Europese Rekenkamers komen op 5-6 december bijeen in Stockholm (en)

Luxembourg, 5 December 2005

Heads of the Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) of the European Union meet in Stockholm on 5-6 December 2005

The annual meeting of the Contact Committee of the Heads of the SAIs of the EU will this year be hosted by the SAI of Sweden, chaired by Auditor General Eva Lindström. The Heads of the SAIs of the Candidate Countries Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania and Turkey, as well as representatives from IDI, the EUROSAI Training Committee, and SIGMA, will also attend as active observers. Mr Weber, President of the ECA, will lead the ECA delegation, which will include Mr. Bernicot, Mr. Caldeira and Mr. Tobisson, Members of the ECA.

These regular meetings are of particular importance for the ECA, as the EC Treaties require that the ECA and the SAIs of the EU cooperate in a spirit of trust while maintaining their respective independence. Furthermore, intensified cooperation in the area of audit of public funds at the European level is essential for enhancing further improvement in the management of the European Union funds at all levels.

The European Court of Auditors' opinion 2/2004 on the single audit has contributed to the political debate on improving management and control of EU funds. The Commission has taken the positive step of issuing a Roadmap to an integrated internal control framework, providing a basis for extending reform to all types of budgetary management, in particular to shared management in the Member States.

Indeed, the role of the Member States' SAIs in improving the control framework will be discussed during the Contact Committee meeting: MEP Terry Wynn, rapporteur for the 2003 discharge, will act as a guest speaker during the seminar "Improving accountability for community funds: the role of the EU's independent SAIs". The other main topic concerns the progress made since last year's decision to look at ways of enhancing and facilitating the work of the Contact Committee. A number of governance issues will be considered here, drawing from the preparatory work carried out at the request of the 2004 Contact Committee. In addition, participants will examine the results from working groups in the areas of management of EU structural funds, public procurement, value added tax, EU agricultural funds, national SAI reports on EU financial management, and audit quality. Finally, work in the context of enlargement will also be presented.

For further information, please contact:
The European Court of Auditors (External Relations Department)
tel. +352 4398 45410, fax +352 4398 46430, or e-mail press@eca.eu.int
www.eca.eu.int