The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), in collaboration with Belgian authorities, is investigating MEPs from the European People’s Party for alleged embezzlement, according to Politico. The investigations are, however, at a very preliminary stage since no one has been formally accused and the group led by German Manfred Weber has not received any requests for information on this subject, according to this publication.
“At this stage, this investigation is limited to the facts and there are no suspects. Whenever we can say something about one of our investigations, we will do so proactively,” says the European Public Prosecutor’s Office in a statement sent to this media in which it confirms the investigation which affects a group of the European Parliament, but don’t do it. specify which one.
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office is responsible for investigating cases that affect the financial interests of the European Union. In the case of the European Parliament, the Community budget includes an item reserved for financing political groups and MEPs receive, in addition to their salary and 350 euros per day for participation in parliamentary activity, allowances for general expenses. (4,950 euros monthly). to cover office rental expenses in the Member State in which they are elected, computer hardware and programs, office supplies, mobile phones and telephone and Internet contracts. There is also a budget allocation of 29,557 euros per month for that. select your assistants.
Recently, the European Parliament demanded 300,000 euros from the former leader of the French far right, Jean-Marie Le Pen, for unjustified expenses. He used European Parliament funds to buy everything from ties to 129 bottles of wine while he held his seat (2009-2018). Furthermore, the French justice system has approached the National Group for having organized a “system” of financing the salaries of its employees with funds intended for the assistants of European deputies.
The intrigue of the fictitious jobs involved the establishment of a “system of diversion” of the allowances allocated by the European Union to each MP to pay parliamentary assistants (then it was 21,000 euros per month), who worked in reality entirely or partially for the party in France, according to the prosecution. In 2018, the European Parliament estimated the damage caused at 6.8 million euros, over the period 2004 to 2016. The affair put several far-right leaders on the bench, including Marine Le Pen.
