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12 June 1992
Doc. 6631
1403-11/6/92-1-E
Report
expressing an opinion on the programme budget for the
Assembly's 1993 operational expenditure
(Rapporteur: Mr OEHLER, France, Socialist)
The problem
Every year the Assembly is required to submit an opinion to the Committee of Ministers with properly justified proposals concerning the budget estimates of the Assembly's operational expenditure in the following year.
The solutions
In the present political context, an important feature of which is the prospect of the Council of Europe area greatly expanding both in the short and medium-term, the Assembly has decided to continue the project for co-operation with Central and Eastern European countries which it put forward in 1991, but with the addition of a programme of legislative assistance geared to those countries' needs.
The opinion also mentions the Assembly's other priorities, namely matching its manpower and resources to the needs and challenges which it currently faces. This entails both creating a number of posts and reorganising the Clerk's Office. If, in addition, appopriations under Vote IX (Sub-head 9201, "Parliamentary activities") were included in the budgetary package, it would facilitate management of funds allocated to the Assembly.
I. DRAFT OPINION
1. The object in the 1993 financial year must be to enable the Council, and especially the Assembly, to rise to the new challenges resulting from events in Central and Eastern Europe, particularly the disintegration of the USSR and Yugoslavia.
2. The Council of Europe must remain the prime European forum for all states which are democratic or moving towards democracy, and the Parliamentary Assembly must continue to play its special role in that connection.
3. The prospect of the Council further expanding and the urgency of responding to the growing number of requests for assistance from those countries need to be properly reflected in the 1993 budget.
4. In particular the Assembly is keen to develop its programme of co-operation with Central and Eastern Europe by adding programmes of legislative assistance (which would be provided on request to interested countries) to existing activities (ad hoc conferences in Central and Eastern Europe; meetings there of parliamentary committees; election monitoring; training for young parliamentarians; training for staff of Central and Eastern European assemblies; official visits to Central and Eastern Europe by members of the Assembly; meetings in connection with the Strasbourg Conference; support for the International Institute for Democracy).
5. In addition, the Assembly considers it essential to strengthen the staffing of the Clerk's Office in the manner set out in this opinion if the Assembly is to perform its work effectively and satisfactorily.
6. The Assembly also points out that in Recommendation 1155 (1991), on its powers in budgetary matters, it said: "As far as its own budget is concerned, the Assembly should enjoy a certain amount of independence in keeping with its dignity as an organ made up of members of national parliaments as well as with its concern to make its action more efficient."
7. Bearing in mind the aforementioned prospects and requirements, the Assembly sees its priorities as:
i. consolidating and increasing the resources it needs to make a more effective contribution, through dialogue, co-operation and legislative assistance, to the development of pluralist democracy in Central and Eastern Europe;
ii. extending the budgetary-package approach to the appropriations in Vote IX (Sub-head 9201, "Parliamentary activities");
iii. adapting the staffing and organisation of the Clerk's Office to the requirements which stem from the Council's geographical expansion and the Assembly's wider responsibilities;
iv. modernising its computer and office equipment.
As in previous years, the Assembly's opinion is in two parts:
i. a table of 1992 appropriations and requested 1993 increases;
ii. detailed explanations of the requests.
In the second part the Assembly also recapitulates the procedure for preparation of its opinion and states its budget priorities for 1993 (see the foreword).
