The European Parliament intends to have a say in the review of the EU’s anti-fraud architecture, which the Commission is due to present by the end of the year with a view to the post-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF). MEPs on the Committee on Budgetary Control (CONT) therefore adopted an own-initiative report on the subject by an overwhelming majority (25 votes in favour, 4 abstentions and none against) on Tuesday 3 November. The final version of the text, which must now be submitted to Parliament’s plenary, calls for much more effective cooperation between the various bodies, stronger protection for whistleblowers and better monitoring of the recovery of funds.
Just before the vote, in which all the compromise amendments were adopted by large majorities, co-rapporteur Tomáš Zdechovský (EPP, Czech) said this was “the beginning of a revolution in the fight against fraud and corruption”.
The report makes better cooperation between the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, which investigates and prosecutes offences affecting the EU budget, and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), which conducts administrative investigations, a priority.
MEPs thus saw fit to “emphasise” that the Treaties enshrine “the principle of sincere cooperation (...) between the institutions (...) in assisting one another in fulfilling their respective mandates”. The text therefore calls on the Commission “to establish obligations (...), including to (...) address unjustified refusals or delays”.
MEPs accuse the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, in particular, of misusing the “non-prejudice” principle with criminal proceedings to deny OLAF or the Commission access to information that could help “protect the EU budget”.
The report therefore recommends that suspensions of OLAF investigations to safeguard proceedings conducted by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office remain “proportionate and time-limited” and be “reassessed regularly”.
MEPs also propose setting up a “single, secure digital channel to report suspected fraud”.
Finally, MEPs state that “people reporting suspected fraud should be protected against retaliation as of their first submission (...)”, regardless of the outcome.
To see the compromise amendments: https://aeur.eu/f/o84 (Original version in French by Clément Solal)