9. Acknowledges that the Agency has implemented nine recommendations out of 27 recommended by the Internal Audit Service (IAS) since 2006; notes that, of the 17 which are still not implemented, five are considered to be ‘very important’ and affect the management of grants (as regards establishing financial circuits, promoting on-the-spot controls/verifications of grants, and monitoring and following up grant implementation) and the implementation of the internal control standards (as regards determining sensitive functions and improving the accounting system);

39. Notes that the Commission has published a series of detailed, in-depth reports critically assessing the progress in Bulgaria and Romania of judicial reform and the fight against corruption under the Co-operation and Verification mechanisms and a separate report on the management of Community funds in Bulgaria, which highlight the need for sustained political commitment and implementation on the ground if the benchmarks set at the time of accession are to be met in full; notes also that in the case of Bulgaria the Commission has definitively suspended part of the EU funds under the Phare programme because of irregularities discovered through its control and auditing system; therefo ...[+++]re calls upon these Member States to take urgent action to implement the specific follow up measures proposed in these reports; finally, supports the efforts so far made by these Member States and calls on them to take all the necessary measures to that end;

In a second stage, however, it should gradually replace national surveillance systems at land and maritime borders, providing a cost-efficient solution, including e. g. a combination of radar and satellite surveillance at European level, taking into account on-going developments realised in the framework of GMES (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security. EUROSUR will benefit from experience at national and European level with similar surveillance systems; possible synergies with existing European surveillance systems for other ...[+++]purposes should also be explored. In the maritime domain, the vessel monitoring system SafeSeaNet is currently under development together with the Member States. The system aims at providing information on ships' movements and their cargoes. EUROSUR might add to the effectiveness of SafeSeaNet, if the systems recognise each other and cooperate. Finally, the possibility for participation of neighbouring third countries in EUROSUR should be considered.

Though the key principles of cohesion policy - programming, partnership, co-financing and evaluation - should be maintained, the efficiency of the policy in an enlarged Union could be enhanced by introducing a number of reforms designed, firstly, to encourage a more strategic approach to programming, secondly, to introduce further decentralisation of responsibilities to partnerships on the ground in the Member States, regions and local authorities, thirdly, to reinforce the performance and quality of programmes co-financed through a reinforced, more transparent partnership and clear and more rigorous monitoring mechanisms, and fourthly, to simplify the management system by introd ...[+++]ucing more transparency, differentiation and proportionality while ensuring sound financial management.

As regards the financial implementation of the 1994-99 programming period, information from the Italian Government's financial monitoring system puts the percentage payments on the ground at 30 September 2001 at 87.7% for Objective 1, 76% for Objective 2 (1997-99), 77.6% for Objective 5(b) and 54.1% for the Community Initiatives.

When combined with flight data from the airport surveillance radar, the noise monitoring system allows compliance with prescribed standard flight procedures and tracks to be checked.