Tomáš Zdechovský, a leading EPP lawmaker in the budgetary control committee, emphasized the need for greater transparency in NGO funding, stating, “We have long said that not enough is being done — and we meant it.” The EPP announced that the working group would hire staff to examine all contracts awarded by the Commission to NGOs.
In recent months, right-leaning political forces in Europe have called for increased scrutiny of how NGOs are funded and how they use Commission money, causing divisions among political groups in the Parliament.
The idea for the scrutiny body began when EPP lawmakers in the budgetary control committee accused the Commission of financing NGOs to lobby Parliament on its behalf through public contracts.
In response, the right-wing European Conservatives and Reformists proposed a committee of inquiry. However, the EPP sought a compromise with the S&D and Renew, aiming to establish a less powerful working group within the budgetary control committee.
The alliance ultimately fell apart when the EPP declined to expand the working group’s scope to include all beneficiaries of EU funding.
Following a vote in Strasbourg on Thursday, Iratxe García, leader of the S&D group in Parliament, criticized the right-wing for their ongoing attacks on NGOs, accusing the EPP of aligning with the far-right. “The EPP is making a shameful alliance with the far right for their witch-hunt on NGOs,” García stated.
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