Top Secret report on the MEPs fraud with secretariat allowances
In Jens-Peter Bonde’s briefing this week you can read about the top secret report on the fraud with secretarial allowances in the European Parliament and a link to a summary of the report.
In my newsletter last week I revealed the major content from a secret report on suspicion for fraud by members of the European Parliament. To read the report you have to be a member of the Committee on Budgetary Control, and if you have read it you are not allowed to quote from it. I have not read it myself but my colleague Paul van Buitenen has and he has made a summary that you can read here: 04.03.2008_Summary_Audit_report_5_pages_published.pdf
I know from more sources that the President of the Parliament, his secretary general and his administration hide an even more top secret report on fraud with secretarial allowances in the Parliament. This report has NOT been sent to the budget control committee and it is not available in the secret reading room for MEPs.
The top secret report contains some of the names of those who are suspected for fraud. It has NOT been sent to OLAF, the independent EU body for the fight against fraud. They have only received a report without names from the EP. This is against the rules since all civil servants are obliged to report suspicion of fraud for OLAF.
I do not request the report with names to be published in the open. Members are – as all citizens - innocent until the opposite is proved and they must have the right to defend them self before publication.
The report without names should be published. There is nothing to hide when names are deleted. On the contrary! Parliament may only regain reputation if/when it deals with fraud correctly.
I urge the leaders of the two big groups, Daul and Schultz, to allow publication of the secret report – without names.
The Conference of Presidents will discuss the matter again 6 March. My group has sent this letter to the President.
Dear President,
The reputation of the European parliament has been damaged by the EP-decision not to publish the report on fraud with secretarial allowances and by refusing to deliver proper information to the Ombudsman.
May I urge you to publish the report now delivered for the secret reading room and deliver the full until now completely hidden report including the names under suspicion for fraud and waste of tax payers’ money for OLAF and the relevant state prosecutors?
I also urge you to deliver all asked information to the European Ombudsman.
Kind regards
Jens-Peter Bonde
Co-President IND/DEM
Speaker at National Forum in Dublin 6 March 11 – 13
Thursday 6 March I will speak in the National Forum in Dublin. Here I will speak about the consequences it would have for Ireland and the EU if the Irish vote yes to the Lisbon Treaty. Here you can read more about the event and see the agenda: http://www.forumoneurope.ie/index.asp?locID=69&docID=1571
Next week in Strasbourg
This week is so-called group week in Brussels. We prepare for the March session in Strasbourg beginning Monday 9 March. Here is the agenda: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/indexPartSession.do?reference=2008-03&language=EN
