Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

22.4.2026 A10-0080/50

Amendment 50

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Citation 23 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

– having regard to the judgments of the Court of Justice of the EU of 16 February 2022 in Cases C-156/21 Hungary v Parliament and Council and C-157/21 Poland v Parliament and Council1a confirming the legality of the Conditionality Regulation,

1a ECLI:EU:C:2022:97 & ECLI:EU:C:2022:98.

Or. en

22.4.2026 A10-0080/51

Amendment 51

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Citation 25 b (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

– having regard to the ongoing investigation opened by the EPPO in July 2025 into the alleged misuse of Union funds by the former Identity and Democracy group of the European Parliament,

Or. en

22.4.2026 A10-0080/52

Amendment 52

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 2 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

2a. Regrets that not all Member States participate in the EPPO, creating enforcement gaps that weaken the EU’s ability to protect its financial interests on a uniform basis; notes that the EPPO issued a significant number of European Investigation Orders and mutual legal assistance requests involving non-participating Member States in 2024, creating additional procedural burdens and risking the loss of evidence; reiterates the call on all remaining non-participating Member States to join the EPPO without further delay;

Or. en

22.4.2026 A10-0080/53

Amendment 53

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 3

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

3. Underlines that the rule of law is a cornerstone of the EU and is essential for protecting EU financial interests in all Member States; stresses that the rule of law conditionality mechanism must be applied where breaches directly affect the EU budget; underlines that decisions to protect EU financial interests must be based on technical and legal findings; calls on the Commission to ensure consistent and proportionate use of the mechanism, while respecting Member States’ primary responsibility for upholding rule of law principles and ensuring coherence across EU instruments;

3. Underlines that the rule of law is a cornerstone of the EU and is essential for protecting EU financial interests in all Member States; stresses that the rule of law conditionality mechanism must be applied where breaches of judicial independence, prosecutorial capacity, accountability or transparency affect or risk affecting the sound financial management of the EU budget, in line with the Court of Justice’s established case-law; underlines that decisions to protect EU financial interests must be based on technical and legal findings; calls on the Commission to ensure consistent and proportionate use of the mechanism, while respecting Member States’ primary responsibility for upholding rule of law principles and ensuring coherence across EU instruments;

Or. en

22.4.2026 A10-0080/54

Amendment 54

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 3 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

3a. Notes with grave concern the continued deterioration of the rule of law in certain Member States, in particular in Hungary, where systemic risks to the Union’s financial interests have repeatedly been identified, including by the European Court of Auditors, OLAF and the EPPO; recalls that in December 2022, the Council suspended EUR 6.3 billion in cohesion funds for Hungary under the Conditionality Regulation, and that substantial amounts remain frozen due to unresolved concerns over public procurement and anti-corruption frameworks; stresses that these findings are not political but based on objective, documented and repeatedly verified evidence; reiterates that rule-of-law conditionality is not a political instrument but a safeguard for the Union budget, to be applied consistently wherever risks materialise;

Or. en

22.4.2026 A10-0080/55

Amendment 55

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 25 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

25a. Recognises the essential role played by civil society organisations, non-governmental organisations and trade unions in monitoring the use of Union funds, reporting suspected fraud, supporting whistleblowers and providing independent scrutiny that complements the work of EU anti-fraud bodies; rejects any attempts to instrumentalise concerns about the use of Union funds by non-governmental organisations to justify generalised restrictions on civil society; recalls that disproportionate restrictions on civil society organisations are themselves a red flag for the deterioration of the rule of law;

Or. en

22.4.2026 A10-0080/56

Amendment 56

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 43 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

43a. Stresses that AI-enabled disinformation campaigns targeting EU institutions, including coordinated content designed to undermine trust in anti-fraud bodies, the Union budget and the rule of law, represent a direct risk to the Union’s financial interests by eroding public support for protective mechanisms and by providing cover for fraudulent practices; calls on the Commission, in cooperation with OLAF, the EPPO and Europol, to develop EU-wide capacity to detect, document and counter AI-enabled disinformation campaigns targeting the Union’s financial governance;

