Section 3: Suspension and termination of the participation in Union programmes

Article UNPRO.3.1: Suspension of the participation of the United Kingdom in a Union programme by the Union

1. The Union may unilaterally suspend the application of Protocol I, in relation to one or more Union programmes, activities, or exceptionally parts thereof in accordance with this Article, if the United Kingdom does not pay its financial contribution in accordance with Section 2 [Rules for financing the participation in Union programmes] of this Chapter or if United Kingdom introduces significant changes to one of the following conditions that existed when the United Kingdom participation in a programme, an activity or exceptionally part thereof was agreed and included in Protocol I, and if such changes have a significant impact on their implementation:

(a) the conditions for entry and residence in the United Kingdom of the persons that are involved in the implementation of these programmes and activities, or parts thereof, including students, researchers, trainees or volunteers are changed. This shall apply, in particular, if the United Kingdom introduces a change in its domestic laws for the conditions for entry and residence in the United Kingdom for these persons, which discriminates between Member States.

(b) there is a change in financial charges, including fees, that apply to persons referred in point (a) of this paragraph in order to perform the activities that they have to perform in order to implement the programme;

(c) the conditions referred to in Article UNPRO.1.5(3) [Conditions for participation] are changed.

2. The Union shall notify the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes of its intention to suspend the participation of the United Kingdom in the programme or activity concerned. The Union shall identify the scope of the suspension and provide due justification. Unless the Union withdraws its notification, the suspension shall take effect 45 days following the date of notification by the Union. The date on which the suspension takes effect shall constitute the suspension reference date for the purposes of this Article.

Prior to notification and suspension, and during the suspension period, the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes may discuss appropriate measures for avoiding or lifting the suspension. In case the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes finds an agreement for avoiding the suspension within the period referred to in the first subparagraph, the suspension shall not take effect.

In any case, the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes shall meet during the period of 45 days to discuss the matter.

3. As of the suspension reference date the United Kingdom shall not be treated as a country participating in the Union programme, activity, or part thereof concerned by the suspension and in particular, the United Kingdom or United Kingdom entities shall no longer be eligible under the conditions laid down in Article UNPRO.1.4 [Compliance with Programme Rules] and Protocol I, with regard to Union award procedures which have not been completed yet on that date. An award procedure shall be considered completed when legal commitments have been entered into as a result of that procedure.

4. The suspension shall not affect legal commitments entered into before the suspension reference date. This Agreement shall continue to apply to such legal commitments.

5. The United Kingdom shall notify the Union as soon as it considers that compliance with the conditions for participation has been restored, and shall provide the Union with any relevant evidence to that effect.

Within 30 days from that notification the Union shall assess the matter and may, for that purpose, request that the United Kingdom to present additional evidence. The time needed to provide such additional evidence shall not be taken into account in the overall period for assessment.

Where the Union has found that compliance with the conditions for participation is restored, it shall notify without undue delay the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes that the suspension is lifted. The lifting shall take effect on the day following the date of notification.

Where the Union has found that compliance with the conditions for participation is not restored, the suspension shall remain in force.

6. The United Kingdom shall be treated again as a country participating in the Union programme or activity concerned, and in particular United Kingdom and United Kingdom entities shall be again eligible under the conditions laid down in Article UNPRO.1.4 [Compliance with Programme Rules] and Protocol I, with regard to Union award procedures under that Union programme or activity which were launched after the date on which the lifting of the suspension takes effect, or which were launched before that date, for which the deadline for the submission of applications has not expired.

7. In case of the United Kingdom participation in a programme, activity, or part thereof being suspended, the financial contribution of the United Kingdom that is due during the period of suspension shall be established as follows:

(a) the Union shall recalculate the operational contribution using the procedure described in point (a)(iii) of the fifth subparagraph of Article UNPRO.2.1(8) [Financial conditions];

(b) the participation fee shall be adjusted in line with the adjustment of the operational contribution.

