​​The European Court of Auditors is starting to assess whether the European Commission has been effective in protecting the EU’s financial interests against breaches of the rule of law in member states. The auditors will examine the steps the EU executive has taken to ensure that countries receive funding from EU coffers only when they respect the rule of law. The audit will focus on the EU’s cohesion policy and COVID-19 recovery funding.

“Violations of the rule of law, such as failures to properly investigate corruption or a lack of judicial independence, can have major financial implications within the EU, and may lead to EU money being misused in the member states.” said Annemie Turtelboom, the ECA member who will lead the audit. “Our audit will determine whether the Commission’s use of the tools at its disposal to protect the EU budget against breaches of the rule of law has been effective, in particular in cohesion and recovery funding.”