What changed

1. PROPOSAL FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT DECISION

P10_TA(2026)0132

on discharge in respect of the implementationDischarge of2024: theEU general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2024, Section VII –- Committee of the Regions

(2025/2152(DEC))

Committee on Budgetary Control

PE778.064

1. European Parliament decision of 29 April 2026 on discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2024, Section VII – Committee of the Regions (2025/2152(DEC))

The European Parliament,

3. Instructs its President to forward this decision and the resolution forming an integral part of it to the Committee of the Regions, the Council, the Commission and the Court of Auditors, and to arrange for their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union (L series).

2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION

2. European Parliament resolution of 29 April 2026 with observations forming an integral part of the decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2024, Section VII – Committee of the Regions (2025/2152(DEC))

with observations forming an integral part of the decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2024, Section VII – Committee of the Regions

(2025/2152(DEC))

The European Parliament,

17. Underlines the relevance and strategic value of performance indicators and invites the Committee to further consolidate its indicator framework, ensuring the reporting of outcomes and impact rather than administrative activity alone;

1818. Notes that the Committee pursues its mission through opinions, which refer to legislative proposals made by the Commission (referrals), own-initiative opinions, which call on the Union institutions to take action, and through resolutions, which highlight the Committee’s positions on specific topics; notes that, in 2024, the Committee adopted 53 opinions (the same as in 2023) and four resolutions (six in 2023); recognises the Committee’s political achievements in 2024 and its role in integrating local and regional perspectives into Union policymaking, thereby enhancing citizen involvement;

19. Notes with satisfaction from the Committee’s 2024 annual impact report (the ‘Impact report’) the Committee’s political achievements in 2024 with respect to its three political priorities for 2020-2025, thereby reinforcing the Committee’s role in shaping Union policy at regional and local level; notes that the Committee’s input from declarations and recommendations from opinions have had an impact on key Union policy areas such as climate change, nature, energy and green economy (via, e.g., the report ‘Green deal 2.0’ which influenced Council conclusions and the Committee’s opinion on Regulation (EU) 2024/1991 of the European Parliament and of the Council), transport (via, e.g., the Committee’s opinion on the Greening Freight Transport package which influenced relevant draft reports of Parliament), and health (via, e.g., the Committee’s opinion on Regulation (EU) 2025/327 of the European Parliament and of the Council which influenced the final compromise text); notes with satisfaction that proposals made by the Committee influenced the Commission’s decisions to launch a pilot project of EUR 23 million for cofinancing regions and cities for the reintegration of the long term unemployed into the labour market and to launch the ambitious, first-ever European Affordable Housing Plan addressing energy, poverty and sustainable housing and reaffirming that access to housing is a fundamental right; further notes that the declaration adopted at the European Summit of Regions and Cities held in March 2024 in Mons provided input to the European Council’s Strategic Agenda and the Commission’s Political Guidelines;

29. Notes that in 2024 the Committee hired 51 trainees under the Cicero scheme, whereas the Committee’s trainees are paid a monthly grant and enjoy the same working conditions as staff, including the option to telework; renews its emphasis that traineeships should be remunerated in compliance with the European Parliament resolution of 14 June 2023 with recommendations to the Commission on Quality Traineeships in the Union (2020/2005(INL)), which calls for all internships in the Union to be paid;

30. Notes with regret that the Committee has not yet achieved gender parity in leadership positions, but acknowledges the significant progress made under the Committee’s five-year diversity and inclusion strategy and action plan for 2022-2026; welcomes the election in 2025 of a female President of the Committee, reaffirming the institution’s commitment to advancing gender equality at the highest political level and encourages the Committee to continue its efforts to increase female representations in leadership positions, while emphasising that merit and professional qualifications remain the primary criteria for appointment; notes that, at the end of 2024, the Committee employed 57,157,2 % women and 42,7842,8 % men, almost the same proportions as in 2023; notes that the proportion of women in senior management positions decreased from 44,4 % in 2023 to 33,3 % in 2024 (it increased back to 44,4 % in 2025) and the proportion of women in middle management decreased from 32,50 % in 2023 to 29,7 % in 2024; notes from the Questionnaire the measures to encourage greater female participation in management roles, including through targeted training and coaching opportunities for female staff aspiring to managerial positions, and the promotion of more flexible working arrangements; reiterates that achieving long-term gender balance in management positions is a core institutional objective and expects the Committee to adopt a concrete, time-bound action plan with measurable targets, intermediate milestones and annual reporting; calls on the Committee to ensure that progress towards parity is both monitored and publicly communicated;

31. Commends the Committee for its actions to also promote gender balance among its members, specifically by sending letters to the Council concerning vacancies and by advocating with the permanent representations and national associations of local and regional authorities involved in the nomination process; notes from the Follow-up report that meanwhile the percentage of female members increased from 23,40 % in 2020 to 28,7 % in 2025; appreciates that the Committee’s new rules of procedure, which came into force in August 2024, include explicit goals to enhance gender balance, particularly in the Committee’s Bureau composition; encourages the Committee to continue promoting gender balance, while ensuring that appointments are based on merit, professional experience and qualifications;

Ethical framework and transparency

40. Welcomes the work done by the Committee in 2023 to consolidate ethical rules and practices into a single ethical legal framework (Decision n⁰No 157/2023) covering disciplinary procedure, dignity at work, conflict management, combatting harassment, outside activities and whistleblowing among others; notes that 2024 was the first year of implementation of this new framework; notes that the Committee offered mandatory training courses on a frequent basis on ethics and integrity, whistleblowing and conflicts of interest prevention to different groups of staff ranging from newcomers, managers and staff overall in 2024;

