Irishman Tony Murphy is at the helm of the EU financial watchdog, as President of the European Court of Auditors.
The European Court of Auditors is one of the seven EU institutions and it’s based in Luxembourg. With nearly 1,000 staff members, their role is to scrutinise the way in which EU money is spent; make it transparent, traceable and accountable. Plus, does the use of the money ultimately serve the EU citizen?
And so, one part of the job is to follow the money trail, the other is to ensure the performance or use aligns with the EU’s broader strategic priorities.
2024 has been a year of major reports, most prominently the Draghi report on EU competitiveness and the Letta report focussed more on the single market. Letta also emphasises the need for much stricter control on state aid for those most in need. Both highlight the challenges facing the EU in terms of being a global player, competitiveness, the internal market and industrial policy.
‘Sustainable’ debt versus ‘necessary investment’ is something that auditors have to consider and advise on, when thinking about the future of the EU and kicking the problem down the line, for future generations to pay for.
Tony Murphy talks passionately on the EU’s COVID recovery funds which are a huge problem in terms of following the money – it is not transparent and not easy for the auditors to see whether the money is or was actually used in the right manner as designed
They ECA examine revenue and spending in every area of the EU’s work from growth and jobs to environmental policy and climate action.
They undertake ‘performance audit’ reports which digs into whether EU action and funding is efficient and effective – does it deliver results for citizens. Naturally there are also the ‘compliance’ and financial audits to see if rules are being complied with.
For more information you can read up on their governance and structure here, their activity report for 23-24 here, and published just this week is their plan of audits for next year and beyond.
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