EU officials have asked the Office for the Fight Against Fraud (OLAF) to investigate allegations of possible corruption in the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC). This committee, based in Brussels, assists the European Union in providing advice on laws and policies.
Details of the Corruption Allegations
OLAF received a report earlier this year from whistleblowers indicating the existence of conflicts of interest in the management of the committee's financial resources. The European Economic and Social Committee is funded by the EU, making the issue of corruption very serious. OLAF has now referred this case to the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO).
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Response from the Economic and Social Committee
A spokesperson for the European Economic and Social Committee announced that the committee was informed by OLAF yesterday that the case has been sent to EPPO. He added: "Given these circumstances, the Economic and Social Committee cannot comment further and can only emphasize that the committee's president immediately and actively referred these allegations to OLAF. The committee fully respects the independence of this process." Seamus Boland from Ireland was elected as the president of this committee in October 2025.
EPPO's Executive Powers
The European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) has much stronger executive powers than OLAF. While OLAF only conducts administrative investigations, EPPO investigates crimes against the financial interests of the EU and is able to search private homes and collect evidence. OLAF is also investigating a report indicating that EESC managers attempted to identify a whistleblower who had raised financial concerns.
Anonymous letters received by OLAF indicate that IT staff at EESC were asked by senior management to identify individuals who had connected to the OLAF website in recent weeks. The European Economic and Social Committee has stated that these anonymous letters included "serious personal threats" and that these matters were not conducted through the "formal and robust whistleblower process of this committee."
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