Report | Doc. 12623 | 01 June 2011
Expenditure of the Parliamentary Assembly for the financial years 2012-2013
(Former) Committee on Economic Affairs and Development
Summary
Recognising that it must play its part in the general reform process at the Council of Europe, the Parliamentary Assembly has set up an ad hoc committee on reform, whose proposals – after their adoption by the Assembly – should be implemented in January 2012. At the same time, the Assembly welcomes the decision by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe and the Committee of Ministers to draw up the Council of Europe’s budget and programme on a biennial basis for 2012 and 2013, but would like to see greater flexibility in its application.
A. Draft resolution
(open)Appended to this resolution are:
i. a table of the requests for 2012 and 2013, compared with the appropriations allocated in 2011;
ii. a brief explanation of the main items of expenditure;
iii. a table setting out the Assembly’s work programme according to the results-based budgeting method.
Appendix 1
(open)
Parliamentary Democracy – Expenditure of the Assembly |
Expenditure foreseen as at 01/05/2011 |
Appropriations for 2012 |
Appropriations for 2013 |
---|---|---|---|
Démocratie parlementaire – Dépenses relatives à l’Assemblée |
Dépenses prévues au 01/05/2011 |
Crédits demandés au budget de 2012 |
Crédits demandés au budget de 2013 |
€ |
€ |
€ |
|
HEAD 0310 – Functioning of the Assembly CHAPITRE 0310 – Fonctionnement de l’Assemblée |
|||
Dépenses de personnel/Staff expenditure |
|||
Sub-heads/Articles |
|||
0000001 – Remuneration of staff recruited on established posts Rémunération du personnel recruté dans le cadre des emplois permanents |
8 321 200 € |
8 339 400 € |
8 352 300 € |
0000003 – Remuneration and accessory charges of temporary staff Rémunération et charges accessoires du personnel temporaire. |
583 800 € |
511 100 € |
474 700 € |
0000046 – Remuneration of staff on position Rémunération du personnel sur fonction à durée déterminée |
455 400 € |
455 400 € |
455 400 € |
0000005 – Salary, allowances and social charges of the Secretary General of the Assembly Rémunération, indemnités et charges sociales du Secrétaire Général de l’Assemblée |
261 600 € |
261 600 € |
261 600 € |
0000016 – Recruitment, arrival and departure expenses – Home leave Frais de recrutement à l’arrivée et au départ – congé dans le pays d’origine |
27000 |
27 000 € |
27 000 € |
0000379 – Contribution to the Pension budget Contribution au budget des pensions |
1 308 400 € |
1 308 400 € |
1 308 400 € |
Total dépenses de personnel Total staff expenditure |
10 957 400 € |
10 902 900 € |
10 879 400 € |
Supplies, services and other operational expenditure Dépenses de matériel et autres dépenses de fonctionnement |
|||
Sub-heads/Articles |
|||
0000054 – Equipment Equipement. |
11000 |
11 000 € |
11 000 € |
0000080 – Official journeys Frais de missions |
261400 |
261 400 € |
261 400 € |
0000085 – Journeys of the Table Office reinforcement staff Frais de déplacement personnel de renfort – Service de la séance |
200 000 €. |
200 000 € |
200 000 € |
0000095 – Representational expenditure, other official expenditure and travelling expenses of members of the Assembly / Dépenses de représentation, frais de fonction et déplacement des Membres de l’Assemblée |
160 000 € |
160 000 € |
160 000 € |
0000114 – Prepress Pré-presse |
43 000 € |
43 000 € |
43 000 € |
0000115 – Interpretation Interprétation |
1 897 200 € |
1 866 600 € |
1 866 600 € |
0000116 – Translation Traduction |
484500 |
484 500 € |
484 500 € |
0000124 – Publishing and printing Publications et impressions |
314400 |
285 800 € |
285800 |
0000125 – Outsourced production of documents Production externalisée de documents |
25 000 € |
25 000 € |
25 000 € |
0000129 – Consultation of experts Consultation d’experts |
148 600 € |
150 000 € |
150 000 € |
0000162 – Expenditure pertaining to the Private Office of the President of the Assembly Dépenses du Cabinet du Président de l’Assemblée |
61 700 € |
70 000 € |
70 000 € |
0000163 – Official expenses of the President of the Assembly Frais de fonction du Président de l’Assemblée |
92 500 € |
92 500 € |
92 500 € |
0000171 – Organisation of ad hoc conferences Organisation de conférences ad hoc |
87700 |
87 000 € |
87 000 € |
0000204 – Modernisation of the Assembly’s equipment Modernisation de l’équipement de l’Assemblée |
20 000 € |
35 600 € |
35 600 € |
0000205 – European prizes Prix européens |
80 000 € |
80 000 € |
80 000 € |
0000206 – Operating and maintenance costs of the electronic voting system Coûts de maintenance et d’exploitation du vote électronique |
39 000 € |
39 000 € |
39 000 € |
0000250 – Co-operation and monitoring programme Programme de coopération et du suivi des engagements |
540100 |
536 300 € |
536 300 € |
0000370 – Allocation to Assembly’s political groups Dotation des groupes politiques de l’Assemblée |
732 200 € |
732 200 € |
732 200 € |
0000392 – Other expenditure not specifically provided for in this vote Autres dépenses non spécialement prévues au présent titre |
80000 |
70 000 € |
70 000 € |
Total supplies, services and other operational expenditure Total dépenses de matériel et autres dépenses de fonctionnement |
5 278 300 € |
5 229 900 € |
5 229 900 € |
TOTAL Parliamentary Assembly TOTAL Assemblée parlementaire |
16 235 700 € |
16 132 800 € |
16 109 300 € |
Appendix 2
(open)Expenditure of the Assembly
- Staff expenditure
1. This appropriation corresponds to the basic salaries, allowances (non-recurring and periodic) and social cover of the permanent staff of the secretariat of the Assembly (87 posts, including 1 specially appointed official) and of temporary staff (including 6 positions).
