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Brussels, 4 November 2003
 Eurostat: internal auditor predicts further discoveries |
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The Director-General of the European Commission's Internal Audit Service (IAS), Jules MUIS, told MEPs on Monday that he had found "pretty big problems" at the statistics office Eurostat. Presenting his final report on the investigation into Eurostat contracts to Parliament's Budgetary Control Committee, Mr Muis said there was a clear need for a follow-up by the Commission and by Eurostat's new management as well as for a full in-depth audit. The IAS had been requested by the European Parliament in its resolution on the budget discharge for the year 2001 to conduct an investigation into the contracts concluded by Eurostat since 1999, the year a new Commission under Romano Prodi took office. In an initial report, the IAS found serious wrong-doing and identified illegal accounts, prompting the Commission in early July to suspend Eurostat's management and instigate a full-scale administrative enquiry. Mr Muis spoke of a highly disturbing lack of transparency and documentation and an urgent need for improved governance structures within the Commission, with open lines of communication and a need to avoid the use of coded language. He said many improvements had been started already but predicted that there would be a legacy of problems for years to come. In reaction, committee chair Diemut THEATO (EPP-ED, D) said Eurostat's senior officials lacked not only trustworthiness but also a sense of what was right and wrong. There were also failings regarding communication and transparency. Although the final report did not contain many new findings compared to the two interim reports released earlier by the IAS, rapporteur Paolo CASACA (PES, P) drew attention to the new information that contracts worth over €450 million were considered dubious. Mr Casaca was also concerned at the lack of information about what had happened with the illegal accounts after 1999. Furthermore, he criticised the fact that when Commissioner Chris Patten defended the awarding in 2001 of a contract without public tender to an outside company which had already been the subject of severe criticism, arguing there was not enough time for a public tender, he had apparently omitted to mention a note from a Commission official saying there would have been ample time for this. Finally, Mr Casaca was astounded by the finding that files on a 2% discount scheme at the EU Publications Office, which was used in a similar way to Eurostat's illegal accounts, had been destroyed by mistake in early 2003. MEPs Bart STAES (Greens/EFA, B), Ole SØRENSEN (ELDR, DK), Jonas SJÖSTEDT (EUL/NGL, S), Jens-Peter BONDE (EDD, DK) and Helmut KUHNE (PES, D) all asked questions about a note sent in July 2002 by Eurostat to the office of Commissioner Pedro SOLBES, who is responsible for Eurostat, which had been changed so as to delete any mention of illegal accounts. Mr Muis was unable, however, to say on whose instruction this reference was deleted, who in the Mr Solbes' office had seen the original note and whether there was any further correspondence between Mr Solbes' office and Eurostat on this matter. He said his service did not have a mandate to enquire into these matters and had only mentioned this particular note because it had come up during the IAS audit and seemed important. In reply to a question by Gabriele STAUNER (EPP-ED, D), Mr Muis confirmed he had not been able to find any documentation on the illegal accounts, saying they were managed by outside companies to which he had no access. He agreed it had been troubling to find that information was missing, but said he had had neither the mandate nor the means to pursue this. In December the Budgetary Control Committee will vote on a draft report by Mr Casaca on the follow-up to the 2001 discharge. 03.11.2003 Committee on Budgetary Control Press enquiries: |
| Sharp criticism of anti-fraud office OLAF |
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The EU anti-fraud office OLAF has come under serious criticism from the Budgetary Control Committee in a report calling for strong leadership, clear priorities and a clear investigation policy at OLAF as well as a greater role for OLAF's Supervisory Committee. Adopting a report drawn up by Herbert BÖSCH (PES, A), MEPs criticised the inefficiency of OLAF's investigations, the inadequate protection of the rights of people affected by its enquiries and inconsistencies in OLAF's communication policy: it demands silence from the institutions being investigated but itself divulges information to the media. The committee also criticised the European Commission for presenting its report on OLAF's activities more than a year late and for not addressing the serious problems identified. The Budgetary Control Committee demanded that an audit be carried out at OLAF as of January 2004 to assess the effectiveness of its investigations. The audit should come under the responsibility of the Supervisory Committee, which consists of five independent outside individuals appointed by common accord of the Parliament, Council and Commission. The Supervisory Committee should ensure in future that the rights of people affected by OLAF investigations are respected and should approve new rules, to be drafted by the director of OLAF, governing its investigative activities and the information it provides on these activities. The Supervisory Committee secretariat should be moved from OLAF itself to the European Parliament. OLAF's budget should have a separate heading, in the same way as the Ombudsman's. In establishing its working programme for 2004, MEPs said OLAF should give priority to investigations where national authorities have no particular interests or powers, such as investigations within the EU institutions and agencies. At least 140 posts should be made available for internal investigations. MEPs also criticised the fact that the post of coordinator of anti-fraud activities in the accession countries has not yet been filled. Other recommendations made by the committee were for more effective controls of directors-general in order to avoid misuse of power, for example by having the DGs' internal auditors answer to the central internal auditor rather than to their director-general; and ensuring better protection of whistle-blowers and the possibility for EU civil servants to address OLAF directly, without informing their own superiors. In its final reports OLAF should include a recommendation for a thorough investigation of any inadequate administrative structures. The anti-fraud office should also carry out a detailed analysis of those sectors in which most investigations have been launched, namely the structural funds, trade, customs, aid, agriculture and direct expenditure. Member States should identify which national authorities should assist OLAF with on-site checks. Finally, MEPs called on the Commission to advertise the post of Director of OLAF in spring 2004, as the present Director's appointment will come to an end in March 2005 and the procedures for this appointment take a long time. 03.11.2003 Committee on Budgetary Control Press enquiries: |
