False accounting

Mike Stabenow made this acceso a documentos request to Tribunal de Cuentas Europeo

This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

La solicitud fue rechazada por Tribunal de Cuentas Europeo.

Dear European Court of Auditors,Dear Mr Vítor Manuel da Silva Caldeira ,

Under the right of access to documents in the EU treaties, as developed in Regulation 1049/2001, I am requesting documents which contain the following information:

On 1st March 2012 Mr Morten Messerschmidt, a member of European Parliament submitted a Parliamentary Question to Mrs Viviane Reding on the False Accounting at Danish Institute of Human Rights. This question is stored at
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getD... and reads :

“To what extent does the Commission monitor the money at the disposal of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights? This EU agency is headed, as the Commission will be aware, by its Danish director Morten Kjærum. Rigsrevisionen (the National Audit Office
of Denmark) has now revealed that there was a widespread incidence of false accounting while Mr Kjærum was head of the Danish Institute for Human Rights between 2002 and 2008, and that public funds were used, with Mr Kjærum’s knowledge, contrary to applicable
law and their intended use. Bearing in mind that the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights has a much larger budget than the Danish body, the circumstances uncovered in relation to Mr Kjærum’s period in charge of the Danish Institute for Human Rights should give rise to a comprehensive audit of the use of resources at the
EU agency, inter alia to see whether the unlawful use of public funds has continued at EU level”

In European Commission answer of 20 April 2012 Madame Reding declined EC competence on the subject stating that FRA director is responsible for all matters within his
agency and that “OLAF may also intervene whenever there are sufficiently serious suspicions of fraud, corruption or irregularities detrimental to EU financial interests.”

1. I would appreciate if you could grant me access to any relevant document or information showing if Court of Auditors looked into the matters of false accounting at DIHR, following the Parliamentary Question raised by Mr Morten Messerschmidt, a member of European Parliament.

2. In case COA looked into the false accounting matters, I request access to the relevant documents, including to any written statement submitted to COA, by Mr Morten Kjærum, or Phone call Notes, or Minutes or similar showing Mr Morten Kjærum explanations on the
false accounting happened at DIHR when he served as DIHR Director.

As COA might be aware DIHR is currently a contractor of FRA and of European Commission. The list of these contracts is published in Official Journal of EU and many of them are available in this website. This is why I request access to any relevant documents or information related to the substance of Parliamentary Question, documents which COA might have. I would like to understand if before the awarding of these contracts to DIHR, the false accounting matters was solved by Danish Authorities and thus there were legal conditions created for DIHR to apply for and win grants and contracts at FRA and European
Commission. The EC and FRA contracts are available here
http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/548/r...
http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/731/r...
http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/742/r... and also in FTS system of EC and FRA.

Other reason of asking access to these documents and information is because the Danish Ministry had cut off funding to DIHR because of “the deliberate transfer of old losses to non-existing projects that were created for this purpose”
http://cphpost.dk/news/national/foreign-...

As you know, in order to be awarded grants or contracts, DIHR have to pass some legal requirements envisaged in EU financial rules. As can be observed looking into the dates of contracts, and Danish authorities statements, DIHR was awarded contracts and EU grants
around the date Danish Ministry cut off DIHR funding.
I would like to understand if the current director of DIHR was aware about the parliamentary question by Mr Morten Messerschmidt, by false accounting at DIHR, by non-satisfactory management of External grants awarded to DIHR, including by EC.

In the frame of a grant competition organized by EC in 2012, whose contract was concluded in 2013 DIHR Director declared that everything is in order in DIHR activity as you can see in this Declaration on honor submitted to EC
http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/703/r... and in some others disclosed by EC to the public domain and
accessible at
http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/decla...
It would be much appreciated any access COA could grant to any document or useful information. Such access will contribute to the clarification of false accounting matters raised in Parliamentary Question of 1st March 2012, not yet resolved or if resolved, not
yet disclosed to the public.
Also it will clarify the entitlement of legal entities with such problems as false accounting, to access EU funds and to win grants and contract amounted to millions of euro.
In order to get clarified on the details of my request, please find it under some more relevant links:
http://um.dk/en/~/media/UM/English-site/...
http://um.dk/en/~/media/UM/English-site/...
http://cphpost.dk/news/international/aid...
http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/563/r...
http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/decla...
Thank you very much in advance for your response.

Yours faithfully,

Mike Stabenow

Dear Mr. Stabenow,

Thank you for your access to information request which we received on 18
September 2013. You have requested documents related to any relevant
document or information showing if Court of Auditors looked into the
matters of false accounting at DIHR, following the Parliamentary Question
raised by Mr Morten Messerschmidt, a member of European Parliament
First, we would like to point out that Regulation 1049/2001 does not apply
to the Court. The Court of auditors has its own decisions regarding access
to Court documents.
Secondly, you will receive an answer to your inquiry within 15 business
days, that is before the end of business of 8 October 2013.

