WRITTEN QUESTION E-0557/00 by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission. Procedures for dismissals.
28. 12. 2000 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 374 E/105 Answer given by Mr Barnier on behalf of the Commission (17 March 2000) During the new programming period for the Structural Funds (2000-2006), the Interreg Community Initiative will cover only projects which are of a genuine cross-border and transnational nature and which form part of a cooperation programme drawn up jointly by the appropriate authorities on both sides of the border. this programme will have to be implemented by joint cooperation structures: a joint In addition, Monitoring Committee, steering committee and management/payment authority for the Member States and frontier regions covered by the Interreg programme. The establishment of these joint cooperation structures is therefore a condition for the implementation of Interreg and a condition of admissibility and approval of the programme by the Commission. In this context, it is clear that agreements and bilateral protocols of cooperation, such as the Bayonne agreement mentioned by the Honourable Member, can prove very useful for the creation and consolida- tion of the joint Interreg structures. The France/Spain cross-border programme is currently being completed and is in no way affected by the decisions taken by the government of the Comunidad Foral of Navarre. At this stage, it is not possible to forecast how the new Interreg III Community Initiative will be implemented in these regions since the Commission will soon adopt its guidelines on this topic. The Member States and regions concerned will then be invited to prepare proposals for operational programmes. (2000/C 374 E/121) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0557/00 by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission (29 February 2000) Subject: Procedures for dismissals In view of the Commissionís reply to my Written Question E-2225/99 (1) that it had dismissed eleven people in the last five years, does it take the view that its procedures for dismissal are (a) comparable with those of other employers in the public and private sectors, and (b) adequate to deal with disciplinary problems? If not, how does it intend to improve them? (1) OJ C 203 E, 18. 7. 2000, p. 151. Answer given by Mr Kinnock on behalf of the Commission (30 March 2000) The Commission draws the attention of the disciplinary procedures set out in the Staff Regulations and which allow inter alia, for dismissal of officials, apply to all European Institutions. the Honourable Member to the fact that The Commission is aware of the existence of a variety of different rules for disciplinary actions in Member Statesí civil services. In the course of preparing its consultative document on discipline and its draft Decision on administrative improvements to disciplinary procedures, both scheduled for October 2000 (see Action Plan of 1 March 2000, action 57/58), the Commission will take into account best practices in Member States and international organisations for dismissal procedures and for disciplinary procedures as a whole. Disciplinary procedures in certain professions and administrations in the private sector may also have relevance, in so far as they are comparable. As the Commission made clear in the White Paper on Reforming the Commissioní (1) (see Chapter IV. 5 Disciplineí) it is aware of the shortcomings of the current system which áis too slow, has many layers of procedure and is based around a disciplinary board that varies in composition and is purely internal. Staff are not sufficiently well-informed about their obligations and the possible consequences of breaches of the rulesí. The Commission will make specific proposals for changing the Staff Regulations in order to C 374 E/106 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 28. 12. 2000 rectify these deficiencies and achieve a system which is fair, consistent, and not subject to undue delays. The proposed setting up of an inter-institutional disciplinary board and the possibility for the administra- tion to present its case to the disciplinary board are among the changes which will require amendments to the Staff Regulations. Changes which do not require amendments to the Staff Regulations will also be introduced. As the White Paper said áclear rules will be set out in a handbook together with an explanation of rights and obligations; guidelines will be developed for penalties related to the gravity of the offence; an enlarged permanent secretariat for the disciplinary board will provide greater consistency; and disciplinary decisions will be published (with names removed to protect confidentiality)í. Developments such as these are sensible and necessary ways of modernising provisions in the Commission and other Institutions and dismissal will certainly be retained as a penalty where such a course is justified on the basis of objective evidence and effective procedures. The Commission is certain, however, that the Honourable Member will agree that the overall effectiveness of disciplinary systems is best measured by the degree to which they help to prevent indiscipline, rather than by the number of employees who are dismissed. (1) COM(2000) 10 final. (2000/C 374 E/122) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0558/00 by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission (29 February 2000) Subject: Reassignment of Commission staff In view of the reduction in the workload of the Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs, given the successful conclusion of the third stage of monetary union, and in view of the very sharp increase in the workload of the Directorate-General for Competitions, given the sharp increase in European mergers and acquisitions, has the Commission taken any measures to reassign staff from the one to the other? If not, why not? Answer given by Mrs Schreyer on behalf of the Commission (17 April 2000) The preparation of the introduction of the euro on 1 February 1999 required intensive preparatory work by the Directorate general for Economic and financial affairs (DG ECFIN) (1) in co-operation with other Commission services. Since the launch of the euro, an essential part of DG ECFINís activities has been redirected towards ensuring economic and monetary union (EMU)ís smooth functioning. This reorientation has been accompanied by an important modification of DG ECFINís organizational structure in early 1999. Besides the increased importance of economic policy co-ordination and multilateral surveillance (including the Broad economic policy guidelines, the Stability and growth pact, excessive deficit procedure, Cardiff process, Cologne process, etc. ), the advent of the euro has also brought a number of other important issues to the forefront, such as the integration of financial markets and the external aspects of EMU, all of which have contributed to DG ECFINís workload since 1999. It should also be kept in mind that important parts of DG ECFINís work are not directly áeuro-linkedí. This applies for instance to most of the activities of the directorate for international affairs, the economic evaluation directorate (in charge of the economic analysis of the different Community policy areas), the financial directorate (in charge of the Financial operations service in Luxembourg, etc. The Commission can not therefore concur with the view that the introduction of the euro has decreased DG ECFINís overall workload. financial market analysis, capital movements, etc. ),