Article UNPRO.3.2 – Termination of the participation of the United Kingdom in a Union programme by the Union

1. If, by one year after the reference date referred to in Article UNPRO.3.1(2) [Suspension of the participation of the United Kingdom in a Union programme by the European Union] the Union has not lifted the suspension under Article UNPRO.3.1 [Suspension of the participation of the United Kingdom], the Union shall either:

(a) reassess the conditions under which it may offer to allow the United Kingdom to continue participating in the Union programmes, activities or parts thereof concerned and shall propose those conditions to the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes within 45 days from expiry of the one year suspension period with a view to modifying Protocol I. In the absence of an agreement on those measures by the Specialised Committee within a further period of 45 days, termination shall take effect as referred to in point (b) of this paragraph; or

(b) terminate unilaterally the application of Protocol I, in relation to the Union programmes, activities or parts thereof concerned, in accordance with this Article, taking into account the impact of the change referred to in Article UNPRO.3.1 [Suspension of the participation of the United Kingdom] on the implementation of the programme or activity or exceptionally parts thereof, or the amount of the unpaid contribution.

2. The Union shall notify the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes of its intention to terminate the participation of the United Kingdom in one or more Union programmes or activities pursuant to point (b) of paragraph 1. The Union shall identify the scope of the termination and provide due justification. Unless the Union withdraws its notification, the termination shall take effect 45 days following the date of notification by the Union. The date on which the termination takes effect shall constitute the termination reference date for the purposes of this Article.

3. As of the termination reference date the United Kingdom shall not be treated as a country participating in the Union programme or activity concerned by the termination, and in particular the United Kingdom or United Kingdom entities shall no longer be eligible under the conditions laid down in Article UNPRO.1.4 [Compliance with Programme Rules] and in Protocol I, with regard to Union award procedures which have not been completed yet as of that date. An award procedure shall be considered to have been completed if legal commitments have been entered into as a result of that procedure.

4. The termination shall not affect legal commitments entered into before the suspension reference date referred to in Article UNPRO.3.1(2) [Suspension of the participation of the United Kingdom]. This Agreement shall continue to apply to such legal commitments.

5. Where the application of Protocol I, or a part thereof, is terminated in respect of the programmes or activities or exceptionally parts thereof concerned:

(a) the operational contribution covering support expenditure related to legal commitments already entered into shall continue to be due until the completion of those legal commitments or the end of the Multi-annual Financial Framework under which the legal commitment has been financed;

(b) no contribution except the one referred to under point (a) of this paragraph shall be made in the following years.

Article UNPRO.3.3: Termination of the participation in a programme or activity in the case of substantial modification to Union programmes

1. The United Kingdom may unilaterally terminate its participation in a Union programme or activity or part thereof referred to in Protocol I where:

(a) the basic act of that Union programme or activity is amended to an extent that the conditions for participation of the United Kingdom or of United Kingdom entities in that Union programme or activity have been substantially modified , in particular, as a result of a change of the objectives of the programme or activity and of the corresponding actions; or

(b) the total amount of commitment appropriations as referred to in Article UNPRO.2.1 [Financial conditions] is increased by more than 15% compared with the initial financial envelope of that programme or activity or part thereof in which the United Kingdom participates and either the corresponding ceiling of the multiannual financial framework has been increased or the amount of external revenue referred to in Article UNPRO.2.1(5) [Financial conditions] for the whole period of participation has been increased; or

(c) the United Kingdom or United Kingdom entities are excluded from participation in part of a programme or activity on duly justified grounds, and that exclusion concerns commitment appropriations exceeding 10% of the commitment appropriations in the Union budget definitively adopted for a year N for that programme or activity.

2. To this effect, the United Kingdom shall notify its intention to terminate Protocol I in relation to the Union programme or activity concerned, to the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes at the latest 60 days after the publication of the amendment or of the adopted annual budget or an amendment to it in the Official Journal of the European Union. The United Kingdom shall explain the reasons for which the United Kingdom considers the amendment to substantially alter the conditions of participation. The Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes shall meet within 45 days of receiving the notification to discuss the matter.

3. Unless the United Kingdom withdraws its notification, the termination shall take effect 45 days following the date of notification by the United Kingdom. The date on which the termination takes effect shall constitute the reference date for the purposes of this Article.

4. As of the reference date the United Kingdom shall not be treated as a country participating in the Union programme or activity concerned by the termination, and in particular the United Kingdom or United Kingdom entities shall no longer be eligible under the conditions laid down in Article UNPRO.1.4 [Compliance with Programme Rules] and in Protocol I, with regard to Union award procedures which have not been completed yet as of that date. An award procedure shall be considered to have been completed if legal commitments have been entered into as a result of that procedure.

