The European Parliament's Committee has taken the spotlight with a draft report seeking to evaluate and potentially tighten the financial reins of the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) for 2024. With stakes high, the report will ruffle feathers among budget overseers, EU prosecutors, national authorities, technology teams, and EU taxpayers. The proposed measures promise an intriguing dance between enhanced operational capacity and the prospect of budgetary constraints.
Published on December 16, 2025, this draft report on the EPPO budget comes from the European Parliament's Committee responsible for overseeing the implementation of EPPO's finances. It is a crucial checkpoint before final approval or amendments can be made.
This document is a draft report and motion outlining the discharge process in respect of the EPPO's 2024 budget, with options to grant or postpone the discharge and the closure of accounts. It lays down concrete policy proposals including calls for increased staffing levels, supplemental funding, revised legislative financial statements, and improved IT cybersecurity measures. The report is grounded in EU legal frameworks such as Article 319 of the TFEU and relevant financial regulations. However, it falls short of instituting mandatory changes outright, instead framing Parliament's formal assessment and recommendations.
The report pushes for reinforced budgetary management and staffing levels, reflecting concerns about resource gaps that could delay prosecution cases especially linked to Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) and VAT fraud investigations. It recommends greater IT autonomy coupled with intensified cybersecurity measures, reflecting a shift towards digital independence. Institutional collaboration between EPPO, OLAF, Europol, and Eurojust is urged to improve data exchange and operational synergy while proposing legislative updates to facilitate these goals. The document also prioritizes transparency and ethics by proposing whistleblowing protections, conflict-of-interest policies, and revolving-door restrictions for senior officials.
For the EPPO, increased staffing and funding could enhance case processing speed but may strain existing budgets if unmet. National authorities face increased cooperation demands and data sharing requirements, potentially adding administrative overhead. EU taxpayers might bear the financial weight of expanded resources, although improved fraud prosecution could safeguard public funds. Meanwhile, technology teams at EPPO and cooperating agencies are tasked with managing greater IT complexity and cybersecurity risks amid pushes for digital autonomy.
This draft report marks a continuation in the EU’s iterative oversight of EPPO’s financial and operational framework. The European Parliament's Committee decision is a step towards influencing the Council and Commission’s evaluations, and the Court of Auditors' future audits. It lays the foundation for possible regulatory revisions aimed at boosting EPPO’s capacities and accountability in coming years.
← Atlas › News › Budget & Administration