Dear Sir,
I noted the correspondence to Newton News from ‘P.C’ regarding the EU’s accounts and would like to state the full picture regarding the auditing process.
The European Court of Auditors checks the EU’s accounts annually and gives two verdicts: are they accurate and reliable; and is money being paid or received in error.
Since 2007 the auditors have “signed off” the accounts as giving the true and fair view of the EU’s finances.
The separate opinion regarding errors has been “adverse”, until 2016. Adverse means that more than 2% of payments are subject to error. Error does not necessarily mean fraudulent or wasteful, and mistakes are often the result of the complexities in the delivery of funding programmes. The EU does seek to recover money paid in error.
The Court of Auditors’ reports are published every year and they can be found on their website www.eca.europa.eu
Transparency is a principle that is fundamental across all EU institutions, including the Parliament in which I sit. This is often forgotten in many debates around EU issues which can result in a few myths arising.
Jude Kirton-Darling MEP