Kindest regards,
Aidas Palubinskas

From: Mike Stabenow <[FOI #848 email]>
To: information requests at European Court of Auditors
<[European Court of Auditors request email]>
Date: 17/09/2013 20:50
Subject: access to information request - False accounting

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear European Court of Auditors,Dear Mr Vítor Manuel da Silva Caldeira ,

Under the right of access to documents in the EU treaties, as developed in
Regulation 1049/2001, I am requesting documents which contain the
following information:

On 1st March 2012 Mr Morten Messerschmidt, a member of European Parliament
submitted a Parliamentary Question to Mrs Viviane Reding on the False
Accounting at Danish Institute of Human Rights. This question is stored at
[1]http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getD...
reads :

“To what extent does the Commission monitor the money at the disposal of
the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights? This EU agency is
headed, as the Commission will be aware, by its Danish director Morten
Kjærum. Rigsrevisionen (the National Audit Office
of Denmark) has now revealed that there was a widespread incidence of
false accounting while Mr Kjærum was head of the Danish Institute for
Human Rights between 2002 and 2008, and that public funds were used, with
Mr Kjærum’s knowledge, contrary to applicable
law and their intended use. Bearing in mind that the European Union Agency
for Fundamental Rights has a much larger budget than the Danish body, the
circumstances uncovered in relation to Mr Kjærum’s period in charge of the
Danish Institute for Human Rights should give rise to a comprehensive
audit of the use of resources at the
EU agency, inter alia to see whether the unlawful use of public funds has
continued at EU level”

In European Commission answer of 20 April 2012 Madame Reding declined EC
competence on the subject stating that FRA director is responsible for all
matters within his
agency and that “OLAF may also intervene whenever there are sufficiently
serious suspicions of fraud, corruption or irregularities detrimental to
EU financial interests.”

1. I would appreciate if you could grant me access to any relevant
document or information showing if Court of Auditors looked into the
matters of false accounting at DIHR, following the Parliamentary Question
raised by Mr Morten Messerschmidt, a member of European Parliament.

2. In case COA looked into the false accounting matters, I request access
to the relevant documents, including to any written statement submitted to
COA, by Mr Morten Kjærum, or Phone call Notes, or Minutes or similar
showing Mr Morten Kjærum explanations on the
false accounting happened at DIHR when he served as DIHR Director.

As COA might be aware DIHR is currently a contractor of FRA and of
European Commission. The list of these contracts is published in Official
Journal of EU and many of them are available in this website. This is why
I request access to any relevant documents or information related to the
substance of Parliamentary Question, documents which COA might have. I
would like to understand if before the awarding of these contracts to
DIHR, the false accounting matters was solved by Danish Authorities and
thus there were legal conditions created for DIHR to apply for and win
grants and contracts at FRA and European
Commission. The EC and FRA contracts are available here
[2]http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/548/r...
[3]http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/731/r...
[4]http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/742/r...
and also in FTS system of EC and FRA.

Other reason of asking access to these documents and information is
because the Danish Ministry had cut off funding to DIHR because of “the
deliberate transfer of old losses to non-existing projects that were
created for this purpose”
[5]http://cphpost.dk/news/national/foreign-...

As you know, in order to be awarded grants or contracts, DIHR have to pass
some legal requirements envisaged in EU financial rules. As can be
observed looking into the dates of contracts, and Danish authorities
statements, DIHR was awarded contracts and EU grants
around the date Danish Ministry cut off DIHR funding.
I would like to understand if the current director of DIHR was aware about
the parliamentary question by Mr Morten Messerschmidt, by false accounting
at DIHR, by non-satisfactory management of External grants awarded to
DIHR, including by EC.

In the frame of a grant competition organized by EC in 2012, whose
contract was concluded in 2013 DIHR Director declared that everything is
in order in DIHR activity as you can see in this Declaration on honor
submitted to EC
[6]http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/703/r...
in some others disclosed by EC to the public domain and
accessible at
[7]http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/decla...
It would be much appreciated any access COA could grant to any document or
useful information. Such access will contribute to the clarification of
false accounting matters raised in Parliamentary Question of 1st March
2012, not yet resolved or if resolved, not
yet disclosed to the public.
Also it will clarify the entitlement of legal entities with such problems
as false accounting, to access EU funds and to win grants and contract
amounted to millions of euro.
In order to get clarified on the details of my request, please find it
under some more relevant links:
[8]http://um.dk/en/~/media/UM/English-site/...
[9]http://um.dk/en/~/media/UM/English-site/...
[10]http://cphpost.dk/news/international/aid...
[11]http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/563/r...
[12]http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/decla...
Thank you very much in advance for your response.

Yours faithfully,

Mike Stabenow

-------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a request for access to information under Article 15 of the TFEU
and, where applicable, Regulation 1049/2001 which has been sent via the
AsktheEU.org website.

Please kindly use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #848 email]

If [European Court of Auditors request email] is the wrong address for information requests to
European Court of Auditors, please tell the AsktheEU.org team on email
[email address]

This message and all replies from European Court of Auditors will be
published on the AsktheEU.org website. For more information see our
dedicated page for EU public officials at
[13]http://www.asktheeu.org/en/help/officers

-------------------------------------------------------------------

**********************
Disclaimer: If you have received this message in error, please contact the
sender immediately.

**********************
Avertissement : Si ce message vous a été adressé par erreur, nous vous
prions de vous mettre immédiatement en rapport avec l’expéditeur.

References

Dear Mr. Stabenow,

Regulation 1049/2001 does not apply to the European Court of Auditors.

The documents that you have requested do not exist, and thus, the European
Court of Auditors cannot provide you with non-existent documents. The
Parliamentary question you refer to was directed at the Commission, NOT
the ECA.
We draw your attention to the fact that, pursuant to the European Court of
Auditors policy on public access to information, you may make a request
for reconsideration within 15 working days of receiving this reply, and
ask the ECA to reconsider its position.

Kind regards,

Aidas Palubinskas