A. TABLE OF REQUESTED INCREASES IN REAL TERMS IN 1993 COMPARED WITH INITIAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR 1992
TABLEAU RECAPITULATIF DES DEMANDES D'AUGMENTATION DE CREDITS EN TERMES REELS POUR 1993 PAR RAPPORT AUX CREDITS INITIAUX OUVERTS POUR 1992
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VOTE III of the ordinary budget - Expenditure of the Assembly TITRE III du budget ordinaire - Dépenses relatives à l'Assemblée |
Appropriations for 1992 Crédits ouverts au budget de 1992 FF |
Changes in real terms proposed for 1993 Modifications en termes réels proposées pour 1993 FF |
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HEAD 3.1 - Staff CHAPITRE 3.1 - DEPENSES DE PERSONNEL Sub-heads/Articles 3101 - Salary, allowances and social charges of the Clerk of the Assembly Rémunération, indemnités et charges sociales du Greffier de l'Assemblée 3102 - Remuneration of staff recruited on established posts Rémunération du personnel recruté sur le cadre des emplois permanents 3102 bis - Staffing changes requested in the Office of the Clerk Modifications demandées pour le cadre des emplois du Greffe 3103 - Recruitment, arrival and departure expenses - Home leave Frais de recrutement à l'arrivée et au départ - congé dans le pays d'origine 3104 - Overtime - statutory and other allowances Heures supplémentaires - indemnités statutaires et autres 3105 - Remuneration and accessory charges of temporary Conference staff Rémunération et charges accessoires du personnel temporaire de conférence 3106 - Provision for cost-of-living allowance and other adjustments to remuneration Provision pour vie chère et autres ajustements de la rémunération TOTAL HEAD 3.1 TOTAL DU CHAPITRE 3.1 |
979 000 25 631 000 225 000 94 000 14 462 000 835 000 42 226 000 |
+ 2 570 000 + 700 000 + 3 270 000 |
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HEAD 3.2 - Allocation to the Assembly's political groups CHAPITRE 3.2 - Dotation des groupes politiques de l'Assemblée 3201 - Allocation to the Assembly's political groups Dotation des groupes politiques de l'Assemblée TOTAL HEAD 3.2 TOTAL CHAPITRE 3.2 |
2 221 000 2 221 000 |
+ 500 000 + 500 000 |
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VOTE III - Expenditure of the Assembly TITRE III - Dépenses relatives à l'Assemblée |
Appropriations for 1992 Crédits ouverts au budget de 1992 FF |
Changes in real terms proposed for 1993 Modifications en termes réels proposées pour 1993 FF |
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HEAD 3.3 - Supplies, services and other operational expenditure CHAPITRE 3.3 - Dépenses de matériel et autres dépenses de fonctionnement Sub-heads/Articles 3301 - Publishing and printing Publications et impressions 3302 - Representational, travelling and subsistence expenses of the President of the Assembly Dépenses de représentation, frais de déplacement et de séjour du Président de l'Assemblée 3303 - Expenditure pertaining to the Private Office of the President of the Assembly Dépenses du Cabinet du Président de l'Assemblée 3304 - Representational expenditure, other official expenditure and travelling expenses of members of the Assembly Dépenses de représentation, frais de fonction et de déplacement des membres de l'Assemblée 3305 - Official journeys Frais de missions 3306 - Expenses for inviting parliamentary delegations of non-member states Dépenses d'accueil de délégations parlementaires d'Etats non membres 3307 - Consultation of experts Consultation d'experts 3308 - Organisation of ad hoc conferences Organisation de conférences ad hoc 3309 - Strasbourg Conference Conférence de Strasbourg 3310 - Other expenditure not specifically provided for in this vote Autres dépenses non spécialement prévues au présent titre 3311 - Modernisation of the Assembly's equipment (computerisation and office automation) Modernisation de l'équipement de l'Assemblée (informatisation et bureautique) 3312 - Europe Prizes Prix européens TOTAL HEAD 3.3 TOTAL DU CHAPITRE 3.3 TOTAL VOTE III TOTAL DU TITRE III |
1 760 000 450 000 280 000 730 000 1 600 000 220 000 410 000 1 300 000 800 000 200 000 p.m. 250 000 8 000 000 52 447 000 |
+ 200 000 + 2 000 000 + 2 200 000 + 5 970 000 |
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VOTE IX - Contacts and co-operation with Central and Eastern Europe TITRE IX - Contacts et coopération avec les pays d'Europe centrale et de l'Est |
Appropriations for 1992 Crédits ouverts au budget de 1992 FF |
Changes in real terms proposed for 1993 Modifications en termes réels proposées pour 1993 FF |
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HEAD 9.2 - Parliamentary activities CHAPITRE 9.2 - Activités parlementaires Sub-head/Article 9201 - Programme of interparliamentary co-operation Programme de coopération interparlementaire a. Legislative assistance Assistance législative b. Colloquies Colloques c. Training of young parliamentarians Formation de jeunes parlementaires d. Training of parliamentary administrative staff Formation du personnel administratif des parlements TOTAL HEAD 9.2 (Vote IX) TOTAL DU CHAPITRE 9.2 (Titre IX) |
1 469 000 1 469 000 |
+ 1 500 000 + 1 500 000 |
B. DETAILED JUSTIFICATION OF THE CHANGES REQUESTED IN REAL TERMS
Foreword
The Assembly is called upon, as it is every year, to give its opinion on Vote III of the Ordinary Budget of the Council of Europe, that is the part of the draft budget dealing with appropriations pertaining to its operations. The appropriations pertaining to facilities, supplies and equipment do not come under this vote.
