Increasing the rate to up to 75% of the eligible expenditure will reduce appropriations for other actions.

Receipts have to show that the traveler paid at least $7 in taxes on eligible expenditures.

Thirdly, I am particularly pleased that the in-kind contributions are now recognised as eligible expenditure.

The enabling legislation lists 10 eligible expenditures of funds:

The maximum contribution by the Funds in outermost regions - and this is new - has been set at 85% of overall eligible expenditure.

This means that even if the declaration contains some ineligible expenditure, the eligible expenditure would be more than enough to trigger the whole advance.

Where necessary, the Commission may request clarification from the Member States on the details of their forecasts for eligible expenditure for the period 2000-2006.

We should also endeavour to find some way of ensuring that VAT falls under the category of eligible expenditure.

In addition to additional funding for the outermost regions, a maximum cofinancing rate of 85% of eligible expenditure has been provided for.

The board meets on regular basis and decides on the use of the retained revenue for the eligible expenditure areas as broadly described in the operational manual.

I regret, however, that the proposal to increase cofinancing rates in the area of additional data collection, management and use to 60% of eligible expenditure has not been adopted.

I am thinking in particular of the n+3 rule for the Cohesion Fund and of the rule classing VAT as eligible expenditure for non-taxpayers.

In practice, reduced national eligible expenditure in some regions would have to be balanced with an increase in other regions in order for additionality to be respected overall.

The net benefit after tax of the relief ranges from 7.7 per cent to 24.75 per cent of eligible expenditure depending on whether the claimant is a large or small company.

It would be desirable to increase the potential level of cofinancing, particularly as regards measures for monitoring fisheries activities, and the collection, management and use of data, to 60% of eligible expenditure.

In the United Kingdom, the Finance Act is currently being debated. The Act provides that only eligible expenditure incurred in the UK will qualify for tax breaks.

Faced with the present fragmentation of funds, it also means that we need to understand better how to streamline the rules and procedures for all the funds with respect to eligible expenditure, management, monitoring, reporting and financial management obligations.

The review of the regulation in question does not affect eligible expenditure in housing and strengthens the activity of important sectors of the economy such as the construction industry and the sectors which build energy systems and renewable energy systems.

To date the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) has only considered expenditure incurred by Member States which joined the European Union after May 2004 as eligible expenditure for housing, especially for energy efficiency and renewable energy in housing.

Firstly, although additionality is implemented at the level of the overall eligible spending by the Member States rather than at regional level, it must be borne in mind that the overall additionality required to be demonstrated is, by definition, the sum of the eligible expenditures at the lower level.

Since March the Commission has been working with a high-level group of personal representatives of the Ministers of Finance to improve budget execution, to tighten up financial management and to clarify the definition of eligible expenditure in order to reinforce the coordination of financial control and to exchange best practice on evaluation and the fight against fraud.