Activities of Edward CZESAK related to 2015/2128(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Annual report 2014 on the Protection of the EU's financial interests - Fight against fraud (A8-0026/2016 - Benedek Jávor) PL
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the Annual Report 2014 on the Protection of the EU’s Financial Interests – Fight against fraud
Amendments (5)
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the Annual Report as the first by this Commission and also the first in the new 2014-2020 programming period, which means that particular care should be taken to investigate the relationship between the new cohesion policy rules and the number of irregularities reported; stresses that the protection of the EU’s financial interests is at the core of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union; notes that through a number of measures the Commission and the Member States have increased their effectiveness in fighting the overall rate of fraudulent or non-fraudulent irregularities in order to ensure that EU funds are protected from fraud; notes a total of 1 649 cases of irregularities reported as fraudulent, this being 2 % more than in 2013 and representing EUR 538 million in EU funds;, whereby the largest proportion of fraudulent cases concern the cohesion policy funds.
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Notes, on the one hand, that once again cohesion policy is not the area with the highest number of irregularities reported as fraudulent, and that this is the case for the second year in a row; also notes that expenditure has fallen by 5 % compared to 2013, and, on the other hand, that the largest proportion of such irregularities in this policy area concern the European Regional Development Fund;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Notes the last report by the European Court of Auditors, which questioned the procedures followed by the Member States for the disbursement of cohesion policy funds due to the large number of errors occurring in connection with awards of public contracts; notes that errors frequently mean that problems and delays are encountered when implementing projects, and that proven violations of EU rules may result in financial corrections amounting to as much as 100 % of the value of the contract;
Amendment 43 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Appreciates the Commission’s decision to carry out a mid-term assessment in 2018 in order to establish whether the new regulatory architecture for the cohesion policy prevents fraud and reduces the risk of irregularities, and looks forward to receiving detailed proposals and information about the impact of the new cohesion policy regulations in terms of the risk of irregularities and fraud; calls on the Council to endorse the proposal for a directive on the fight against fraud to the EU’s financial interests by means of criminal law.
Amendment 46 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Notes that the establishment of a culture conductive to combating fraud is of vital importance, not only for the purpose of preventing potential fraud, but also with a view to ensuring maximum commitment to anti-fraud measures on the part of all the institutions involved in implementing the Structural Funds.