2. In 2012 and 2013, the Secretary General of the Assembly will continue the reorganisation of the secretariat in line with the decisions taken by the Assembly as part of its reform. In particular, some measures could have an impact on the structure of the Assembly and the number of committees. The information given at present is based on the current structure of the Assembly comprising ten committees: nine of these committees have 84 members (and 84 alternates, apart from in the Monitoring Committee), and the remaining one has 27 (with no alternates). As at 1 November 2011, the secretariat will comprise 87 permanent posts, 6 positions and 1 specially appointed official, breaking down as follows:
Permanent posts:
1 specially appointed official |
||
1 A7 |
1 B6 |
1 C4 |
2 A6 |
5 B5 |
|
9 A5 |
12 B4 |
|
10 A4 |
16 B3 |
|
23 A2/A3 |
7 B2 |
|
Positions: |
||
4 A2/A3 |
1 B3 |
|
1 B2 |
3. At present, the secretariat of the Assembly is organised so that the ten Assembly committees have 52 staff members working for them, including 30 A-grade permanent staff, 20 B-grade permanent staff and 2 A-grade permanent staff on fixed-term positions.
4. The remaining 41 staff members (37 permanent posts and 4 permanent staff on fixed-term positions) work for the Bureau of the Assembly, the Private Office of the President of the Assembly, the Table Office, the Interparliamentary co-operation and election observation Unit, the Parliamentary Assistance Unit, the Administration, Human Resources, Finance, Research and Documentation Division, the Communication Division and the Information Technology Unit.
5. Since 1975, following a decision by the Committee of Ministers, these allocations have been voted in the form of a single appropriation, which nonetheless continues to be divided into sub-heads. If the Assembly wished to change the relative amounts in the package at a later date, either because of an overall reduction or for any other reason dictated by the implementation of the budget, such a change would be carried out by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe at the Assembly’s request and in accordance with Article 31 of the Financial Regulations.
- Supplies, services and other operational expenditure
6. In recent years, the Assembly has made substantial savings by rationalising its work to reduce its operational expenditure. In particular, the Assembly’s overall budget on a constant basis fell by 2% from 2005 to 2010, while operational expenditure declined by 16% over the same period.
7. The experience acquired through joint programmes with the European Commission, such as those for the parliaments of Serbia and Montenegro (2006-2009) and more recently Moldova (2010-2011) should enable the Assembly secretariat to draw up a proposed assistance and co-operation programme suited to the needs of parliamentary institutions. The goal pursued is clearly to attract extra-budgetary funding (voluntary and/or European Union contributions) so as to respond appropriately to the specific needs of the parliaments of Council of Europe member states or partnership for democracy states.
8. In keeping with the external auditor’s recommendations, the Assembly has included in its budget appropriations to meet expenditure for the development and maintenance of certain computer applications required for its specific needs which is not covered by the Council of Europe’s Directorate of Information Technology (DIT).
9. In order to clarify the areas of responsibility of the DIT and the Assembly’s Information Technology Unit, a document (“charter”) laying down their respective responsibilities will be drawn up, as recommended by the external auditors.
10. The Assembly’s committees will not cease to hold thematic hearings and conferences, which provide essential input for their work. The Assembly will also continue to co-operate closely with other European parliamentary assemblies (the European Parliament, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), etc), or international parliamentary assemblies (Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Pan-African Parliament, Parlatino, etc).
11. The Sub-Committee on the Middle East will continue its co-operation with representatives of the Knesset and the Palestinian Legislative Council, pursuant to Assembly Resolution 1420 (2005) on prospects for peace in the Middle East and the decision of the Assembly Bureau on 18 March 2005.