The increases requested for 1993 should be regarded as increases in real terms over the Assembly's appropriations for 1992. As in previous years, the Assembly is leaving it to the Secretariat's administrative departments to assess in due course the adjustments that are being or will be made to 1992 appropriations as a result of changes in salary scales, implications of such changes for 1993 and the provisions that need to be made for salary adjustments in 1993. Similarly, it will be up to the Secretary General to adjust the other appropriations for inflation.
The amounts of the appropriations requested by the Assembly for 1993 will thus be determined by the total appropriations allocated to the Assembly for 1992 (including any additional appropriations allocated in the course of the year) plus:
- the increases in real terms requested in this opinion;
- the technical adjustments made by the Secretariat.
The Assembly's priorities are to:
- consolidate and increase the resources it needs to contribute more effectively, through dialogue, co-operation and legislative assistance, to fostering pluralist democracy in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe;
- extend the technique of the budgetary package to appropriations under Vote IX (Sub-head 9201 Parliamentary activities);
- adjust the staff complement and adapt the administrative structure of the Office of the Clerk of the Assembly to meet demands on it arising from the Organisation's geographical extension and the Assembly's wider responsibilities;
- modernise its computer and office equipment.
Analysis of the various estimates by budgetary item
VOTE III EXPENDITURE OF THE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY
HEAD 3.1 Staff
Sub-head 3101 Salary, allowances and social charges of the Clerk of the Assembly
Sub-head 3102 Remuneration of staff recruited on established posts
This appropriation covers the basic salaries, allowances (both non-recurring and periodic) and social insurance of the staff of the Office of the Clerk, which comprises the following 56 posts:
- one A7 post
- two A6 posts1
- three A5 posts
- thirteen A4 posts
- eleven A2/A3 posts
- four B5 posts
- four B4 posts
- sixteen B3 posts
- two B2 posts.
Sub-head 3102 bis Staffing changes requested in the Office of the Clerk
Estimates for 1993: (2 570 000 F)
- creation of two A2/A3 posts ..................... 750 000 F
- creation of three B3 posts ...................... 690 000 F
- creation of two A4 posts....................... 1 020 000 F
- Upgrading of two A4 posts to A5 ................. 110 000 F
Comments
a. Creation of two A2/A3 posts (committee secretaries)
In Opinion No. 158 (1991), the Assembly noted that the Office of the Clerk had staffing difficulties. In particular, it established the principle that Assembly committees comprising between 40 and 50 members, an equal number of alternates and some special special guests, should be able to rely on the full-time services of at least two A-grade members of staff (one A4 and one A2/A3). The posts the Committee of Ministers decided to create through a supplementary budget in 1991 and the 1992 budget will make it possible to apply this principle to some of these committees in the near future, ie those on Economic Affairs, Social, Health and Family Affairs and Migration, Refugees and Demography. Nevertheless, the secretariats of the Political Affairs Committee and the Committee on Legal Affairs will still have only one and a half members of staff at their disposal, as the two co-secretaries of these committees assist the Clerk on a part-time basis. The creation of a post of executive assistant to the Clerk of the Assembly, discussed in the following paragraph, would give full effect to the principle established by the Assembly in its above-mentioned opinion, as the duties of the two members of staff would be entrusted to an A4-grade executive assistant to the Clerk.
Moreover, the Assembly must give some thought not only to the five above-mentioned committees, but also to the others with between 30 to 40 members, an equal number of alternates and some special guests. In the Assembly's view, these committees ought to have the services of at least one and a half members of staff, as the duties of all the Assembly committees are constantly growing because of the Organisation's geographical extension and the Assembly's closer co-operation with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. In order to be realistic, the Assembly is merely requesting the creation of two A2/A3 posts for the 1993 financial year. In this way, four out of the five above-mentioned committees could be assisted by a part-time co-secretary.
At the same time, the creation of two A2/A3 posts in the Office of the Clerk of the Assembly would enable the Office to absorb officials from the new member countries. Indeed, the Assembly has repeatedly argued that the staff complement of the Office of the Clerk should grow in line with the enlargement of the Organisation, as the accession of new members brings a general increase in the Office's work load, especially that of committee secretaries. The numerous reasons for this include:
- the increase in the number of initiatives taken by the
parliamentarians and political groups;
- the increase in the number of Representatives and Substitutes2;
- the necessity for the Secretariat to extend its research into a very wide variety of fields (political, economic, cultural, social, scientific, legal, etc).
