5.12.2008   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 311/142

REPORT

on the annual accounts of Eurojust for the financial year 2007 together with Eurojust's replies

(2008/C 311/21)

CONTENTS

1-2

 INTRODUCTION

3-6

 STATEMENT OF ASSURANCE

7-9

 OBSERVATIONS

Tables 1 to 4

Eurojust's replies

INTRODUCTION

1.

Eurojust was set up by Council Decision 2002/187/JHA (1) with a view to stepping up the fight against serious organised crime. Its objective is to improve the coordination of investigations and prosecutions covering the territories of several Member States of the European Union, as well as that of non-member States.

2.

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

STATEMENT OF ASSURANCE

3.

This Statement is addressed to the European Parliament and the Council pursuant to Article 36 of Council Decision 2002/187/JHA.

4.

Eurojust's accounts for the financial year ended 31 December 2007 (2) were drawn up by its Administrative Director, pursuant to Article 36 of Council Decision 2002/187/JHA, 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 (3) 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 accountsEurojust'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 Eurojust's annual accounts, taken as a whole, are legal and regular.The observations which follow do not call the Court's Statement into question.

OBSERVATIONS

7.

Eurojust's total budget for 2007 was 18,9 million euro, as compared with 14,7 million euro the previous year. 18,0 million euro of appropriations were committed, 5,2 million euro of which were carried over. Most of the carry-overs (4,1 million euro) concerned administrative (Title II) and operating activities (Title III) expenditure. Such high levels of carry-overs were at odds with the principle of annuality and suggest weaknesses in the programming and the monitoring of Eurojust's activities.

8.

Following observations made by the Court in previous years (4), Eurojust centralised the management of its procurement procedures in a specialised unit to improve the quality of their implementation. However, due to implementation difficulties with this new system, Eurojust extended existing contracts in a manner contrary to the rules. Most of the contracts concerned are framework contracts and their expiry dates have been known for a long time, since 2002 in one case. The authorising officer should put in place an effective plan for managing procurement procedures.

9.

The number of posts authorised by the establishment plan for 2007 was 147, as compared with 112 for 2006. As at the end of 2006 only 87 posts were filled, which would have meant recruiting at least 60 staff during 2007 (5). At the end of 2007 only 95 posts were filled. This situation shows shortcomings in the recruitment planning. As the forecast budgetary expenditure for temporary staff is based on an overestimate of the number of staff, the corresponding budgetary article is used as a reserve to cover increased expenditure for employment-agency staff. During 2007 the budget for employment-agency staff increased by 595 000 euro from its initial budget of 662 000 euro (90 %).

This report was adopted by the Court of Auditors in Luxembourg at its meeting of 24 and 25 September 2008.

For the Court of Auditors

Vítor Manuel da SILVA CALDEIRA

President

(1)  Decision of 28 February 2002 setting up Eurojust (OJ L 63, 6.3.2002, p. 1).

(2)  These accounts were drawn up on 30 June 2008 and received by the Court on 4 July 2008.

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

(4)  E.g. see paragraph 8 of the 2006 annual report (OJ C 309, 19.12.2007, p. 112) and paragraph 11 of the 2005 annual report (OJ C 312, 19.12.2006, p. 69).

(5)  Without taking into account the departure for various reasons of staff already recruited (14 staff left Eurojust in 2007).

 

Table 1

Eurojust (The Hague) 2007

Areas of competence deriving from the Treaty on European Union

Competences of Eurojust as defined in Council Decision 2002/187/JHA

Governance

Resources made available to Eurojust in 2007

(Data for 2006)

Products and services supplied in 2007

(Data for 2006)

Third pillar body created by Council Decision.

The Union's objective is to provide citizens with a high level of safety within an area of freedom, security and justice.

The Council encourages cooperation through Eurojust by enabling it to facilitate proper coordination between the Member States' national prosecuting authorities.

(Extracts from Articles 29 and 31)

Eurojust's main areas of responsibility are the same as Europol's, that is, the fight against terrorism, organised crime, in particular drug-trafficking, illegal immigration, illicit vehicle trafficking, trafficking in human beings, the counterfeiting of money, trafficking in radioactive substances, computer crime, acts detrimental to the Union's financial interests and money-laundering.

Objectives

Article 3

Eurojust Decision

—

To stimulate and improve the coordination, between the competent national authorities of the Member States, of investigations and prosecutions.

—

To improve cooperation, in particular by facilitating the exchange of information, mutual legal assistance and the implementation of extradition requests.

—

To support the competent authorities of the Member States in order to render their investigations and prosecutions more effective.

—

To provide support with procedures involving a MemberState and a non-memberState.

—

To provide support with procedures involving a MemberState and the Community.

Tasks

Articles 5, 6 and 7

Eurojust Decision

To organise cooperation between the various national legal systems, Eurojust acts:

—

through its national members; or

—

as a College.

