DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 7 September 2005

on the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund according to point 3 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 7 November 2002 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on the financing of the European Union Solidarity Fund supplementing the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 on budgetary discipline and improvement of the budgetary procedure

(2005/706/EC)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 7 November 2002 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on the financing of the European Union Solidarity Fund supplementing the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 on budgetary discipline and improvement of the budgetary procedure(1), and in particular point 3 thereof,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2012/2002 of 11 November 2002 establishing the European Union Solidarity Fund(2),

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas:

(1) The European Union has created a Solidarity Fund (the Fund) to show solidarity with the population of regions struck by disasters.

(2) Slovakia submitted an application to mobilise the Fund on 24 January 2005, following a disaster caused by a storm.

(3) The Interinstitutional Agreement of 7 November 2002 allows mobilisation of the Fund within an annual ceiling of EUR 1 billion.

(4) The storm disaster in Slovakia in November 2004 fulfils the criteria for mobilising the European Union Solidarity Fund,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

The European Union Solidarity Fund shall be mobilised to provide the sum of EUR 5 667 578 in commitment appropriations from the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2005.

Article 2

This Decision shall be published in the

Official Journal of the European Union

Done at Strasbourg, 7 September 2005.

For the European Parliament

The President

BORRELL FONTELLES

For the Council

The President

ALEXANDER

(1)

OJ C 283, 20.11.2002, p. 1

(2)

OJ L 311, 14.11.2002, p. 3