Moreover, there should ideally be at least one A-grade staff member in the Office of the Clerk for each new country, to facilitate contacts with the new member countries and cope with the language difficulties of some of their parliamentarians.
In this connection, the Committee of Ministers has yielded to the Assembly's arguments and has recently created two A2/A3-grade posts of committee secretary, on account of the accession of Hungary and Czechoslovakia. No new post has yet been created on the strength of Poland's membership.
It should also be noted, for the record, that it would be advisable to contemplate the creation of an A2/A3 post (administrator responsible for administrative and budgetary questions) in the central division that is to be set up, as the additional financial resources of the Office of the Clerk of the Assembly and the significant growth of its activities have rendered the supervision of budgetary and financial operations more complex. These duties are at present carried out by a B5-grade member of staff. This classification does not now seem to be in keeping with the functions the holder of this post has to perform.
b. Creation of three B3 posts (senior clerk)
Staffing problems have also become increasingly acute among B grades. In the past, the creation of new A2/A3-grade posts has not always gone hand in hand with the creation of a sufficient number of B-category posts. Although these problems cannot be cured at a stroke, it is now essential to attend to the most pressing needs and remove the worst anomalies.
For many years, the secretaries of the heads of Divisions III and IV have also been providing secretarial services for two large committees, that is to say the Social, Health and Family Affairs Committee and the Committee on Economic Affairs and Development, whose activities have built up to such an extent that the two assistants ought to devote all of their time to the work of these committees. Two B3-grade posts of secretaries of the heads of Divisions III and IV should therefore be created. Obviously, the holders of these posts would likewise be called upon to provide secretarial assistance for the committees in their respective divisions.
In Opinion No. 158 (1991), the Assembly advocated the creation of a central division comprising at least a head of division (A5), an administrative assistant (B5) and a secretarial assistant (B3). Because of the tightness of the budget, the Assembly refrained from asking for the creation of the B3 post in the 1992 budget. The creation of this post is now vital if the central division is to function efficiently. The holder of this B3 post would have the dual reponsibility of acting as secretary to the head of the central division and helping the B5-grade administrative assistant responsible for the technical and practical organisation of colloquies, summer meetings and the Strasbourg Conference.
c. Creation of two A4 posts (press officer and executive assistant to the Clerk of the Assembly)
The paucity of financial and human resources devoted to communication is keenly felt by the parliamentarians. The motion for a recommendation on the need to increase the resources of the Council of Europe, presented by Mr Worms and others (Doc. 6517), evidences the Assembly's real frustration about the scant media impact of the Assembly's activities. The Committee on the Budget and the Intergovernmental Work Programme has decided to forward the above-mentioned motion for a recommendation to the two Rapporteurs for an opinion on the budget. As this need must be borne in mind in the opinion on the Organisation's general budget,it cannot be ignored in this opinion on the operational expenditure of the Assembly in 1993. The creation of an A4-grade post for a press officer should be strongly recommended. This person would have the following duties:
- look after the whole Assembly's relations with the media;
- in particular, assist the President in his contacts with the press in Strasbourg and on his official journeys;
- closely supervise Assembly publications.
The press officer would be attached to the central division.
The chief reason for creating this post is to strengthen the Assembly's relations with the press. It goes without saying that in the future, the Assembly will also have to continue to rely on the support and services of the Directorate of Information.
As explained in the previous paragraph, the Clerk of the Assembly is at present assisted by two A2/A3-grade members of staff who are, at the same time, the co-secretaries of two large committees. The latters' operational requirements call for a different solution, namely the creation of a post of executive assistant to the Clerk, who would be mainly responsible for the preparation and updating of the files dealt with directly by the Clerk and who ought to be classed as an A4 owing to the wide variety of his/her functions.
d. Upgrading of two A4 posts to A5
In Opinion No. 158 (1991), the Assembly stated the reasons for following the example of the majority of the Secretariat's operational directorates and setting up a central division. This division is to be created as part of the reorganisation of the Office of the Clerk, with a view to achieving the optimim use of human resources and improving the Assembly's efficiency and ability to implement its programmes coherently.
