11 The European Social Fund and European
Regional Development Fund
(a)
(33218)
15247/11
+ ADDs 1-2
COM(11) 507
(b)
(33219)
15249/11
+ ADDs 1-4
COM(11) 614
(c)
(33225)
15253/11
COM(11) 611
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Draft Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the European Social Fund and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1081/2006
Draft Regulation of the European Parliament and the Council on specific provisions concerning the European Regional Development Fund and the Investment for growth and jobs goal and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1080/2006
Draft Regulation of the European Parliament and the Council on specific provisions for the support from the European Regional Development Fund to the European territorial cooperation goal
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Legal base | (a) Article 164 TFEU; co-decision; QMV
(b) Articles 178 and 349 TFEU; co-decision; QMV
(c) Article 178 TFEU; co-decision; QMV
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Documents originated | (a) (b) and (c) 6 October 2011
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Documents deposited | (a) and (b) 13 October 2011; (c) 17 October 2011
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Department | (a) Work and Pensions
(b) and (c) Business, Innovation and Skills
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Basis of consideration | Minister's letter of 30 October 2012
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Previous Committee Reports | HC 86-xiii (2012-13), chapter 16 (17 October 2012);
HC 86-v (2012-13), chapter 9 (20 June 2012);
HC 86-iv (2012-13), chapter 5 (14 June 2012);
HC 428-lvii (2010-12), chapter 8 (18 April 2012)
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Discussion in Council | 16 October 2012
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Committee's assessment | Politically important
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Committee's decision | Not cleared; further information requested
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Background and previous scrutiny
11.1 The three draft Regulations concern the EU's Structural Funds
which have two components: the European Social Fund (ESF) and
the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Together with the
Cohesion Fund, these Funds seek to strengthen economic, social
and territorial cohesion by providing targeted financial assistance
to regions across the EU to help reduce disparities in levels
of social and economic development. The purpose of the draft Regulations
is to identify the principal objectives underpinning ESF and ERDF
support and to set out more detailed investment priorities for
the next financial period from 2014-20. Our Forty-sixth and Forty-seventh
Reports of 9 and 23 November 2011 provide an overview of the draft
Regulations and the Government's views.
11.2 The three draft Regulations form part of a broader
package of measures proposed by the Commission in October 2011,
of which the most important is the draft Common Provisions Regulation.
This overarching Regulation would establish a Common Strategic
Framework and a set of common provisions to govern all of the
EU's cohesion policy instruments, including the ESF and the ERDF.[24]
The draft Common Provisions Regulation proposes a global budget
of 336 billion for the EU's Structural and Cohesion Funds
for the period 2014-20, of which approximately 84 billion
would be allocated to the ESF and 183 billion to the ERDF,
and sets out the criteria for the distribution of EU resources
between regions across the EU. The draft Common Provisions Regulation
was debated in European Committee C on 6 March 2012.
11.3 Since then, the General Affairs Council (GAC)
has agreed two "partial general approaches" on elements
of the October package. The first, in April 2012, covered strategic
programming, ex-ante conditionality, management and control, monitoring
and evaluation, major projects, and eligibility for funding. Most
of the elements concerned Articles in the draft Common Provisions
Regulation (cleared by the debate in March 2012), but some (on
strategic programming, management and control, and eligibility)
also concerned Articles in the draft ESF and ERDF Regulations.
The second, in June 2012, covered thematic concentration, financial
instruments and revenue generating projects (including public-private
partnerships), as well as Articles in the draft Common Provisions
Regulation establishing an overall performance framework.[25]
11.4 The Minister of State for Business and Enterprise
(Michael Fallon) wrote on 8 October to inform us that the Cypriot
Presidency intended to seek a further partial general approach
at the General Affairs Council on 16 October. He noted that most
of the elements of the proposed partial general approach concerned
the draft Common Provisions Regulation and included certain financial
aspects not covered by negotiations on the EU's Multiannual Financial
Framework for 2014-20, information and communication, and technical
assistance. He expected that agreement would also be reached on
various provisions in the draft Regulation on European Territorial
Cooperation (document (c)) as well as on a set of core indicators
for the European Social Fund and European Regional Development
Fund. As the General Affairs Council would take place immediately
before the Committee's first meeting after the party conference
recess, the Minister indicated that the Government might override
scrutiny. Our Fifteenth Report, HC 86-xv (2012-13) (17 October
2012) describes in more detail the main elements of the proposed
partial general approach.
11.5 We noted that there remained a degree of uncertainty
as to the actual scope of the partial general approach and welcomed
the Minister's efforts in endeavouring to identify and explain
its likely content. We recognised that the partial general approach
largely concerned Articles in the draft Common Provisions Regulation,
which we debated in March, and that those pertaining to the three
draft Regulations which remained under scrutiny raised no particular
concerns. Whilst we would have been willing to consider granting
a scrutiny waiver in this case, the timing of the Council made
it impossible for us to do so. We therefore asked the Minister
to inform us of the outcome of the Council as well as the Government's
reasons for overriding scrutiny, if it so decided.
The Minister's letter of 30 October 2012
11.6 The Minister (Michael Fallon) tells us that
a partial general approach was agreed at the General Affairs Council
on 16 October and that it covered seven blocks:
"Information and communication; European territorial
cooperation; territorial development; financial issues (not covered
by the MFF negotiations); country-specific recommendations; management
and control; and indicators. The agreement reached at the Council
reflected the position as outlined in my letter to your Committee
sent on 8 October."
11.7 He continues:
"I regret that it was necessary to override
parliamentary scrutiny on this occasion. However, many of the
articles considered were within the Common Provisions Regulation
which has cleared scrutiny in both Houses. The articles in the
other Regulations were, in my view, minor compared to issues in
previous blocks and do not prejudice the position on the EU budget
and multiannual financial framework. I reiterated the UK position
that we only accepted the partial general approach on the basis
that 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed', including
cross-cutting issues with other regulations, such as the overarching
Multiannual Financial Framework.
"It is important that we move towards a conclusion
of these negotiations as it is important that the start of the
programmes in the next programming period are (sic) not unduly
delayed. Much work remains and therefore I considered that the
above, rather technical, items were ready for agreement at Council."
Conclusion
11.8 We thank the Minister for informing us of
the outcome of the Council. As we have indicated previously, we
appreciate that there is a need to break down complex negotiations
into more manageable negotiating blocks, and we accept that the
Articles in the partial general approach which pertain to the
three draft Regulations under scrutiny raise no particular concerns.
However, our general reservations about the use of partial general
approaches remain, not least because information on their scope
and content emerges at such a late stage in negotiations, making
timely and effective Parliamentary scrutiny more difficult, and
because the piecemeal nature of the agreements obscures the outcome
of negotiations on the overall package.
11.9 We look forward to receiving further progress
reports on outstanding issues in the negotiations. Meanwhile,
the draft Regulations remain under scrutiny.
24 See (33217) 15243/11: HC 428-xli (2010-12), chapter
1 (9 November 2011). The draft Common Provisions Regulation also
applies to the EU's Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund
for Rural Development and the European Maritime and Fisheries
Fund. Back
25
The performance framework is intended to ensure that a small proportion
of funding for each Member State is set aside and allocated, following
a mid-term performance review, to programmes which have successfully
met their targets. Back
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