European Public Prosecutor’s Office: Commission welcomes the agreement to appoint Ms Kövesi as the first European Chief Prosecutor

The European Parliament and the Council of the European Union agreed to appoint Laura Codruța Kövesi as the first European Chief Prosecutor. On behalf of the Commission, Commissioner for Budget and Human Resources, Günther H. Oettinger, said: “The European Commission works hard to make sure that every euro from the EU budget is spent in line with the rules and brings an EU added value. This also means effectively fighting fraud against the EU budget. So far, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) has been instrumental to that aim, and will continue its work as an independent investigation office paving the way for recoveries and other protection measures. The European Public Prosecutor will make sure that action at Union level goes one step further, and actually takes criminals to court in cases of criminal offences affecting the Union budget. I wish the newly selected Chief Prosecutor the best of luck in addressing the challenges in front of her. Both the European Commission and OLAF will support her strongly in the tasks ahead”. Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality, Vera Jourová, added: “This agreement is a strong signal that the EU is serious in fighting financial crime and in protecting the taxpayers’ money. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office offers a first-of-its-kind set-up to prioritise cross-border crime and ensure that no crime against the EU budget goes unpunished. It provides an answer to demands of European citizens and equips European prosecutors with new bold tools to investigate and prosecute these crimes at EU level. I welcome the agreement on the appointment of Ms Kövesi as the first ever European Chief Prosecutor. I have every confidence that Ms Kövesi will do an outstanding job at the head of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office. With this agreement, it will now be possible to set up the new office as planned until the end of 2020. The Commission will remain a staunch supporter of the collective efforts to fight fraud and corruption in the EU”.