In an audit published on Wednesday 6 May and based on a sample of 10 countries (Austria, Bulgaria, Estonia, France, Germany, Latvia, Malta, the Netherlands, Romania and Spain), the European Court of Auditors has identified shortcomings in the way EU Member States ensure the traceability of expenditure linked to their post-Covid-19 recovery plan, collect information on the actual costs of the measures supported and publish information on the 100 largest beneficiaries.
“We do not have a complete picture of the use of funds from the Recovery and Resilience Facility” [RRF, the budgetary instrument of the NextGenerationEU recovery plan, editor’s note], said Ivana Maletić, the Member of the Court of Auditors responsible for the audit.
With regard to traceability, the EU institution notes that Member States generally comply with the rules and can, for the most part, trace the history of RRF Facility payments from their source to their final use.
However, four Member States (Germany, Spain, France and the Netherlands) collect data mainly on request, or even exclusively on request in the German and French cases. This approach leads to delays and reduces the relevance of the information collected, according to the Court.
Actual cost. Another major problem is the lack of systematic data on actual costs, according to Ms Maletić.
Due to a lack of clarity in the regulations, the European auditors report a difference of opinion with the European Commission, which does not collect data on the amounts actually paid out under the various RRF Facility measures, although seven countries in the sample (Bulgaria, Spain, Estonia, Latvia, Malta, the Netherlands and Romania) do.
In their view, this lack of information limits the Commission’s ability to determine whether they have used the funds efficiently.
In addition, the Court notes that Bulgaria, Latvia and Romania have reallocated European funds in the event of expenditure proving to be lower than estimated, although the three countries do not do so systematically. And, noting a tendency for Member States to overestimate the costs of planned measures, it warns against “a risk” of a significant discrepancy between the total amounts received for a national plan and the actual costs of the measures.
Transparency. The EU institution notes a satisfactory level of transparency with regard to compliance with the milestones (investments, reforms, etc.) contained in the national recovery plans. However, little information is available on the final results achieved.
Although the Member States publish lists of the top 100 beneficiaries of their national plans, these lists do not provide the desired information. According to the Court of Auditors, the beneficiaries are mainly public bodies, through which 80% of the funds pass before reaching the companies that are the real final beneficiaries.
The finger is pointed at France, where five intermediary entities are on the national list of main beneficiaries, spending a total of €3.6 billion of the €8.3 billion received by the 100 largest beneficiaries in 2024. Furthermore, Germany and France do not break down the amounts received by measure.
Reacting to the Court’s audit, Monika Hohlmeier (EPP, German) said that “the serious weaknesses” identified constituted “a clear warning for the next Multiannual Financial Framework”. “EU funds must be fully transparent and traceable, so that every euro can be followed to its final recipients, with clear milestones and robust indicators in performance-based instruments”.
See the Court of Auditors audit: https://aeur.eu/f/ltq (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)