MEPs signal end to Eurostat affair

The European Parliament is set to draw a line under the Eurostat affair, appeased by reforms proposed in the wake of a scandal that rocked the EU institutions.

But MEPs are still expected to give the European Commission a rough ride over its handling of the affair and belated response to the simmering problems at the EU's statistical agency Eurostat.

A network of cosy contracts and slush funds at the statistics body caused a political furore last year, resulting in the removal of three of the body’s top officials from their posts.

And with the disappearance of millions of euros, siphoned off into secret bank accounts, MEPs were quick to call the commission to task over its handling of the affair.

Brussels on Monday announced a raft of reforms at Eurostat, including cutbacks on external contracts and training, and tougher control procedures.

Portuguese Socialist Paulo Casaca, the MEP in charge of drafting the parliament’s response to the Eurostat affair, said he was pleased with the commission’s proposed reforms.

“We got a victory…they have announced exactly what we asked for and we will be there to see they do it,” he said.

But he still reserved harsh criticism for the awarding of a sizeable contract by the commission’s aid office EuropeAid to CESD, one of the companies at the heart of the scandal.

The issue of financial responsibility “is still very concerning to me,” he said.

Diemut Theato, chairman of the European Parliament's financial watchdog, the budgetary control committee said many fundamental questions thrown up by Eurostat remained unanswered.

"It seems as though the shadows of the past are inescapable," she said.

UK Conservative MEP Chris Heaton-Harris, also on the committee, called for Commissioners Solbes, Kinnock and Schreyer to take “political responsibility” for what went wrong at Eurostat. 

“Commissioners Kinnock, Solbes and Schreyer all have a case to answer about their failure to protect taxpayers’ money,” he said, but conceded that there was little support for the move in the parliament.

MEPs will vote later today on a follow-up report by Paulo Casaca MEP which deals with the Eurostat affair. 

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