12. The Assembly will also continue to support its political groups through their allocation, which is based on a lump sum for secretarial assistance paid to each of the existing groups along with an additional per capita amount which varies according to their membership.
13. To sum up, the draft budget for 2012 and 2013 in real terms (not including inflation and salary adjustments), which includes the pension costs for staff as well as a new article for prepress activities, amounts to:
2012: €16 132 800 2013: €16 109 300
The appropriations can be analysed as follows:
2012 |
2013 |
|
---|---|---|
€9 594 500 |
Permanent and temporary staff |
€9 571 000 |
€1 308 400 |
Contribution to the pension budget |
€1 308 400 |
€1 866 600 |
Interpretation |
€1 866 600 |
€484 500 |
Translation |
€484 500 |
€285 800 |
Printing of documents |
€285 800 |
€732 200 |
Allocation to the political groups |
€732 200 |
--------------- |
--------------- |
|
€14 272 000 |
Sub-total |
€14 248 500 |
€1 860 800 |
Activities: |
€1 860 800 |
--------------- |
--------------- |
|
€ 16 132 800 |
Total |
€ 16 109 300 |
14. The reduction in the Assembly’s appropriations will lead it to make further changes to its working methods, procedures and structure so as to enhance its activities’ relevance and effectiveness.
15. Lastly, although the financial situation is difficult, the Assembly wishes the work to modernise the Assembly Chamber to be continued in the coming years, depending on the funds available in the Council of Europe’s investment plan. The modernisation should concern, in particular, installing sockets for portable computers on desks, refurbishing the presidential rostrum and changing the seats. In this respect, it wishes to thank the Council of Europe’s central services, in particular the Directorate of Logistics, for the work already done in 2010 and early 2011 to renovate and modernise the Assembly Chamber.
Appendix 3
(open)
Functioning of the Assembly |
|
---|---|
Intervention logic |
Performance indicators |
Expected result 1 The part-sessions are efficiently organised and executed in line with Assembly members’ expectations. |
At least 50% of registered speakers have been able to take the floor. Adopted texts are transmitted to organisations concerned within the specified deadlines. |
Expected result 2 Committee meetings, seminars and conferences take place in conformity with members’ decisions. |
Committee meetings are planned. Meeting agendas, documents and reports are available in time. |
Expected result 3 Inter-parliamentary co-operation, observation of elections and assistance to parliaments are managed according to the political events. |
Co-operation activities are organised according to needs and requests. Election observation missions are organised in accordance with decisions of the Bureau of the Assembly. |
Expected result 4 The visibility of the Assembly is improved in the different member states |
Activities of the Assembly are reflected in the media, with at least 10 000 articles in print media. Increase in the external audience of the Assembly’s website. |
B. Explanatory memorandum by Mr Cebeci, rapporteur
(open)1. Introduction
2. Biennial budget for 2012-2013
3. The functioning of the Assembly
- holding of the ordinary session divided into four part-sessions (taking place in January, April, June and September/October of each year);
- meetings of the Bureau and the Standing Committee between the part-sessions, held at a frequency of three meetings per year;
- meetings in either Strasbourg or Paris, lasting one or more days, at times other than the four part-sessions of the Assembly, for each of the ten general committees, the sub-committees, the ad hoc committees of the Assembly or of the Bureau and specialised working parties;
- committee or sub-committee meetings outside Strasbourg or Paris;
- conferences, colloquies, seminars and parliamentary hearings;
- activities coming under the Assembly’s programme of interparliamentary co-operation;
- visits by rapporteurs to countries subject to monitoring of the honouring of member states’ obligations and commitments or to the post-monitoring dialogue;
- election observation.
- strengthen the Parliamentary Assembly’s political relevance and effectiveness;
- make the Assembly more visible;
- improve Assembly members’ participation, while reinforcing interaction between the Assembly and national parliaments.
4. Reducing the Assembly’s expenditure for 2012-2013
5. Breakdown of expenditure for 2012-2013
2012: €16 132 800 2013: €16 109 300
2012 |
2013 |
|
---|---|---|
€9 594 500 |
Permanent and temporary staff |
€9 571 000 |
€1 308 400 |
Contribution to the pension budget |
€1 308 400 |
€1 866 600 |
Interpretation |
€1 866 600 |
€484 500 |
Translation |
€484 500 |
€285 800 |
Printing of documents |
€285 800 |
€732 200 |
Allocation to the political groups |
€732 200 |
--------------- |
--------------- |
|
€14 272 000 |
Sub-total |
€14 248 500 |
€1 860 800 |
Activities: |
€1 860 800 |
--------------- |
--------------- |
|
€ 16 132 800 |
Total |
€ 16 109 300 |
6. Modernisation works
Appendix
(open)Part of the Parliamentary Assembly expenditure in the Ordinary Budget