Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s European People’s Party (EPP) is being investigated by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) and the Belgian authorities over the misuse of EU funds.
“We can only confirm that we have an ongoing investigation into allegations of misuse of EU funds committed in Belgium by members of a political group of the European Parliament,” a spokesperson from EPPO told Politico in a written statement.
No one has been formally charged, and EPPO says “the investigation is merely into facts and there are no suspects.”
Asked to comment, an EPP group spokesperson denied that the prosecutor “has requested any information regarding an inquiry concerning its staff.”
Though no further details have been provided, the case may be linked to recent revelations by the Spanish newspaper La Gaceta, which claims that the EPP’s soon-to-be secretary general, Ouarda Bensouag, is the target of the criminal investigation by the Belgian police.
Bensouag is a loyal aide to the head of the EPP, Manfred Weber, and used to be his chief of staff. According to the Spanish paper, she broke EU rules on double salaries by allegedly receiving wages simultaneously from the European Parliament, as an official of the institution, and from the EPP as a political functionary.
The European People’s Party is the largest group within the European Parliament and consists mainly of liberal, centrist, and centre-right parties. It has been the dominant force in EU policy making for the past few decades, and has overseen the major shift within the European Union from a cooperation of sovereign nations to a deeper integration, with EU institutions such as the European Parliament and the Commission garnering more and more power to the detriment of nation states.
The corruption probe into the EPP comes as “cracks begin to appear inside the largest political group,” writes investigative fact-checking website Europe Unfiltered. According to their article, “Manfred Weber is increasingly seen by his fellow politicians as an autocrat who is trying to consolidate his power, by placing people loyal to him in key positions,” such as Ouarda Bensouag.
Weber has redefined the EPP to his own liking, prompting other MEPs to complain that the party has become dysfunctional and the decisions are taken by Weber and a close circle of advisers instead of with the member parties.
Whether the corruption probe turns into something bigger, remains to be seen, but the EPP will want to avoid anything as big as the Qatargate scandal which uncovered a large-scale corruption network within Socialist circles.
