Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Change 46

Changed99.133. Notes that the Bureau decision of 12 June 2023 has been challenged by a 405 voluntary pension scheme beneficiaries and that they have filed a complaint in the Court of Justice ofbefore the European UnionGeneral (CJEU);Court; recalls the remarks made by the Secretary-General in the hearing of 8 December in anticipation of the ruling of the CJEUGeneral Court and the potential courses of action; notes that the General Court of the European Union ruleddecided on 17 December 2025 to dismiss the actions of the former Members; asks the administration and the Bureau to address the matter once again only after the legal assessmentand oftake the CJEU is delivered innecessary ordermeasures to considercomply with the futurejudgement of the voluntary pension scheme and Parliament’s roleGeneral therein;Court;

Annual report on contracts awarded

134. Recalls that the Financial Regulation specifies the information to be provided to the budgetary authority and to the public concerning the award of contracts by Parliament; notes that the Financial Regulation requires publication of contracts awarded with a value greater than EUR 15 000, a value that corresponds to the threshold above which a competitive tendering procedure becomes compulsory; notes that, of a total of 192 contracts awarded in 2024, 95 were based on an open procedure, with a value of EUR 814,2 million, and one on a restricted procedure, with a value of EUR 208 000; notes that 81 contracts were awarded by negotiated procedures, with a value of EUR 173 million;

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Added135. Welcomes Parliament’s publication of contracts above EUR 15 000; calls on Parliament to enhance the transparency of its procurement procedures, including by publishing structured machine-readable data wherever legally and technically feasible, and by integrating clear due diligence expectations and enforcement mechanisms into its supply chains through contract management;

136. Notes that the total number and value of contracts awarded decreased in 2024 (192) compared to 2023 (242); notes that, as a result, the number of open and negotiated procedures and their values are lower than in 2023;

Political groups (budget item 400)

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Changed102.137. Notes that 2024 was a challenging year for presenting the expenditure accounted under budget item 400 for two reasons, the first being that it was ana European election year, with expenditure split between the first half of 2024 (the ninth legislative term) and the second half of 2024 (the tenth legislative term), and the fact that the final accounts that were audited for the first half of 2024 of one of the political groups (ID Group) contained serious irregularities; notes that the first Vice-President,Vice-Presidents, in the hearing on 8 December, also indicated that there was additional information asked regarding the accounts for the second half of 2024, which was still awaited by the Bureau before taking a decision on providing the information to the discharge authority; stronglynotes regretsthe that,letter inof 20 January 2026 of the absenceParliament’s Secretary-General to the Chair of the requiredParliament’s supportingCommittee documentation,on Budgetary Control submitting the Bureauaudit cannotreports approvefor the consolidatedsecond informationhalf onof budget2024 itemfor 400;seven urgesof the Bureaueight topolitical informgroups; notes the dischargeunqualified authorityopinion aboutfor each report; notes that the relevantreport financialof informationthe forPfE budgetGroup itemfor 400the assecond soonhalf asof it2024 is available;still missing because of ongoing exchanges between that political group and Parliament’s competent services; calls on both the PfE Group and Parliament’s competent services to swiftly resolve the open issues and inform the discharge authority of the outcome;

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Changed103.138. Notes media reports accusing the Patriots for Europe (PfE)PfE Group of misusing at least EUR 171 644 in funds during the second half of 2024; notes that Parliament’s administration has requested clarification from the PfE Group; regretsnotes that documents clarifying thesethe expendituresdischarge haveauthority stillhas not yet been provided;informed but expects to be informed without delay of any further developments and of the outcome of the administrative follow-up in this matter;

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Removed104. Encourages Parliament to explore alternative arrangements to the exclusive financial responsibility entrusted to political groups; calls for strengthened oversight mechanisms within DG FINS to ensure sound financial management, effective controls and full accountability for public funds;

