The Chief Prosecutor of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, Laura Kövesi, was the guest of honour at the European Parliament Conference of Presidents political groups on Thursday 1 July. According to our information, she stressed the need for additional resources and discussed the missing Slovenian nominations.
Although it has only been operational since 1 June (see EUROPE 12731/2), more than 200 cases have already been referred to the European Public Prosecutor's Office at central level in Luxembourg. According to Ms Kövesi’s estimates, the speed of transmission of existing cases by national authorities should accelerate from September onwards, and new cases should continue to arrive at a steady pace. This will necessarily have budgetary implications, she reportedly stressed.
With the help of the European Parliament, the budget has been tripled, but it is still insufficient and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office has not been authorised to recruit more staff. At least 50 more people are needed, according to Ms Kövesi’s estimates, including financial investigators and analysts.
According to our information, it has been highlighted that the Parliament’s Committee on Budgetary Control (CONT) will analyse these requests for additional financial resources.
At the meeting, Ms Kövesi also discussed the missing Slovenian nominations to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (see EUROPE 12748/17).
The absence of European Delegated Prosecutors for Slovenia seriously affects the work of the European Public Prosecutor's Office in Slovenia, but also cross-border investigations involving Slovenia and other participating Member States, she reportedly argued.
In particular, she is said to have suggested that the current blockage of the Slovenian government could be analysed in the light of the regulation establishing a conditionality mechanism between payment of EU funds and respect for the Rule of law in a Member State. Five MEPs recently made the same request to the European Commission (see EUROPE 12751/23).
Until the Delegated Prosecutors for Slovenia are appointed, the EU budget will not be fully protected, Ms Kovësi was said to have concluded... (Original version in French by Marion Fontana and Pascal Hansens)