (32), 2006 (87) and 2007 (2) grant agreements were concluded representing a total EC funding of 71 667 322,3 euro.

Negotiations on 66 projects of the Public Health Programme (PHP) call 2007 were ongoing.

The organisation of 23 technical meetings of expert groups where more than 1 300 experts were invited.

100 % of the Public Health programme budget has been committed. Also the PHP payment appropriations were 100 % used (at the exception of the earmarked revenue received in December 2007). The total of PHP payments amounted to 18 million euro.

78 payment transactions (18 million euro) and 89 commitments (PHP Call 2006 (87 projects) and Call 2007 (2 projects) were made.

Source: Information supplied by the Agency.


Table 2

Public Health Executive Agency (PHEA) — Luxembourg — implementation of the budget for the financial year 2007

(1000 euros)

Revenue

Expenditure

Source of revenue

Revenue entered in the final budget for the financial year

Revenue collected

Allocation of expenditure

Final budget appropriations

Appropriations carried over from previous financial year(s)

entered

committed

paid

carried over

cancelled

entered

paid

cancelled

Own revenue

 

 

Title I

Staff

1 978

1 898

1 808

90

80

168

36

132

Community subsidies

4 100

5 097

Other subsidies

 

 

Title II

Administration

885

874

319

554

11

308

221

87

Other revenue

 

 

Title III

Operating activities

1 238

1 188

324

864

50

521

301

220

Total

4 100

5 097

Total

4 100

3 959

2 451

1 508

141

997

558

439

NB: Any discrepancies in totals are due to the effects of rounding.

Source: Information supplied by the Agency — This table summarises the data supplied by the Agency in its financial statements.


Table 3

Public Health Executive Agency (PHEA) — Luxembourg — Economic outturn account for the financial year 2007

(1000 euro)

 

2007

Operating revenue

Community subsidies

4 607

Total (a)

4 607

Operating expenditure

Staff expenditure

1 739

Fixed asset-related expenditure

45

Other administrative expenditure

1 472

Total (b)

3 256

Economic result for the year (c = a – b)

1 351

NB: As the Agency became fully autonomous on 15 December 2006, 2007 is the first year of disclosure of the financial statements.

Source: Data supplied by the Agency. This table summarises the data provided by the Agency in its annual accounts: these accounts are drawn up on a accrual basis.


Table 4

Public Health Executive Agency (PHEA) — Luxembourg — Balance sheet at 31 December 2007

(1000 euro)

 

2007

Non-current assets

Intangible assets

40

Tangible assets

84

Current assets

Cash and cash equivalents

3 235

Total assets

3 359

Current liabilities

Provisions for risks and charges

29

Accounts payable

1 979

Total liabilities

2 008

Net assets

1 351

Reserve

Accumulated surplus/deficit

0

Economic result for the year

1 351

Net capital

1 351

NB: As the Agency became fully autonomous on 15 December 2006, 2007 is the first year of disclosure of the financial statements.

Source: Data supplied by the Agency. This table summarises the data provided by the Agency in its annual accounts: these accounts are drawn up on a accrual basis.

THE AGENCY'S REPLIES

7.

The Agency takes note of the Court's comments. However, it has to be underlined that for some cases the Agency felt obliged to foresee carry-overs in order to fulfill legal or contractual provisions (e.g. the rent to be paid in advance). In the future, the Agency will fully respect the principle of annuality.