THE OFFICI@L – NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2024 – ISSUE 98

The OFFICI@L – Issue 98 – November/December 2024, our newsletter dedicated to European Union officials, has just been published. It is available in both French and English.

Editorial

Dear Readers,

This is already our last issue of the year!

In this edition, you will find an analysis of the special report by the Court of Auditors on EU public service, as well as a case law commentary on a judgment of the General Court of the EU concerning the essential role of the Disciplinary Board in disciplinary procedures.

In our “Belgian Law” section, we will discuss the contract for the sale of a used vehicle from one private individual to another.

This newsletter also belongs to you, and we welcome any suggestions you may have for our upcoming issues. Please feel free to contact us by email at: theofficial@daldewolf.com.

We look forward to seeing you next year, with our sights set on the 100th issue of THE OFFICI@L.

In the meantime, we wish you a wonderful holiday season and a very happy 2025.

The DALDEWOLF team

DALDEWOLF
– European Union Law and Human Rights
THIERRY BONTINCK – ANAÏS GUILLERME – MARIANNE BRÉSART – LAURA JAKOBS – LUCIE MARCHAL – LOUISE BOUCHET – SABRINA NAPOLITANO – FEDERICO PATUELLI
– Belgian Law
DOMINIQUE BOGAERT

in partnership with PERSPECTIVES law firm:
– Family Law
CANDICE FASTREZ

Focus – Special report of the European Court of Auditors on EU public service

On 7 November 2024, the European Court of Auditors adopted a special report dedicated to the European public service, particularly focusing on the employment framework.

The report finds that EU institutions increasingly rely on temporary contracts (contract and temporary agents), which is considered a risk to the continuity of operations. They face difficulties in attracting certain profiles and nationalities and do not fully utilize the opportunities available to improve performance and career prospects. Consequently, the Court of Auditors urges all EU institutions to “redouble their efforts to recruit the increasingly diverse skills they need”.

Regarding the number and cost of personnel, the report observes that the number of tasks performed by EU institutions has continuously increased over the years, yet the number of jobs has not increased accordingly. In this regard, the Court of Auditors notes that the European public administration, which includes the salary costs of approximately 51,000 EU agents and officials, represents only 5% of the total EU expenditure. Additionally, the report observes that EU public service salaries remain equivalent to those offered by other international organizations.

The report identifies difficulties in attracting specific profiles and nationalities, particularly in technical and scientific fields. It is noted that EU institutions do not fully exploit the opportunities offered by the Staff Regulations to improve workforce management. To address this, it recommends simplifying recruitment processes to make them more attractive and reduce their complexity and duration.

Furthermore, the Court suggests conducting targeted promotional campaigns to attract candidates from different nationalities and with varied skills, which would enhance the diversity and quality of recruitments (pages 23-25).

In the meantime, the Court of Auditors advises considering the internal reassignment of personnel according to the specific needs of the institutions. Additionally, the Court recommends investing in continuous training to develop the skills of officials and agents and adapt them to new requirements. Finally, it recommends implementing career development programs that offer attractive advancement prospects (pages 76-78). Moreover, it is essential to value the skills and contributions of officials and agents through promotions and professional development opportunities, which would help retain talent and maintain a high level of motivation among staff (pages 79-81).

Regarding the increased use of temporary agents (pages 34-49), particularly in strategic services, the Court of Auditors recommends implementing policies to integrate temporary agents into overall personnel management. In practice, this could mean offering longer contracts or clearer career opportunities for temporary agents to reduce turnover and ensure better continuity of services. It is also recommended to strengthen training and professional development programs for these agents to maximize their contribution and integration within existing teams (pages 41-43).

The current performance management is deemed too restrictive by the Court of Auditors. To improve this situation, it proposes introducing more flexibility in performance evaluation criteria and processes (pages 70-72). This would better motivate staff by appropriately recognizing and rewarding individual contributions. The Court also recommends setting clear and measurable objectives for each agent, thus facilitating performance evaluation and adjustment of actions accordingly (pages 73-75).