The Assembly therefore requested the creation of one A5-grade post (head of division) and one B5-grade post (administrative assistant). The Committee of Ministers agreed to the request to create an A4-grade post and a B5-grade post. The structural reasons just given above justified making the head of the central division an A5, especially as it would also be up to the head of division to coordinate the programme of training and assistance for Central and East European parliaments. Moreover, the persons in the new posts requested in this opinion (senior clerk B3 and press officer A4) or which it recommends, but not for the immediate future, (administrative officer in charge of administrative and budgetary questions A2/A3) will report to the head of the central division.
Secondly, still with a view to rationalising the work of the Office of the Clerk of the Assembly, improving its organisation and lending it greater consistency, consideration should be given to incorporating the Committee on Agriculture in the Section Environment, Regional Planning and Local Authorities (which at present comprises the Committee on the Environment, Regional Planning and Local Authorities and the activities connected with the Europe Prize and presentation of Council of Europe Flags of Honour), because the nature of the subject matter dealt with by the two committees lends itself to interdisciplinary exchanges. It would therefore be desirable to turn this section into a division and to upgrade the A4 post of head of section to an A5.
The Assembly is of course requesting the upgrading of these posts to keep budget costs down. In reality, it would have preferred the creation of two posts, as this would have significantly reinforced its secretariat.
Sub-head 3103 Recruitment, arrival and departure expenses, home leave
Sub-head 3104 Overtime - Statutory and other allowances
Sub-head 3105 Remuneration and accessory charges of temporary conference staff
Increase requested for 1993 ....................... 700 000 F
An increase of 700 000 F should be provided to meet expanding needs in the field of publications, on the one hand and interpretation and translation, on the other. As far as publications are concerned, the object is to enable the Assembly not only to publich more documents by recruiting the requisite staff for the work associated with this, but also to contribute to the European Centre for Parliamentary Research and Documentation (ECPRD). The aims of this Centre are in short: to promote the exchange of information between parliaments, prevent duplication of research efforts and establish close co-operation on documentation among parliamentary libraries and research services, including access to Community and national data banks. The ECPRD was set up by a decision of the Conference of Presidents of European Parliamentary Assemblies meeting in Vienna in 1977. At the last conference, held in Strasbourg on 21 and 22 February 1992, the participants approved the principle that parliaments participating in the conference should contribute directly or indirectly to the financing of the ECPRD's activities. The Parliamentary Assembly could contribute by taking care of a number of translations and publications.
The increase in appropriations under this sub-head will likewise make it possible to hold a plenary debate lasting for one or two days during summer meetings, like those which have taken place since 1990.
Lastly, the series of events being held in the countries which have just joined the Council of Europe and the countries with special guest status are entailing supplementary expenditure on temporary conference staff. This is especially true of the round tables or colloquies that accompany the holding of committee meetings in these countries.
Sub-head 3106 Provision for the cost-of-living allowance and other adjustments to remuneration
The Assembly proposes that the 1993 appropriations for Sub-heads 3103, 3104 and 3106 be kept at the same level in real terms as in 1992.
HEAD 3.2 Allocation to the Assembly's political groups
Increase requested .............................. 500 000 F
The Assembly's political groups, which were not granted any increase in 1992, must be given the means to join in the whole Assembly's effort to foster the democratic process in Central and Eastern Europe. For this reason, direct co-operation between the political forces represented in each group and their counterparts in the new democracies is of great value and likely to give a substantial boost to the Assembly's programme (see Vote IX). On these grounds, an increase of 500 000 F in real terms should be requested.
BUDGETARY PACKAGE
Since 1975, the appropriations under the following sub-heads have been voted in a lump sum. The various amounts in this package may subsequently be altered under Article 31 of the Financial Regulations.
The budgetary package covers the following items:
Sub-head 3301 Publishing and printing
Sub-head 3302 Representational, travelling and subsistence expenses of the President of the Assembly
Sub-head 3303 Expenditure pertaining to the Private Office of the President of the Assembly
The Assembly proposes that the 1993 appropriations for Sub-heads 3301, 3302 and 3303 be kept at the same level in real terms as in 1992.
Sub-head 3304 Representational expenditure, other official expenditure and travelling expenses of members of the Assembly
Increase requested .............................. 200 000 F
An increase in real terms of 200 000 F is the minimum needed to cover the continual rise in the costs of:
- rapporteurs' official journeys linked to the preparation of reports calling for visits to the various countries of Central and Eastern Europe;
- Assembly members' participation in intergovernmental and interparliamentary legislative assistance (see Vote IX below).
