EPP Group raise concerns about transparency in the Spanish National Recovery Plan

The EPP Group has raised concerns about the lack of transparency and a proper co-governance system with stakeholders and regional authorities in the management of the Spanish National Recovery Plan using the so-called Next Generation EU funds.
 
These are the main findings of EPP Group MEPs following a mission by the Budgetary Control Committee of the European Parliament to Spain to shed light on how the Government has implemented funding from the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility in 2021.
 
“After meeting with regions and stakeholders in Spain, we are very concerned that proper co-governance in the National Recovery Plan has not taken place, neither in its design nor implementation. Proposals from some regions have been ignored and they have denounced a lack of dialogue from the Central Government. The Recovery and Resilience Instrument cannot be used to discriminate against those regions with a different political colour of the national government”, said EPP Group Portuguese MEP, José Manuel Fernandes.
 
“We want to know where all the money is going. The citizens must know clearly which projects are financed by the funds and who are their beneficiaries, what impact the funding is having on the real economy.  Unfortunately, this is not happening in Spain. When the central Government transfers the funds to the regions, which are intermediary agents, the money is counted as implemented but this is misleading. The funds should only be considered as implemented when the final beneficiary receives it. These shortcomings must be improved urgently”, he explained.
 
EPP Group Spanish MEP, Isabel Benjumea, who also took part of the mission warned: “After this visit, we still do not know how much money has really arrived in the real economy and how much money has been really spent”.
 
Spain was the first country to receive a payment of EUR 10 billion from the Recovery and Resilience Facility in 2021.