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Review date: 10/12/2025
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Fraud in the European Union is rife, yet the EU has too many agencies looking into fraud, a report suggests.
Fraud in the European Union is rife, yet the EU has too many agencies looking into fraud, a report suggests. Stephen Grey, author of Tackling Fraud and Mismanagement in the EU, points out that OLAF – the independent fraud office – is under-staffed. Other players are the Court of Auditors; the European Commission’s internal financial control unit; the European Parliament’s budget control committee; a disciplinary inquiry within the Commission; the EU Ombudsman; and member state police forces. Secrecy, EU staff and building immunity, and lack of co-ordination hamper investigations. For instance, in 1992 the tendering process for the five-year contract for providing security to the Commission was suspect. Also, senior officials used hired guards as chauffeurs and office assistants. Yet an internal investigation in 1993 was never made public and the task was passed to Belgian police in 1998. ‘There has never been a single successful prosecution of an EU official for fraud and there may not be many unless the EU’s anti-fraud safeguards undergo a truly radical overhaul,’ writes Grey, The Sunday Times Brussels reporter.
For a full copy of the report, published by the Centre for European Reform, see www.cer.org.uk.
