EU fraud down, claims Commission

The latest European Commission report on fraud and irregularities in European Union (EU) programmes and spending indicates a significant fall in dishonest and incompetent handling of money in 2003. However, Brussels officials told Fraud Intelligence that the figures should be viewed cautiously because they only indicate declining reports of fraud and irregularities from member states. If national governments were less alert in 2003 then massive financial problems could have gone undetected. The figures are impressive nonetheless. The money lost through fraud and mismanagement fell from €614 million in 2002 to €482 million in 2003 for regional and industrial aid payments; from €198 to 170 million for agricultural policy handouts (EAGGF) and €342 to 270 million for ‘own resources’, basically customs duties earmarked for EU budgets. Outgoing EU budget Commissioner Michaele Schreyer said, “The 2003 report shows that there are step-by-step improvements … and our 2004-2005 action plan will help consolidate these. Only patient efforts to improve the methods and structures of cooperation between all the actors involved in the fight against fraud make such achievements possible.”