Abstract
AbstractEU spending—more than €1.800 billion for the next seven years—is spread over a large number of programs and financial mechanisms. Implemented under the Commission’s responsibility, its day-to-day management is mostly ensured by a plurality of actors, in particular by member states’ nominated bodies. This unique context places the responsibility to undertake influential audit work that could support the EU achieving longterm benefits on the European Court of Auditors (ECA). In this respect, this Article highlights a number of issues. First, this Article discusses the annual audit opinion, to which the ECA devotes at least 40% of its audit capacity—about 400 auditors—despite the limited assurance it provides. This Article argues that the audit opinion should focus on the operation of the Commission’s internal control framework and enlarge its scope to “value for money,” thus fostering responsibility at management level and sustaining the emergence of a performance culture. Furthermore, to fully capture the synergies, the risks of double funding and competition between different programs pursuing similar objectives—for example, through cohesion, transport, energy, and research spending—the ECA should undertake a scrutiny across its audit chambers’ thematic responsibilities. The ECA should also consider increasing the number of member states covered by its performance reports. Moreover, the ECA’s recommendations would benefit from an indication about their importance, and their followup should be extended at member states’ level. Finally, this Article welcomes the ECA’s intention to assess the added value of EU spending as compared to national spending alone, hence opening up the prospect of an ECA performance “assurance” assessment.
Highlights
European Union (EU) spending—more than €1.800 billion for the seven years—is spread over a large number of programs and financial mechanisms
This means being additional or complementary to national efforts rather than filling in gaps left by shortcomings of national policies.3. This rationale is regularly evoked in the framework of the EU budget under the concept of “European added value” (EAV), which is exemplified by the expectation that “spending at EU level means a better deal for citizens than spending at national level.”4
The analysis identifies some issues that would deserve consideration with a view to improving the European Court of Auditors (ECA)’s own performance and, the EU budget’s accountability process
Summary
The ECA’s special reports look into the achievement of policy objectives of the around thirty policy areas according to “value for money”—economy, efficiency, and effectiveness. The audit requires setting up criteria directly derived from legislation or based on best practices—for example, standard costs applied by technical professions—and which are appropriate given the economic context. Its special reports generally have a “vertical” focus and cover specific spending programs according to the areas of responsibility of its audit chambers. This provides a partial view of EU policies’ achievements, especially in the case of mainstreaming cross-cutting priorities, such as “[c]limate change adaptation and mitigation” and “[b]iodiversity,” that entail significant funding through numerous spending programs with similar objectives.. It increases the risk of double funding and competition between different programs, in particular as the scheme will cover projects which are potentially eligible under other policy areas, such as cohesion, transport, energy, and research. Most significant contributions for both priorities come from the Common agricultural policy, Cohesion, and the Horizon 2020 programs. 76This refers to member states’ delegated bodies and to actors like EU agencies, the European Investment Bank, third countries, and international organizations that ensure the day-to-day management of EU funding
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