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Auditing EU funds – National SAI experiences

Auditing EU funds – National SAI experiences. Jan van den Bos – Netherlands Court of Audit. Contents. Background and present situation The Dutch experience General overview Conclusion. Background and Present Situation. Developments in EU financial management since 2000.

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Auditing EU funds – National SAI experiences

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  1. Auditing EU funds – National SAI experiences Jan van den Bos – Netherlands Court of Audit VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  2. Contents • Background and present situation • The Dutch experience • General overview • Conclusion VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  3. Background and Present Situation VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  4. Developments in EU financial management since 2000 • Unchanged negative opinion of ECA on EU financial management • Reform of the Commission • Single Audit opinion of ECA • Critical Discharge resolutions of EP • Commission Roadmap • Action Plan VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  5. General framework (1) European Court of Auditors (ECA) • external auditor of the EU accounts • audits the European Commission • also audits in the Member States National SAIs (25) • audit how their Member States carry out their responsibilities • also how they implement their EU obligations (including spend and collect EU funds) VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  6. General Framework (2) Co-operation among EU SAIs • National SAIs assist the ECA with their audit missions in the Member States • Discuss matters of common interest in the Contact Committee of the Heads of EU SAIs / at the meetings of Liaison Officers • Carrying out common activities in the CC Working Groups VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  7. National SAIs and EU audit work • National SAIs can differ greatly in the activities they undertake • Much depends on:- the constitutional position of the SAI- the mandate of the SAI- size of the institution • Reflected in work carried out (financial, compliance, performance audits and certification work) • Capability/willingness to carry out overall national SAI reports VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  8. EU audits published in 2005 VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  9. Some general remarks • Almost all national SAIs publish results of EU audits annually • All sectors of EU policy are covered in the audit work of national SAIs • Some SAIs focus more on particular sectors than others:- Austria on agriculture- Portugal and Greece on structural measures (among others the Cohesion Fund)-Cyprus on internal policy VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  10. Type of EU audits published on • Financial audits (26) - mostly in new Member States (especially Cyprus, Lithuania, Slovak Republic and Hungary - due to certification/winding-up audit activities) • Compliance audits (19) - usually focus on the set up/functioning of management and control systems - carried out by 12 national SAIs • Performance audits (22) - focus on the execution/results of EU policy (especially Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic and Sweden) • Hybrid audits (8) - not easily categorized - often more descriptive overall national SAI reports (6 cases) VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  11. The Dutch experience VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  12. 1970s/1980s • Financial/compliance auditing of EC agricultural spending in the Netherlands • Part of our annual regularity audit (for those funds included in the national accounts) VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  13. 1990s • EU became and integral part of the audit strategy of the NCA • NCA started carrying out specific performance audits in the EU field (with increasing focus on the structural funds) VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  14. 1995 - The Watershed • Increased interest in Dutch Parliament for EU affairs • Request by Public Accounts Committee to make an inventory of management and control systems of EU funds • Increased auditing of individual EU funds (compliance/performance type) • Inventory updated three years later VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  15. Since 1999 • The NCA has further developed its EU strategy • It aims at assisting in- Getting the Netherlands’ household up to standards, with respect to collecting and spending EU-money- Upgrading EU financial management in EU as a whole • Key project to achieve both strategic goals: the EU Trend Report VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  16. EU Trend Report (1) • Three Parts: • EU Institutions • Member State comparisons • The Netherlands • Part 1 and 2: based only on publicly available information; Part 3: includes own audit results as well. • Use of Indicators: to assess regularity and system quality VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  17. EU Trend Report (2) Present state of affairs • Development of indicators • Information coming from DG Budget on EU expenditure in individual Member States • More information from EU SAIs is becoming available/collected VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  18. Member State assurance statement (1) • Dutch government has decided to show that it is possible to give the EC better accountability reporting on the management of EU funds (will be sent to both Dutch Parliament and the EC) • Regularity up to the level of the final beneficiaries will be included • If the EC/ECA are satisfied with the assurance given by the MS the audit intensity by them is expected to drop VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  19. Member State assurance statement (2) • NCA has been asked to give an opinion on the statement for Dutch Parliament • Could fit into annual regularity audit that the NCA does on the State accounts VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  20. General Overview VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  21. EU activities of national SAIs (1) • More and more SAIs are publishing overall national SAI reports:- 4 (Denmark, Italy, Netherlands and UK) in 2004 and - 8/9 (the above, Belgium, Estonia, Hungary,Slovenia and possibly Austria) in 2007 VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  22. EU activities of national SAIs (2) • 7 other SAIs have separate EU sections in their annual (audit) reports (Finland, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Portugal and the Slovak Republic) • 3 SAIs are working together with their national authorities to develop MS declarations (Denmark, Netherlands and UK) VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  23. Conclusion VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

  24. Development • The role of national SAIs in the audit of EU funds has become broadly accepted- by the Member States- by the EU institutions • In the future a more structural role of the national SAI in assisting its Member State to give the EU and its citizens better assurance seems probable VI Eurosai Training Event - Prague

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