| EU funding of stem-cell research to be allowed under strict conditions |
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In a highly charged and emotional vote today, the Industry Committee voted by 28 votes to 22 with 2 abstentions in favour of amending a Commission proposal on a set of strict ethical guidelines for deciding on and monitoring EU funding of research involving the derivation of embryonic stem cells from human supernumerary embryos. Most MEPs in the committee supported allowing research to be financed from the EU's sixth framework programme budget (2002-2006), albeit under tight ethical conditions. The majority of the amendments by the rapporteur Peter LIESE (EPP-ED, D) seeking to impose even stricter conditions on the use of stem cell research were rejected. Speaking after the vote, Mr Liese stated that he would not stand down as rapporteur since some of his amendments had been adopted, and that further discussion would be needed before plenary. Parliament is being consulted on this legislative proposal but the Council of Ministers has the final say. Stem cell research raises ethical questions, particularly when it involves the use of embryonic stem cells derived from human supernumerary embryos (see News Report 25-04-2003) There is a great diversity of views among EU Member States concerning the ethical acceptability of various research fields Scientists are hopeful that stem cell research will provide essential progress in the development of therapies in several fields of medicine. This is particularly the case for the treatment of degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s but also for more common diseases like diabetes. The committee's suggested amendments focus on a number of areas. First, it calls for the scrapping of any cut-off date for the procurement of human embryos used for the procurement of stem cells. The Commission had proposed that EU funded research may only use existing human supernumerary embryos that were created before 27 June 2002, the date of adoption by Parliament and Council of the sixth framework programme. MEPs also say that whether or not to allow funding of research on the use of human stem cells should depend both on the contents of the scientific proposal and the legal framework of the Member States involved. Research using adult stem cells and reprogrammed adult cells should get priority for financing. In addition, research on embryo or foetal stem cells deriving from spontaneous or therapeutic abortion may be funded. On parental consent, MEPs insist that where embryos are to be destroyed in order to produce human embryonic stem cell lines, the prior agreement of the parents must be secured and that no monetary compensation or any other consideration may be granted or promised for the donation of embryos used for the recovery of stem cells. In order to ensure transparency in EU funding of research activities involving human adult or embryonic stem cells, the Commission will publish yearly a list of research projects involving the use of human embryonic stem cells funded under the sixth framework programme. The committee adds that in the case of research projects with embryonic stem cells, such publication must include a justification stating why other procedures were not usable. 04.11.2003 Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy Press enquiries: |
| Agreement closer on human tissues and cells |
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The Environment Committee adopted on Tuesday a second-reading report by Peter LIESE (EPP-ED, D) on quality and safety standards for human tissues and cells. The report covers the donation, procurement, testing, processing, preservation, storage and distribution of tissues and cells. Following the rejection by the Council of many of Parliament's first-reading amendments, the committee has opted to focus less on ethical issues, which lie outside the scope of the directive, and more on quality and safety. The amendments adopted today deal with payments to donors, traceability, donor consent and donor anonymity, and it is hoped that an agreement can be reached with the Council on this basis. The report was adopted by 43 votes to 5, with 4 abstentions. One key demand of the committee is that tissues and cells should be donated on a voluntary and unpaid basis. MEPs stress that they must be given with the donor's free will, without payment except for compensation such as travel expenses. However, detailed rules would be left to each Member State. The traceability of human tissues and cells was another concern. On the whole Member States should ensure that the identity of a recipient is not disclosed to the donor or his family and vice versa. However, the committee called for Member States to ensure that all tissues and cells procured, processed, stored or distributed on their territory can be traced. And in the case of gametes (egg and sperm cells), Member States may waive the anonymity requirement on the grounds that children have a right to know their genetic parents. The committee also wants commercial trading in unmodified tissues and cells to be banned. However, if the human tissues or cells are used as source material for manufacturing products for medical use, they may be modified by bodies and organisations which are operating for profit. The procurement of tissues after an abortion was a further concern to MEPs. They felt that special rules were required and that no abortion should be performed to obtain foetal tissue. Measures must be put in place to ensure that no pregnant woman is put under any kind of pressure to undergo an abortion in order to obtain tissue. For example, the timing of an abortion and the way it is carried out should not be influenced by the wish to obtain foetal tissue. Amendments by the rapporteur and others seeking to include research within the scope of the directive, and in particular to ban stem cell research, were defeated. Lastly, the committee called for a separate directive on organ transplants to be published by the end of this year. 04.11.2003 Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Protection Press enquiries: |
| Last updated: 4 November 2003 | Legal notice |