Finally, the Court of Auditors finds that institutions rarely apply procedures to address cases of professional incompetence (pages 72-84). In this regard, the General Secretariat of the Council responded by noting that it has a prevention plan aimed at addressing inadequate performance before resorting to professional incompetence procedures. The Council will review its guidelines concerning this prevention plan.

Case law – The essential role of the Disciplinary Board in EU procedures

On 2 October 2024, the General Court of the EU delivered its judgment in Case T-669/22 (IP / Commission), annulling the decision to terminate a contract agent’s employment without notice. The General Court ruled that this sanction, imposed without prior consultation of the Disciplinary Board, violated the fundamental procedural requirements of Annex IX of the Staff Regulations.

Case background

In August 2019, the Commission imposed a disciplinary sanction on the agent, terminating his employment contract without notice for attempted fraud related to fictitious medical expense claims. This severe sanction was motivated by similar acts dating back to 2010. In October 2021, the General Court annulled this initial decision, finding that the Commission could not invoke recidivism based on a previous disciplinary sanction that had been expunged from the individual’s file at his request.

Following this annulment, the Commission resumed the procedure and adopted a similar disciplinary decision without consulting the Disciplinary Board again. The General Court found that this omission constituted a violation of the fundamental procedural rules set out in Article 12 of Annex IX of the Staff Regulations, leading to the annulment of the new decision.

Identified violations

The General Court emphasized that consulting the Disciplinary Board is a substantive formality, especially when a severe sanction, such as termination, is contemplated. Therefore, by failing to consult the Disciplinary Board again after the annulment of the 2019 decision, the Commission deprived the agent of these essential guarantees.

This consultation ensures:

  1. A thorough adversarial debate: The Disciplinary Board examines the facts, may conduct additional investigations, and provides a reasoned opinion, possibly including dissenting views.
  2. Respect for the rights of defense: The concerned agent must be able to review his disciplinary file and benefit from a procedure conducted with full knowledge of the alleged facts and circumstances.

Thus, by reaffirming that the violation of a substantive formality justifies the annulment of the disciplinary decision, regardless of its impact on the outcome of the procedure, the General Court underscores the importance of the Disciplinary Board as an advisory body, safeguarding the rights of defense in disciplinary procedures within the European Union. The Administration must therefore strictly adhere to these procedural guarantees, or risk having its decisions annulled by the judiciary.

Belgian law – Sale of a used vehicle from private individual to private individual: what you need to know

If you wish to sell your vehicle to other private individuals safely in Belgium, the procedure to follow is subject to legal obligations and depends on the condition of the vehicle. A distinction is made between vehicles that can still be driven on public roads and vehicles that are no longer roadworthy. The information below is limited to vehicles that can still be driven on public roads.

The seller of a used vehicle, known as a “private sale,” must meet certain legal obligations, namely, (1) the vehicle must undergo a technical inspection, except in certain cases, and (2) the seller must provide the buyer with certain documents.

Technical inspection

The vehicle must undergo a technical inspection at an authorized inspection center. Upon completion of the inspection, a registration application form with a special technical inspection sticker will be issued. This sticker is valid for two months, meaning the buyer must submit the vehicle registration application within this two-month period.

A technical inspection is not required in the following situations:

  • the buyer of the vehicle is the spouse, legal cohabitant, son, or daughter of the seller, and it involves the transfer of a European license plate;
  • the sale includes the transfer of the license plate and the registration certificate;
  • the buyer is a garage owner, or the vehicle is intended for export.

In the latter case, the buyer will handle the technical inspection, and this must be noted on the invoice.

Required documents

The seller must provide the buyer with the following documents:

  • the original sales invoice;
  • the registration certificate;
  • the registration application issued by the technical inspection;
  • the technical inspection visit certificate;
  • the certificate of conformity;
  • a certificate for the LPG installation, if the vehicle is equipped with one;
  • the used vehicle report prepared by the technical inspection;
  • the CAR-PASS, an official document indicating the vehicle’s mileage issued by the technical inspection;
  • the maintenance logbook.

Finally, it should be noted that VAT is not applicable to the sale of a vehicle from one private individual to another.