Latest news with #ID-affiliated
Euractiv
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Euractiv
EXCLUSIVE: EU prosecutors open probe into far-right group linked to Le Pen
The European Public Prosecutor's Office has launched a formal investigation into allegations of misuse of EU funds by Identity and Democracy, a defunct far-right group in the European Parliament that included France's Rassemblement National, a spokesperson for EPPO said on Tuesday. The spokesperson confirmed to Euractiv that 'EPPO has opened an investigation,' following media reports that ID allegedly misused over €4.3 million in EU funds between 2019 and 2024. The spokesperson declined to comment further, citing the confidentiality of the investigation. No individuals have yet been charged and all are presumed innocent. The case follows findings from a draft audit by the European Parliament, excerpts of which were reported in early July by Le Monde , Germany's Die Zeit , and Austria's Kontraste . The audit reportedly pointed to irregular spending by ID-affiliated parties, including alleged fictitious service contracts, improper procurement procedures, and donations for non-parliamentary activities to groups with links to far-right figureheads, including France's Marine Le Pen. Philip Claeys, ID's former secretary-general, denied wrongdoing. 'All payments made in the last five years have been duly invoiced, justified and controlled,' he previously told Le Monde. EPPO is in charge of investigating serious crimes affecting the financial interests of the EU and liaises with national law enforcement for its investigations. The ID group was dissolved shortly after the last EU elections in June 2024, when it was suceeded by the Patriots for Europe group that sits in the current Parliament. The investigation adds to a growing pile of legal proceedings involving Le Pen and her party. In a separate case earlier this year, a Paris court convicted Le Pen of misusing EU funds related to parliamentary assistant jobs and deemed her ineligible to stand in elections for the next five years. She is appealing the ruling. Le Pen has dismissed the latest allegations as politically motivated. (om)
Euractiv
03-07-2025
- Business
- Euractiv
Le Pen's former far-right EU group accused of misusing €4.3m in public funds
Identity and Democracy (ID), a now-defunct far-right EU group, has allegedly misused more than €4.3 million of EU funds between 2019 and 2024, according to a Parliament's financial report, seen by Le Monde and other media. The draft audit reportedly points to suspected irregularities in how ID-affiliated members, including Le Pen's Rassemblement National (RN), spent the EU funds intended for the operational needs of political groups. This includes fictitious service contracts, improper tender procedures, and donations to associations unrelated to parliamentary activities and connected to far-right figures, Le Monde , German outlet Die Zeit, and Austrian media outlet Kontraste report . Philip Claeys, ID's former secretary-general, denied wrongdoing and defended the contracts. 'All payments made in the last five years have been duly invoiced, justified and controlled,' he told Le Monde. The fresh allegations landed only months after a Paris court found Le Pen guilty over fraudulent EU parliamentary assistant jobs (an appeal is pending). The new case not only raises the spectre of a deepening reputational crisis for her far-right party but also accusations of politically motivated judicial targeting. 'There may be administrative disagreements with the European Parliament,' and 'we are going to try, once again, to solve them," Le Pen told French radio RTL on Thursday. RN activists contracts Two French companies – Unanime and e-Politic – linked to individuals close to Le Pen and the French far-right student group GUD, have received more than €3 million from ID, which auditors suspect may have been used fraudulently. Unanime, connected to long-time RN partner Frédéric Chatillon, for example, was awarded a contract without submitting a formal bid. The company allegedly lacked printing capacity and merely took a margin on subcontracted work, pocketing an estimated €260,000 in markups at EU taxpayers' expense. Claeys, for his part, defended Unanime's choice as a partner and contested unfair tender procedures. e-Politic, run by a former RN activist, has also allegedly secured communication contracts without fair competition. Who's accountable? The ID group ceased to exist in July 2024, at the end of the 9th parliamentary term (2019-2024), and following its dissolution, the process of closing the accounts is still ongoing. As a result, it is "premature to provide any comments at this time,' said a Parliament spokesperson. The Parliament's budget control committee may refer the case to the EU's anti-fraud office (OLAF) and potentially the European Public Prosecutor's Office, tasked with prosecuting serious financial crime involving EU money. Contacted, the two watchdogs did not immediately respond to a request for comment. ID's successor group, Patriots for Europe, did not immediately reply to a request for comment. (mm)