Or. en

22.4.2026 A10-0080/57

Amendment 57

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 53

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

53. Recalls that the budgetary conditionality mechanism established by the Conditionality Regulation is a legally regulated tool to prevent risks to the EU budget; notes that its application can, however, be justified only where there is a direct, real and demonstrated link between the failures found and the harm to the financial interests of the EU; expresses its concern that any extension of its scope beyond this budgetary purpose would be contrary to the spirit of the Treaties and the principle of proportionality; recalls that the legitimacy of this mechanism is based on a strictly objective application, free from any political considerations, and respectful of equal treatment between Member States; notes that its implementation has raised practical and operational challenges, as highlighted by ECA special report 03/2024 on the rule of law in the EU; calls on the Commission to apply the mechanism consistently and transparently on the basis of objective evidence;

53. Recalls that the budgetary conditionality mechanism established by the Conditionality Regulation is a legally regulated tool to prevent risks to the EU budget; recalls that the Conditionality Regulation is a budgetary safeguard designed to protect the Union budget where breaches of the principles of the rule of law affect or seriously risk affecting the sound financial management of the Union’s financial interests; recalls that the Court of Justice in Cases C-156/21 and C-157/21 confirmed the legality of the Conditionality Regulation and the broad scope of its application in protecting the Union budget from rule-of-law breaches; recalls that the legitimacy of this mechanism is based on objective application, free from double standards; stresses that systemic shortcomings in judicial independence, anti-corruption frameworks and prosecution capacity can constitute such a risk even before a direct, specific financial loss is quantified; calls on the Commission to apply the Conditionality Regulation in a timely and consistent manner wherever this standard is met, and to report annually to Parliament on its assessment of rule-of-law risks to the Union budget in each Member State;

Or. en

22.4.2026 A10-0080/58

Amendment 58

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 54

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

54. Maintains that the integrity and reputation of the EU’s institutions, bodies, offices and agencies is a core element of citizens’ trust; believes that accountability in the use of EU budget resources is crucial for democratic legitimacy, and that requirements related to transparency and the protection of the EU’s financial interests must apply equally to every beneficiary and without exception within each EU institution, including Parliament, in order to guarantee sound financial management and effective controls for public funds;

54. Recalls that the duty to protect the EU’s financial interests applies equally to all beneficiaries of Union funds, including political groups operating within the European Parliament; notes that investigations and recovery actions concerning the suspected misuse of Union funds by the former Identity and Democracy group highlight the importance of robust internal controls, effective ex post verification and swift recovery mechanisms within Parliament’s administration; calls on Parliament’s administration to complete all outstanding recovery proceedings without delay and to refer any evidence of irregular expenditure to OLAF and the EPPO; stresses that the credibility of the EU’s anti-fraud architecture depends on its consistent application to all beneficiaries, including those within Parliament itself;

Or. en

22.4.2026 A10-0080/59

Amendment 59

Daniel Freund

on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Report A10-0080/2026

Julien Sanchez

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2024

(2025/2238(INI))

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 54 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

54a. Notes that Parliament’s administration found that at least EUR 4 333 635.78 of budget item 400 appropriations were unduly spent by the former Identity and Democracy group over the 2019-2024 term, and that the EPPO opened an investigation in July 2025 into the alleged misuse of Union funds by the group; stresses that the credibility of the Union’s anti-fraud architecture requires the consistent application of transparency, accountability and recovery measures to all beneficiaries without exception; calls on Parliament’s administration, in parallel with the EPPO’s criminal investigation, to take administrative interim protective measures towards the Union’s financial interests; considers that the dissolution of the Identity and Democracy group in 2024 and the resulting financial proceedings have demonstrated that the current framework is inadequate to ensure timely detection, reporting and recovery; calls on Parliament’s Bureau to urgently review and strengthen the internal financial control framework applicable to the political groups in the European Parliament;

Or. en