Sub-head 3305 Official journeys
The Assembly merely requests that the sum be adjusted for inflation in 1993.
Sub-head 3306 Expenses for inviting Parliamentary delegations of non-member states
Increase requested ................................2 000 000 F
At its meeting on 16 February 1992, the Bureau of the Assembly adopted the arrangements for refunding the travel and subsistence expenses of delegations of special guests and other guests (parliamentarians and parliamentary officials) from Central and East European countries. The purpose of this politically important decision is to secure these delegations' participation in the Assembly's deliberations. At this stage, it is possible to give only a rough estimate of the budgetary impact of the Bureau's decision and the requisite increase of appropriations in real terms is put at 2 000 000 F.
Sub-head 3307 Consultation of experts
Sub-head 3308 Organisation of ad hoc conferences
Sub-head 3309 Strasbourg Conference
Sub-head 3310 Other expenditure not specifically provided for in this vote
The Assembly proposes that the 1993 appropriations for Sub-heads 3307, 3308, 3309 and 3310 be kept at the same level in real terms as in 1992.
Sub-head 3311 Modernisation of the Assembly's equipment (computerisation and office automation)
Token entry
As explained in the foreword to this opinion, one of the Assembly's priorities is still the modernisation of its equipment. It is therefore prepared to make a lump-sum contribution to this from its budgetary package, appropriations permitting.
Sub-head 3312 Europe Prizes
The Assembly requests that this sum be adjusted for inflation in 1993.
VOTE IX CO-OPERATION WITH THE COUNTRIES OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE
HEAD 9.2 Parliamentary activities
As pointed out in the foreword to this opinion, the Assembly requests that the appropriations under Vote IX be included in the budgetary package for reasons of efficiency, administrative flexibility and coherence. The Assembly needs to have the requisite freedom to allocate all the appropriations in the budgetary package proper and in Head 9.2 of Vote IX, as needs arise during the year. Moreover, in practice it is hard to distinguish between certain "statutory" activities directed towards the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and other activities relating more specifically to the training of the parliamentarians or parliamentary staff of these countries.
Sub-head 9201 Programme of interparliamentary co-operation
Increase requested ........................... 1 500 000 F
At present the programme of interparliamentary co-operation covered by Sub-head 9201 of the ordinary budget comprises the following activities:
a. colloquies
b. the training of young parliamentarians
c. the training of parliamentary administrative staff.
In view of the priority that the Assembly attaches to the ongoing dialogue and co-operation with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, it is essential that it shoulder its share of the responsibility for legislative assistance. This activity is designed to supplement the bilateral and multilateral help given by the intergovernmental sector of the Council of Europe. The parliamentary organs of the countries in question are calling more and more on the experience of their colleagues in the Parliamentary Assembly, when it comes to framing and adopting laws or other legislative measures in spheres where the need to transform the societies in question is most urgent. Nor must it be forgotten that in these new democracies, the respective roles of the government and parliament as legislators are in the process of being forged and moulded in accordance with the specific characteristics and requirements of each country. The Assembly therefore wishes to set up bilateral co-operation and "tailor-made" operations to be implemented jointly with the parliamentary authorities of each beneficiary country. Furthermore, at the Conference of Presidents of European Parliamentary Assemblies, several Speakers, especially from Central and Eastern European countries, stressed that it was necessary for parliaments throughout Europe to step up co-operation and underlined that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe ought to act as a catalyst in this context. Of course, for the sake of efficiency, this programme obviously had to be dovetailed with those being implemented at intergovernmental level. On the basis of some preliminary contacts and a provisional inventory of needs, the Assembly is requesting an increase of 1 500 000 F in real terms in the appropriations under this sub-head.
Comments
In addition to the requests in Head 3.1 (Staff), the Assembly is requesting the following increases in real terms:
Sub-head 3201 Allocation to the Assembly's political
groups ............................ 500 000 FF
Sub-head 3304 Representational expenditure, other
official expenditure and travelling
expenses of members of the Assembly 200 000 FF
Sub-head 3306 Expenses for inviting parliamentary
delegations of non-member states . 2 000 000 FF
The Assembly is also requesting that in 1993 the other sub-heads in the package be increased to take account of inflation.
*
* *
In Vote IX of the ordinary budget, Head 9.2 ("Parliamentary activities"), the Assembly requests the following increases in real terms:
Sub-head 9201 Programe of interparliamentary
co-operation ................... 1 500 000 FF
NB: The Assembly requests that the budgetary-package approach be extended to the appropriations in Vote IX.
II. EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
by Mr Oehler
Foreword
1. At present there is discussion in a number of Assembly committees about the Council of Europe's geographical expansion. The Committee on the Budget has decided that early next year it will report on the medium-term and long-term budget outlook. One thing is worth emphasising at the outset: the budget implications of the disintegration of the USSR and Yugoslavia into a large number of new states as a direct result of the upheavals in Europe since 1989 were not fully allowed for when the 1992 budget was adopted. In 1992 the Council's general budget increased by 9,56% in real terms as against 11,45% in 1991. The growth in real terms of Vote III (Expenditure of the Assembly) was only 5,35% and thus very much lower than the growth in real terms of the ordinary budget as a whole. The requests for the Assembly's 1993 appropriations should bear that in mind.
2. What sort of response is needed to the likelihood of the Council of Europe's geographical expansion in the short and medium term? From the standpoint of the Assembly's functioning, the concern is to strengthen and reorganise the Clerk's Office so that it can cope with growing numbers of members and special guests and with the increase in its workload to meet the needs of all the parliamentarians engaged in the huge co-operation exercise which the Assembly is having to mount.
3. As regards staffing of the Clerk's Office, it has to be said that the Committee of Ministers has never properly faced up to the manpower implications of the growth of activities resulting from the admission of new member states (as in the case of Portugal and Spain) or from new forms of interparliamentary co-operation (such as the Strasbourg Conference). It is only since 1989 that the Committee of Ministers has begun responding to the Assembly's requests in this area. Now, on top of the catching up which remains to be done, there comes the requirement to do something about the Assembly's increased size and new responsibilities. In 1988, when the Council of Europe had 21 members, there were 170 Representatives in the Assembly (plus the same number of Substitutes). There were two observer states and no special guests. Now the Assembly has 210 regular members and an equal number of Substitutes, making 420 members in all, plus the special guest and observer delegations. The total number of parliamentarians in the special guest delegations (Albania, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Russia, Slovenia and Croatia) is 49.
4. To meet the needs, therefore, the Assembly's Committee on the Budget has to make requests which are both realistic and innovative.
a. The growth of co-operation with Central and Eastern Europe
5. My opinion endeavours to put the case for a stepping up of co-operation arrangements, to which a new dimension will be added as a result. Present activities (conferences; committee meetings in Central and Eastern Europe; training for staff of Central and East European assemblies; training for young parliamentarians; official visits by members of the Assembly; the Strasbourg Conference and the International Institute for Democracy) will be supplemented by a programme of legislative assistance involving bilateral co-operation "tailored" to the particular beneficiary country and implemented in co-operation with its parliamentary authorities. The opinion takes the view that to start up this important activity, a keen desire for which was expressed by a number of speakers - from Central and Eastern Europe especially - at last February's Conference of Presidents of European Parliamentary Assemblies, 1 500 000 FF might suffice.
6. I put under this same heading the request for an additional appropriation of 700 000 FF for remuneration of temporary conference staff. The concern here is first to keep up with the growing expenditure on temporary conference staff, generated by a whole series of events in countries which have just joined the Council of Europe, and second to enable the Assembly to publish more and better documents by making it possible to recruit the necessary temporary staff.
7. The largest appropriations are for invitations to parliamentary delegations of non-member states (2 000 000 FF). As a result of the Bureau's decision concerning the precise arrangements for meeting the expenses of special guest delegations and other guests (parliamentarians and parliamentary officials) from Central and Eastern Europe, this increase is inevitable.
8. The proposal for a 500 000 FF increase in the allocations to the Assembly's political groups is likewise for the purpose of enabling political groups to help bring about a climate of fruitful Europe-wide dialogue by means of contact with their counterparts in Central and Eastern Europe.
9. I would also draw attention to the Assembly's request that the budgetary-package approach be extended to the appropriations in Vote IX. The reader is referred here to the opinion for a detailed explanation of the request, whose purpose is to simplify the management of Assembly appropriations.