41. Notes that that the Committee did not report any cases to, and was not the subject of any investigation by, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) or the European Ombudsman in 2024;

42. Recalls that the Committee adopted Regulation n⁰No 6/2023 of 4 July 2023 laying down transparency measures that focus on office-holding members and rapporteurs; whereas such measures refer to the invitation for office-holding members and rapporteur to meet only with interest representatives who have registered in the Transparency Register and to publicly disclose any meetings with interest representatives that they hold in their capacity as Committee members; notes that in 2024 one Committee member reported a meeting with an interest representative; commends in this context the Committee for having formally joined the EU Transparency Register on 1 January 2024;

43. Notes from the Questionnaire the principles and mechanisms implemented by the Committee in 2024 to promote transparency across different areas, such as budgetary and financial management, reporting, audit cooperation, HR, public procurement, public access to documents and records management;

44. Welcomes the Committee’s renewed efforts in the area of detection and prevention of conflicts of interest in 2024; notes that thanks to its Decision n⁰157/2023,No 157/2023, the Committee defined the concept of conflicts of interest and has put in place a mechanism to detect and prevent such conflicts whereby staff are required to declare whether they might have a conflict of interest (potential or possible), by filling in a form at various key moments of their career or professional activities; notes with satisfaction from the Questionnaire that the annual information regarding the occupation activities of former senior officials is published in a transparent way on the Committee’s website and that they are prohibited from engaging in any lobbying or advocacy towards the Committee for the first 12 months after they leave their positions in the Committee;

45. Notes from the Questionnaire that no conflicts of interest were detected within the Committee in 2024; further notes nevertheless that a Committee member raised a concern about a potential conflict of interest arising from receiving payment for drafting a technical support study for a Member of Parliament or a Parliament political group; welcomes the confirmation received during the discharge procedure whereby the Committee member in question did not in fact accept the job in question;

48. Notes that the combined IT budget of the Committee and the EESC was EUR 13,70 million in 2024, compared to EUR 12,70 million in 2023, i.e., a decrease of approximately 7,90 %, whereas EUR 760 000 of that budget (or approximately 6 %) was paid for cybersecurity in 2024;

49. Notes from the Questionnaire that in 2024, the Directorate for Innovation and Information Technology implemented a new multiannual digital strategy for 2024-2026 which prioritises digital records management, electronic workflows, e-signatures and cloud-based solutions and focuses on four flagship programmes - M365 Digital Workplace, ARES, EdiT, and Cybersecurity - to enhance collaboration, automation, and institutional resilience; highlights the progress of the M365 programme, including migration planning to SharePoint Online, the deployment of Windows 11 and M365 Apps, and the development of an AI strategy with a roadmap for the M365 Copilot pilot in 2025; notes that the Committee began deploying the HAN document management system and advanced towards adopting the EdiT XML editor for legislative drafting; welcomes the shift towards cybersecurity as a shared responsibility, with new training initiatives and a multiannual plan aligned with Union standards; acknowledges improvements in records management, infrastructure, and secure communication tools, including SECABC email, SACHA data transfer, and endpoint management systems; notes with appreciation the Committee’s continued progress in digital innovation, including the transition to a fully paperless and cyber-secured working environment; commends the 2025-2027 ‘House of the Regions’ Working Plan for prioritising digital transformation to build a modern, agile, and digitally driven institution.institution;

50. Notes that the Committee gradually introduced an artificial intelligence pilot project called ‘Panoramic AI’ that creates a central hub which streamlines access to complex content as of 2024; notes further that the Committee has been actively using the Commission’s AI tools for translation, summaries etc. and has participated as a pilot user to test the GPT@JRC AI pilot solution; notes from the Questionnaire that the Committee’s AI guidelines adopted in 2023 established a baseline for how staff could experiment with AI, for implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 of the European Parliament and of the Council which came into effect in August 2024 and for developing corporate alternatives that align with data protection and ethical standards; welcomes in this context the organisation of information sessions for staff to explain the AI guidelines, the publication of a note on AI literacy for staff and the organisation of workshops to raise awareness about AI in 2024 and encourages the continuation of this practice, including the organisation of regular trainings on safe, ethical and efficient use of artificial intelligence and regular trainings on cybersecurity; acknowledges the added-value of AI tools that boost personal productivity, such as M365 Copilot, and of integrating AI capabilities into IT support tools; stresses that the use of artificial intelligence must be carried out by guaranteeing strict principles of ethical use, transparency, data protection, human oversight, and protection against algorithmic bias or misuse;

68. Notes from the Annual report the Committee’s success with regard to media outreach as shown by the overall metrics for 2024, such as: 28 % increase on web visitors, 11,60 % increase on followers and 16 % increase in organic digital engagement;

69. Notes that the Committee did not participate in the Roma Week event in 2024.2024;

70. Highlights that all in all the Committee’s communication strategy aims to reinforce its institutional visibility and political standing as the representative body of the Union’s regions, cities, towns and municipalities, and to showcase the role of its members in connecting Union policies with citizens at local and regional level.

ANNEX: DECLARATION OF INPUT

The rapporteur declares under his exclusive responsibility that he did not include in his report input from interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register, or from representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies, to be listed in this Annex pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of procedure.

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