Added139. Notes reports by the German news magazine ‘Stern’, alleging that a Member of the Europe of Sovereign Nations (ESN) Group hosted a group congress involving staff and family members, with potential costs charged to Parliament’s budget under item 400, and that donations were allegedly collected during this event for a right-wing women’s network linked to close family and staff of ESN Group Members; recalls that expenditure under budget item 400 must be strictly limited to parliamentary activities of the political groups and fully comply with the applicable rules; urges DG FINS to investigate the case; and inform the discharge authority without delay should any non-compliance be detected;

Added140. Recalls the exclusive financial responsibility entrusted to political groups and their commitment to ensure sound financial management, effective controls and full accountability for public funds; calls for adequate oversight mechanisms within DG FINS by making more resources available;

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European political parties and European political foundations

141. Highlights that the preservation of democratic integrity and the establishment of a fair environment for European political parties and European political foundations are crucial for the effective functioning and credibility of the Union; remarks that the Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations (‘the Authority’), an independent Union body, has been actively involved in this endeavour since its establishment on 1 September 2016 and as of 1 January 2017 when it achieved its full operational status; remarks that the Authority is tasked by the Union legislator with registering, monitoring compliance, and where necessary, imposing sanctions on European political parties and European political foundations;

142. Notes with satisfaction that the Authority has been proactively reaching out and raising awareness among a network of bodies and institutions relevant to the common defence of European democracy; highlights that, in particular, the Authority worked with Parliament, which is responsible for the secretariat of the Committee of Independent Eminent Persons, to maximise procedural efficiency; notes that cooperation on the operational aspects was also strengthened with several other Union stakeholders, including the European External Action Service and the European Data Protection Board; notes that the Authority has strengthened its cooperation with Europol by signing a Memorandum of Understanding on strategic information exchange concerning cyber-enabled unlawful interference in Union democracy;

143. Notes that, in 2024, the Authority issued several preventive compliance recommendations to European political parties and foundations to address compliance risks before they materialise, especially to improve their internal processes in the area of donations, contributions and the activities they plan to organise; welcomes that the Authority also provided guidance upon request in 11 instances;

144. Notes that the Authority has, in eight cases, given the European political parties and European political foundations the opportunity for corrective measures related to financial compliance controls concerning prohibited donations, and cases of funding other entities in the context of joint activities; welcomes that the Authority continues to monitor if corrective measures with long-term effects are ensuring sustained compliance in the areas concerned; notes that the Authority adopted one sanction decision in the course of 2024;

145. Welcomes that the Authority also continued publishing extensive guidance on its website referring to the most commonly identified risk areas and potentially problematic structures in the governance of European political parties and European political foundations; welcomes that it also communicated its findings and guidance of general interest to all European political parties and European political foundations;

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Changed110.146. Welcomes the publication of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2025/2445 of the European Parliament and of the Council, which introduces new requirements for European political parties and European political foundations with the aim of strengthening democratic integrity and resilience; underlines in particular that European political parties now also have to ensure compliance of their member parties, and European political foundations of their member organisations, with the values on which the Union is founded as enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU);TEU; further notes that safeguards against foreign interference have been reinforced, and that the revised sanctions system requires sanctions for quantifiable infringements – such as breaches of donation rules or the prohibition on providing funding to national parties – to be imposed without offering an opportunity for corrective measures; positively notes in this context the comprehensive preventive guidance offered by the Authority with its Regulatory Compliance Action Plan ('R-CAP') so as to facilitate smooth and effective implementation; encourages the decision to introduce eligibility checks also within member organisations, in order to ensure full coherence of also the member organisations with the values of Article 2 TEU and to uphold democratic integrity in Parliament’s funding of European Political parties;

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147. Notes that the Authority can initiate a verification of compliance with the values upon which the Union is founded only upon a request lodged by Parliament, Council or the Commission;

148. Stresses, that in light of the widened scope of the values verification procedure, which now also applies to member parties and member organisation, and other novelties in Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2025/2445, including the welcome updates for the protection of European democracy against foreign interference, it is essential to enhance appropriately the human resources of the Authority;

149. Notes that, in 2024, the appropriations entered under budget item 402 were used as follows:

150. Notes that, in 2024, the appropriations entered under budget item 403 were used as follows: