thank you for the comments regarding the support that the commission has been giving to northern ireland
indeed we are very pleased about and supportive of the developments in northern ireland
the commission has invested heavily in this process
i remember also my visit to northern ireland and will continue to do so
i am aware of the issue you have raised of the single farm payment scheme
commissioner <unk> has outlined our position on this but let me state very clearly that the clearance of accounts procedure is an administrative one
the member state concerned is given a full opportunity to express its view but the independence of the process is vital
the commission does not enjoy any discretion in the level of corrections which follows established principles to ensure equal treatment to all member states
i am sure that you all agree in this parliament about the need to respect fully our regulations in terms of accountability
it is critically important
just yesterday i had a very interesting meeting lasting several hours with the commission and the court of auditors and i want to tell you that while supporting northern ireland very much we have to respect strictly all the rules in terms of accountability
