Note on the principles of Additionality and Added Value and their application by the Welsh Assembly Government

This note was prepared in response to a request by the House of Lords Sub-Committee G for supplementary evidence following the attendance of Welsh Assembly Government officials at the European Social Fund Inquiry on 21 January 2010.

Additionality:

  1. The principle of additionality means that EU Structural Funds may not replace the national or equivalent expenditure by a MemberState. The principle of additionality is verified at national level by the Commission, in cooperation with Member States (MS), for the regions covered by the Convergence objective.
  1. At the ex-ante stage, the Commission and the MemberStates decide the level of eligible public or equivalent spending to be maintained over the programming period. The objective is to set realistic but sufficiently ambitious targets for structural public expenditure in order to ensure the additional trait of the Structural Funds intervention. As a general rule, the average annual level of expenditure in real terms shall be at least equal to the level attained in the previous programming period. This targeted reference level shall be determined in accordance with the general macroeconomic conditions in which the financing is carried out.
  1. For each MemberState concerned the Commission will verify the compliance with the principle of additionality at the mid-term of the programming period, in 2011, and at the end of this period, in 2016. The mid-term review and assessment is also an opportunity for the Member State, in agreement with the Commission, to revise the level of expenditure targeted for the rest of the programming period if the economic situation of the Member State has significantly changed, resulting in a different development of public revenues. Such a modification will be conditional on the MemberState fulfilment of its obligations in terms of meeting the deadlines for the submission of relevant information (progress against targets to date, methodological corrections etc.).
  1. If it cannot be verified that the principle of additionality has been respected then the Commission can proceed to a financial correction at MemberState level.
  1. The Commission are obliged to publish the results by MemberState of the verification of the additionality, including the methodology and sources of information, after the conclusion of each of the three stages of verification. These reports contain only information which is not confidential.

Added value

  1. The concept of added value is not financial in nature; it reflects the non-financial benefits accruing from Cohesion Policy as a global concept
  1. As the Managing Authority for the ESF programmes in Wales the Welsh Assembly Government is responsible for ensuring that the programmes can demonstrate added value from Structural Fund investment.
  1. In the Welsh Operational Programmes, added value is ensured at the strategic level through:-
  • Building on investments supported under previous programmes;
  • Complementing national policies and ensuring alignment;
  • Longer-term action aimed at addressing intractable issues and effecting transformational change;
  • New types of interventions;
  • Introducing new services or extending the provision of existing services;
  • Improving the quality of services or infrastructures;
  • Bringing forward investment that might be planned for the future;
  • Implementation of the cross-cutting themes;
  • Partnership working and ensuring integrated approaches;
  • Encouragement of innovation and transnational working; and
  • Sharing best practice
  1. The distinctPriority Axes in the Welsh Operational Programmes each define what will beclassed as added value in that specific policy context.
  1. In the ESF programmes, added value is generally determined either through a numerical boost or through greater depth and quality of interventions.For the employment priorities it is outlined as extending the range of provision available throughUK Government employment programmessuchas the Flexible New Deal and the Pathways to Work. For the Skills priorities added value concerns helping to secure greater participation in training, enabling abroader range of participants to access provision and supporting accelerated improvements in skills development and training provision.