Brussels, 27/03/2013 (Agence Europe) - Poland can breathe a sigh of relief. The Commission has decided to lift the freeze on structural fund payments for the country's infrastructure projects. Johannes Hahn, the European commissioner responsible for regional development, said on Twitter on Wednesday 27 March how pleased he was that “we can now resume payments for Poland's road building projects. Good cooperation with Polish authorities has led to a rapid decision”.
The discovery by the Polish government of a cartel scandal in calls for tenders for three road projects financed by the structural funds had led to payments being suspended by the Commission at the beginning of the year, pending more specific information. Over €3.5 billion were involved in various programmes.
Since then, Commission officials have carried out an analysis of around one hundred projects on the basis of documents provided by the Polish authorities at the Commission's behest. The commissioner's spokesperson, Shirin Wheeler, explains: “We are satisfied that, concerning three projects subject to a trial in Poland, the allegations do not extend beyond those three projects. From today on, the payments can be resumed. Claims can be honoured except for those three projects for which Poland has decided to withdraw claims, and we will wait for the outcome of the trial and then decide what to do with the money which is not lost but on hold”. The money referred to amounts to €800 million.
The situation had caused an outcry in the country. Poland is a beneficiary of funding from the cohesion policy and is generally considered a model. The scandal came just a few weeks from negotiations on the next allocation to be granted to Warsaw in the European budget for the period 2014-2020. (MD/transl.jl)