5. The termination shall not affect legal commitments entered into before the reference date. This Agreement shall continue to apply to such legal commitments.

6. In case of termination under this Article in respect of the programmes or activities concerned:

(a) the operational contribution covering support expenditure related to legal commitments already entered into shall continue to be due until the completion of those legal commitments or the end of the Multi-annual Financial Framework under which the legal commitment has been financed;

(b) the Union shall recalculate the operational contribution of the year where termination occurs using the procedure described in point (a)(iii) of the fifth subparagraph of Article UNPRO.2.1(8) [Financial conditions]. No contribution except the one referred to under point (a) of this Article shall be made in the following years;

(c) the participation fee shall be adjusted in line with the adjustment of the operational contribution.

Section 4: Review of performance and financial increases

Article UNPRO.3.4: Performance review

1. A performance review procedure shall apply in accordance with the conditions laid down in this Article in relation to parts of the Union programme or activity to which the correction mechanism referred to in Article UNPRO.2.2 [Programmes to which an automatic correction mechanism applies] applies.

2. The United Kingdom may request the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes to start the performance review procedure where the amount calculated in accordance with the method laid down in Article UNPRO.2.2(2) [Programmes to which an automatic correction mechanism applies] is negative, and where that amount is higher than 12% of the corresponding contributions of the United Kingdom to the programme or activity as adjusted pursuant to Article UNPRO.2.1(8) [Financial conditions].

3. The Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes, within a period of three months from the date of the request referred to in paragraph 2, shall analyse the relevant performance-related data and adopt a report proposing appropriate measures to address performance related issues.

The measures referred to in the first subparagraph shall be applied for a period of twelve months after the adoption of the report. Following the application of the measures, performance data over the period in question shall be used to calculate the difference between the initial amounts due under the legal commitments actually entered into with the United Kingdom or United Kingdom entities during that calendar year and the corresponding operational contribution paid by the United Kingdom for the same year.

If the difference referred to in the second subparagraph is negative and exceeds 16% of the corresponding operational contribution, the United Kingdom may:

(a) notify its intention to terminate its participation in the Union programme or part of a programme concerned by giving notice 45 days before the intended day of termination, and may terminate its participation in accordance with Article UNPRO.3.3(3) to (6) [Termination of the participation in a programme in the case of substantial modification of the Union programme]; or

(b) request the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes to adopt further measures to address underperformance, including by making adaptations to the participation of the United Kingdom in the Union programme concerned and adjusting future financial contributions of the United Kingdom in respect of that programme.

Article UNPRO.3.5: Financial increases review

1. The United Kingdom may notify the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union programmes that it objects to the amount of its contribution to a Union programme or activity if the total amount of commitment appropriations as referred to in Article UNPRO.2.1 [Financial conditions] is increased by more than 5% compared with the initial financial envelope for that Union programme or activity and either the corresponding ceiling has been increased or the amount of external revenue referred to in Article UNPRO.2.1(5) [Financial conditions] for the whole period of participation has been increased.

2. The notification referred to in paragraph 1 shall be made within 60 days as of the publication date of the adopted annual budget or an amendment to it in the Official Journal of the European Union. The notification shall be without prejudice to the obligation of the United Kingdom to pay its contribution and to the application of the adjustment mechanism referred to in Article UNPRO.2.1(8) [Financial conditions].

3. The Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes shall prepare a report, propose and decide on the adoption of appropriate measures within three months from the date of the notification referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article. Those measures may include limiting the participation of the United Kingdom and United Kingdom entities to certain types of actions or award procedures or, where appropriate, a modification of Protocol I. The limitation of the United Kingdom’s participation will be treated as an exclusion for the purposes of the adjustment mechanism referred to in Article UNPRO.2.1(8) [Financial conditions].

4. Where the conditions referred to in point (b) of Article UNPRO.3.3(1) [Termination of the participation in a programme in the case of substantial modification of the Union programme] are fulfilled, the United Kingdom may terminate its participation in a Union programme or activity referred to in Protocol I in accordance with Article UNPRO.3.3(2) to (6) [Termination of the participation in a programme in the case of substantial modification of the Union programme].

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