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Discharge 2022: European Medicines Agency

TA-9-2024-0245 · P9_TA(2024)0245 · PE753.524

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✦ In short · AI summary of this text, generated 25 Sept 2026

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Parliament grants the Executive Director of the European Medicines Agency discharge for the 2022 budget and approves the closure of the Agency's 2022 accounts. In its accompanying resolution, Parliament notes the Agency's 2022 budget of EUR 421 815 000, its performance and digitalisation work, and its extended mandate under Regulation (EU) 2022/123. It raises concerns over the London office lease, a payment made before its budgetary commitment, gender and geographical imbalance in management, and the handling of access to documents requests. It calls on the Commission and Council to give the Agency adequate resources, and on the Agency to fix its asset inventory, address internal audit recommendations and strengthen cybersecurity.

Key points

  1. Parliament grants the Executive Director discharge for the implementation of the Agency's 2022 budget and approves the closure of the 2022 accounts.
  2. It notes a 2022 budget of EUR 421 815 000, up 11,23 % on 2021, with about 88 % of revenue from fees and 12 % from the Union budget and miscellaneous income.
  3. It notes a current-year commitment implementation rate of 96,80 % and a payment execution rate of 71,48 %, and regrets the fall in the payment rate.
  4. It criticises a EUR 2 million payment committed after the legal commitment was accepted, contrary to Article 73(2) of the Agency's Financial Regulation, and asks for immediate corrective measures.
  5. It flags the London office lease running to 2039, with an estimated EUR 366 million still payable, about EUR 23 million a year, and the risk if the subtenant fails to pay.
  6. It welcomes the extended mandate under Regulation (EU) 2022/123, new bodies such as the Medicine Shortages Steering Group and the Emergency Task Force, and the Agency's crisis-monitoring role.
  7. It notes 2022 achievements including approval of two new vaccines and two COVID-19 treatments, and calls on the Commission and Council to allocate adequate Union funding to the Agency.
  8. It regrets gender imbalance on the management board, where 36 of 67 members are men, and in senior management, where 17 of 27 are men, and wants faster improvement.
  9. It raises concerns that only one senior or middle manager comes from Central-Eastern Europe and asks the Agency to report back on geographical balance.
  10. It notes the revised breach of trust procedure, two 2022 cases leading to a three-year and a nine-month restriction, and 22 post-employment authorisations for departing staff.
  11. It calls for an audit of the Agency's access to documents rules and queuing mechanism, and for detailed information on requests left inactive and average queuing time.
  12. It notes asset inventory discrepancies falling from EUR 534 331 to EUR 15 000, contrary to Article 87 of the Financial Regulation, and 14 major internal audit recommendations awaiting an action plan.

Who is affected

  • The European Medicines Agency and its Executive Director: granted discharge and asked to fix financial, inventory and staffing issues.
  • The Commission and the Council: asked to allocate adequate Union funding to the Agency.
  • The Agency's management board and senior management: urged to improve gender and geographical balance.
  • Applicants and stakeholders seeking access to documents: affected by the Agency's queuing mechanism and transparency policy.

Figures and deadlines

  • EUR 421 815 000: the Agency's final budget for the 2022 financial year.
  • 11,23 %: increase in the 2022 budget compared to 2021.
  • 96,80 %: budget implementation rate of current year commitment appropriations in 2022.
  • 71,48 %: current year payment appropriations execution rate in 2022.
  • EUR 2 million: audited payment whose budgetary commitment was authorised after the legal commitment.
  • EUR 366 million: estimated outstanding rent, service charges and insurance payable up to the end of the London lease in 2039, about EUR 23 million annually.
  • EUR 534 331 to EUR 15 000: range of discrepancies found in four inventory counts since relocation.
  • 55 % net reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and climate neutrality by 2050: targets the Agency aligned its climate objectives with.

Legal basis: Article 319 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.