10. One final matter concerns the implementation of Recommendation 1155 (1991), on the Assembly's budgetary powers. Paragraph 5 in particular reads: "As far as its own budget is concerned, the Assembly should enjoy a certain amount of independence in keeping with its dignity as an organ made up of members of national parliaments as well as with its concern to make its action more efficient." At present the Assembly's publications, mail and telephone bill is met by quotas assigned to it within the general budget which are becoming increasingly inadequate in relation to the Assembly's volume of work. Next year the Committee on the Budget will have to take a serious look at the problem.
b. Improving the staffing and organisation of the Clerk's Office
11. In Opinion No. 158 (1991) the Assembly laid down the principle that Assembly committees with between 40 and 50 members should have the full-time services of at least two A-grade staff (one A4 and one A2/A3). Despite action by the Committee of Ministers the Secretariats of the two main committees still only have one and a half members of staff each. In addition the present opinion needs to establish the principle that committees with from 30 to 40 members should be serviced by at least one and a half members of staff.
12. The requests are extremely modest and I regard them as the absolute minimum. By this I mean the creation of two A2/A3 posts (committee secretaries) and one A4 post (executive assistant to the Clerk). Plainly the filling of the A2/A3 posts also needs to meet the requirement in the Clerk's Office for staff from new member states.
13. Creating three B3 posts is also to enable committees to operate properly. At present there are two important committees (the Social, Health and Family Affairs Committee and the Committee on Economic Affairs and Development) which do not even have a full-time assistant. This is a deficiency which needs to be made good as soon as possible.
14. Reorganisation of the Clerk's Office ought not to be postponed. Opinion No. 158 (1991) clearly explained the case for setting up a central division such as most of the Council of Europe's operational directorates already have. Upgrading an A4 post to A5 and creating a B3 post are essential if such a division is to function properly and help rationalise and co-ordinate the Assembly's work.
15. The setting up of a new division encompassing the present Environment, Regional Planning and Local Authorities Section and the Committee on Agriculture as well as work relating to the Europe Prize and presentation of Council of Europe Flags of Honour is another measure that would rationalise the organisation of the Clerk's Office. Upgrading one A4 post to A5 would be sufficient for the purpose.
16. In addition, there are serious information problems which mean that parliamentarians see frustratingly little coverage in the European media of the Parliamentary Assembly's work. These problems argue the need for a post of press officer (to be graded A4).
17. Lastly, I would point out a further requirement which is of some urgency but which for reasons of realism could be dealt with in a year or two. Committee assistants are graded B3. Some of them already perform duties which far exceed those normally attaching to a B3 post and also have wider responsibilities. This should be recognised and the job descriptions amended accordingly, a number of B3 posts being upgraded to B4. The improvement this would make to the career progress, and therefore motivation, of assistants in the Clerk's Office is not to be dismissed.
Reporting committee: Committee on the Budget and the Intergovernmental Work Programme.
Budgetary implications for the Assembly: The Assembly requests from the Committee of Ministers an increase of its appropriations in real terms of 3 270 000 F for staff expenses; 500 000 F for allocation to political groups; 2 200 000 F for equipment and other operational expenditure (budgetary package); 1 500 000 F under Vote IX (contacts and co-operation with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe) for the implementation of the programme of interparliamentary co-operation with these countries.
Reference: Standing mandate.
Draft opinion: Unanimously adopted by the committee on 4 June 1992.
Members of the committee: MM Speed (Chairman), Cox (Vice-Chairman) (Alternate: Parry), Attard Montalto, Bender, Biefnot, Mrs Err,
Mrs Gjørv, Ms Guirado, Mr Gunnarsson, Mrs Hacklin, Mrs Hjelm-Wallén, MM Jürgens, Maass, Manzolini, Martins, Nolan, Oehler, Mrs Özver (Alternate: Mr Güner), MM Parisi, Schiesser, Steiner (Alternate: Antretter), Strimitzer, Taliadouros (Alternate: Stamatis), Ternak, Thoft, Thyraud.
NB: The names of members who took part in the vote are underlined.
Secretary to the committee: Mr Palmieri.
1 1 One of which has been provisionally frozen by a Committee of Ministers decision (410th meeting - September 1987) to enable an appointment at A5 level and an appointment at A4 level on an A2/A3 post.
2 2 In 1988, when the Council of Europe had 21 members, there were 170 Representatives in the Assembly (plus an equal number of Substitutes). There were two observer states and no special guests.
The Assembly now has 210 regular members and as many Substitutes, that is 420 members in total. Many Substitutes regularly attend plenary meetings and committee meetings, even when the regular member is present. The delegations of "special guests" (who have no substitutes) and observer delegations must be added to this. The delegations of special guests (Albania, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Russia, Slovenia and Croatia) consist of some 49 parliamentarians.