Commissioner Corina Cretu explains in a press statement the new rules adopted by the Commission, aimed at helping countries with a low absorption of the European funds.
Through the working group that I initiated as soon as I became Commissioner for Regional Policy, I worked closely with Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Italy, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia to assist them in making the most from the European funds yet available for 2007-2013, within the applicable regulations which require that these funds be spent on projects by the end of 2015.
After the European Council of December 2014, we committed to finding solutions that ensure rapid and more efficient use of funds allocated for the programming period 2007-2013, to support relevant Member States to carry out long-term projects over the next years, using the flexibility of the existing rules.
To this end, the Commission has today adopted a revised version of the completion guidelines for regional policy programs 2007-2013.
The guidelines for completion represent a decision by the Commission which explains in detail the steps to be followed by new Member States and the Commission with the purpose to finalize the 2007-2013 cohesion policy programs. These programs have been using European funds since 2007 and will continue to do so until the end of 2015. Then, by March 2017, the Member States will have to submit a final report stating the projects implemented, to review the expenses and include a statement certifying the legality and regularity of completion of the latter.
The review aligns the guidelines completion with changes made by the Council and European Parliament at the end of 2013. It simplifies the number of Procedures for completion in the financial engineering instruments in terms of "staging" ("phasing") - the process to initiate the programming project in a particular period and the completion of the next.
What's new in the finalizing guidelines?
First, we added a ”10% flexibility" component. This allows 10% higher expenditure in a program for a priority if they are offset by an equivalent reduction of another priority within the same program.
Then, the review clarifies the fact that the financial engineering instruments will continue to invest in the real economy in 2016.
Finally, the procedures managing how projects can be phased to continue from the 2007-2013 programming period into the 2014-2020 have been simplified and streamlined.
Outstanding results can be achieved through existing regulations and with the help of the working group. The latter provides country specific solutions in the short term to help Member States to accelerate the absorption of EU funds. We will not leave anyone behind.
We have already noticed progress in implementing the 2007-2013 programs. It is an important signal indicating that efforts produce results and that we are on the right track.
Corina Crețu
European Commissioner for Regional Policy