If the competent authorities of the MemberState concerned decide not to respond to the requests which Eurojust has issued as a College, they shall inform Eurojust of the reasons for their decision.

1.

The College is responsible for the organisation and operation of Eurojust.

2.

The College is composed of national members who are seconded by each MemberState in accordance with its legal system and who are prosecutors, judges or police officers of equivalent competence.

3.

The College elects its President from among the national members.

4.

The Joint Supervisory Body checks the processing of personal data.

5.

The Administrative Director is unanimously appointed by the College.

6.

 External audit

Court of Auditors.

7.

 Discharge authority

Parliament acting on a recommendation by the Council.

Final budget:

18,9 million euro (14,7 million euro)

Staff at 31 December 2007:

147 (112) posts listed in the establishment plan; posts occupied: 98 (93) +32 (21) other positions: (six contract staff, four seconded national experts, 22 employment-agency staff)

Total staff: 179 (133)

Assigned to the following duties:

Operational tasks: 95 (71)

Administrative tasks: 65 (51)

Combined tasks: 19 (12)

Number of meetings: 91 (89)

Standard cases: 236

Complex cases: 849

Total number of cases: 1 085 (771)

Fraud: 744 (175)

Drug trafficking: 207 (170)

Terrorism: 23 (44)

Murder: 80 (59)

Trafficking in human beings: 71 (32)

Source: Information supplied by Eurojust.


Table 2

Eurojust — Implementation of the budget for the financial year 2007

(1000 euro)

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

available

paid

cancelled

Community subsidies

18 414

18 414

Title I

Staff

8 608

8 435

7 830

605

173

189

129

60

Other subsidies

—

54

Title II

Administration

4 107

4 038

2 511

1 558

38

1 081

949

132

 

 

 

Title III

Operating activities

5 699

5 104

3 047

2 601

51

1 320

960

360

Assigned revenue (Agis)

527

316

Assigned revenue (Agis)

527

415

107

420

—

—

—

—

Total

18 941

18 784

Total

18 941

17 992

13 495

5 184

262

2 590

2 038

552

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

Source: Information supplied by Eurojust — this table summarises the data supplied by Eurojust in its financial statements.


Table 3

Eurojust — Economic outturn account for the financial years 2007 and 2006

(1000 euro)

 

2007

2006

Operating revenue

Community subsidies

17 546

12 858

Other revenue

55

973

Total (a)

17 601

13 831

Operating expenditure

Staff expenditure

6 484

6 581

Fixed-asset-related expenditure

803

674

Other administrative expenditure

5 010

2 202

Operational expenditure

4 125

3 297

Total (b)

16 422

12 754

Surplus/(deficit) from operating activities (c = a – b)

1 179

1 077

Financial operations revenue (e)

0

0

Financial operations expenditure (f)

1

0

Surplus/(deficit) from non-operating activities (g = e – f)

–1

0

Economic result for the year (h = c + g)

1 178

1 077

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


Table 4

Eurojust — Balance sheet at 31 December 2007 and 2006

(1000 euro)

 

2007

2006

Non-current assets

Intangible fixed assets

598

556

Tangible fixed assets

1 816

1 673

Long-term receivables

1

1

Current assets

Short-term receivables

180

372

Cash and cash equivalents

5 887

4 749

Total assets

8 482

7 351

Current liabilities

Provision for risks and charges

137

134

Accounts payable

2 712

2 762

Total liabilities

2 849

2 896

Net assets

5 633

4 455

Reserve

Accumulated surplus/deficit

4 455

3 378

Economic result for the year

1 178

1 077

Net capital

5 633

4 455

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

EUROJUST'S REPLIES

7.

Due to the lack of appropriate staff to manage them, funds were reallocated to the Title II and III in order to best use the budget. It resulted in commitments being prepared late. The difficulties linked to the implementation of the new procurement system (see point 2) has also played a role. Eurojust has taken corrective actions to fill its deficit of staff. It has also introduced a carry over reduction strategy for 2008.

8.

Eurojust is fully aware of this need. As a result, a general Procurement Planning for the year 2008 has already been defined. Moreover, on the basis of the difficulties encountered, a new Decision on the organisation of Procurement and related tasks, has been taken to ensure more efficient planning and management of procurement procedures. In the meantime, all of the contracts mentioned by the Court have now been re-tendered in conformity with the rules.

9.

Eurojust is conscious of the need to fulfil the establishment plan as soon as possible and has increased its capacity of recruitment in order to do so. In 2007, the recruitment policy of Eurojust was reviewed which had as a consequence an unforeseen delay in recruitment and the need to hire more employment-agency staff as a consequence. In 2008, Eurojust aims to reduce the use of this staff and to fullfill its establishment plan.