On discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2022, Section III – Commission and executive agencies

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SUGGESTIONS

The Committee on Transport and Tourism calls on the Committee on Budgetary Control, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following suggestions into its motion for a resolution:

1. Welcomes the findings of the European Court of Auditors (‘the Court’) that the consolidated accounts of the EU for 2022 present fairly, in all material respects, the EU’s financial position; regrets that the level of error for budget expenditure increased from 3 % to 4.2 %; notes that, in line with the Court’s assessment, the errors are both material and pervasive;

2. Notes that the implementation of the 2022 budget was still partly impacted by the late adoption of the MFF Regulation and heavily affected by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the need to provide complex humanitarian and financial support;

3. Highlights the decrease, compared to 2021, in funding for calls for proposals under the CEF Transport 2022 funding instrument on projects targeting new, upgraded and improved European transport infrastructure; takes notice that the CEF Transport 2022 calls that were launched during the 3rd quarter of 2022 opened additional funding possibilities with an extra EUR 6 bln. of EU co-funding;

4. Endorses the work of European Climate Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) in effectively managing its delegated programmes and supporting DG MOVE in achieving its strategic objectives as per the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy;

5. Notes that 2022 was the second year of Horizon Europe, the Framework Programme supporting transport research and innovation in the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027; welcomes the successful completion of 3 major transport calls in January, April and September, for EUR 122 mln., EUR 253 mln. and EUR 91 mln. respectively, that led to new transport research and innovation projects in the areas of road, aviation and waterborne transport, as well as on infrastructures, multimodal network / traffic management, logistics and new mobility services;

6. Takes notice of the adoption by the Commission of an amended proposal for the revised TEN-T Regulation in June 2022, which aims to strengthen the links with Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, by extending four European Transport Corridors to these neighbouring countries;

7. Welcomes action taken by the Commission in December 2022 to speed up the financing of 35 military mobility projects along the TEN-T; notes that accelerated evaluation of the CEF 2021 Military Mobility call triggered the faster award of almost EUR 1 bln. of CEF funds to key dual use infrastructural components;

8. Recalls the Court’s Special Report 27/2021 “EU Support to tourism – Need for a fresh strategic orientation and a better funding approach”; recalls the Court’s recommendation to the Commission to set out a consolidated new strategy for the EU tourism ecosystem in cooperation with the Member States in order to develop an effective tourism agenda for 2030;

9. Proposes to grant the Commission and its executive agencies discharge in respect of the implementation of the Union general budget for the financial year 2022 in the fields of Transport and Tourism.