Progress of the negotiations on the CPR and ESF regulations ESF Evaluation Partnership Meeting Brussels 16 March Dirk Reyntjens – DG EMPL E1

Key dates June 2011: MFF communication (July 2011 – PL Presidency) August 2011: Finalization of Impact Assessments October 2011: Adoption of legislative package (January 2011 – DK Presidency)

Legislative process Com proposal CoR opinion Council position EP position EESC opinion Trilogue (COM/Council/EP) Compromise

Negotiations in Council Structural Actions Working Party (CPR, ERDF, ESF, CF, ETC, ETG) Negotiation blocks Strategic programming and thematic concentration Performance framework and reserve Monitoring and evaluation Management and control Financial management Ex-ante conditionalities …… MFF Fin. Reg.

Negotiations in Council GAC COREPER “Ideal” three steps in SAWP for each block 1st meeting Q&As 2nd meeting compromise text 3rd meeting Round up Amendment proposals Amendment proposals

Negotiations in Council COREPER meeting in April on: Strategic programming Ex-ante conditionalities General Affairs Council (24 April and 26 June) [General issue on the use of IA and DA]

Strategic programming / thematic concentration CPR Art. 1-16; 23-31; 87 Status of the CSF (annex or DA?) Code of Conduct Architecture Partnership Contract / OP Adoption and amendment of PC/OP References to EU 2020 / NRPs / CSR Multi-X Priority Axes Multi-categories of regions Multi-thematic objectives Multi-fund

Strategic programming / thematic concentration ESF Art. 4 & 6-10 Article 4 20% for social inclusion (too much?) Concentration at level of MS or Region instead of OP Number of Investment Priorities Levels in function category of regions Articles 6 to 10 (social partners, NGOs, Gender, Equal Opportunities, Social Innovation, Transnational Cooperation) Optional or compulsory

Performance framework and reserve CPR Art. 18-20 Annex I Principle of a Performance Framework is accepted but issues on: timing of the formal reviews (2017 & 2019 or 2019) mixing positive and negative incentives mechanisms leading to suspension and correction Many MS have a general reserve on the performance reserve and see no Added Value

Monitoring and evaluation CPR Art. 41-50 & 100-104 Most discussions on the AIR: Deadlines for submission of reports Full financial and indicators data EAC and issues affecting performance Other points: Function and composition of the MC Actions required on COM recommendations Evaluation plan (submission, coverage) …. EAC; internal/external; publication

Financial management / management and control systems CPR Art Examination of complaints Deadline for e-cohesion Pre-financing (net payers / RAL) Payment of beneficiaries before declaring expenditures de minimis threshold for recoveries Audits (statistical vs risk based sampling) Strong links with negotiations on Financial Regulation

Conditionalities CPR : Art. 17 & 21 and Annex IV Macro-economic conditionalities are not discussed in SAWP (Art. 21) Ex-ante conditionalities (Art. 17) 2 stage self-assessment: applicability and fulfilment - burden of proof Linkage to actions to be undertaken or investment priorities Subsidiarity Proportionality General ex ante conditionalities

Simplification CPR Art. 55 -61 140 - ESF Art.14 Increasing the ceilings in the regulations Calculation of staff costs One audit threshold Compulsory use of SCO of ESF actions < 50,000

Negotiations in European Parliament Discussions in specialised Committees (REGI for CPR; EMPL for ESF; BUDG for MFF) Rapporteurs draft opinions (March) Committee members propose amendments (May) Vote in Committees (June - July) Discussion in plenary ESF: July? CPR: September?

Thank you for your attention