A FORMER member of the European Court of Auditors has criticised a “cover-up” culture in the body and accused a vice-president of the European Commission of campaigning for a relaxation of its audit standards.
Maarten Engwirda, who was the Dutch member of the court for 15 years until January 1st, told the Volkskrantnewspaper that the court's failure to criticise known abuses was reminiscent of the Soviet ea.
The work of the court, which monitors expenditure by the European institutions, is contentious as it has never given a full seal of approval to the EU’s accounts.
Mr Engwirda said that although the quality of the court had improved in recent years, the practice of toning down criticism had been widespread.
He also alleged that transport commissioner Slim Kallas, who is also a vice-president of the EU executive, applied “heavy pressure” on the court to ease its rules when he was in charge of the anti-fraud and administration portfolio in 2005.
He said the court’s work was hampered during the entire period that Mr Kallas, Estonia’s commissioner, spent in that branch of the commission.
The commission defended Mr Kallas, saying the court was free to establish its own rules and procedures.
“We would not feel that there’s any basis for the allegations that are made in this article,” a spokeswoman told reporters in Brussels.
“As we see things, the vice-president always worked very closely with the court with a view to strengthening all of the controls on the use made of European funds. I think that’s quite contrary to the allegations made in the article.
“Vice-president Kallas recalls very good working relationships with the European Court of Auditors that were useful and productive during his mandate.”
Mr Engwirda alleged his colleagues from France, Italy, Spain, Greece, Romania and Bulgaria participated in the practice of muzzling criticism of projects to spend subsidies in their home countries.
“Nothing was said when colleagues tried to muffle up criticism of their own countries,” he said.
“These abuses were never uncovered as a result of the Kremlin-like information we provided.
“There was a practice of watering down, if not completely removing, criticism.”
A spokesman for the court in Luxembourg referred questions about the interview to the office of its president, Vitor Manuel da Silva Caldeira, but there was no response.